HOMILY FOR THE 22ND SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME — YEAR B
HOMILY THEME: THE DANGER OF HYPOCRISY WHICH WE ARE ALL PRONE TO
BY: Friar Tochukwu Okonkwo, OFM Cap.
Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23
The first reading (Deut. 4:1-2,6-8) tells us of the greatness of the commandments of God. If we do not take away from them i.e. if we are not selective of the commandments we keep, it becomes a qualification for dwelling in God’s tent as the Psalmist today portrays (Ps. 15:2-5).
In today’s gospel (Mk 7:1-8,15-15,21-23) Jesus condemns hypocrisy or inauthentic Christianity which begins, culminates, and ends in only external observances or religious rituals.
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The custom of washing hands was a ceremonial thing in which the hands were washed to the elbow in a certain way. It was not about hygiene but about law. Jesus would denounce their kind of religious observance that is devoid of both love of God and of neighbour but only for self-glorification.
That is why the second reading (James 1:17-18,21b-23,27) points out that we should be doers and not mere hearers of the word it then points out pure religious observances which transcends ritualistic regulations – visiting the orphans and widows in their affliction and keeping oneself unstained from the world.
LESSONS FOR TODAY
1. Jesus’ invitation to place more emphasis on the interior and not merely external religious observances is not an invitation to disorder in the Church, disregard for ecclesiastical laws, or disrespect/disregard for the Church’s hierarchy. It is an invitation to interiority and authenticity. This is where St Anthony of Padua’s teaching is valid since he enjoins us to let our actions preach and our words teach.
2. Before you judge someone, measure your love for God and your neighbour. Make sure your judgment is borne out of love for these or for the common good. We are often thrice as guilty of what we accuse people of if we do not constantly examine our lives and amend our ways.
3. Jesus calls us to purify our hearts for it could be the harbour and hatchery for all forms of impurities and sin. This invariably means that nothing one eats is capable of making one unclean. God dwells in the secret sanctuary of our hearts, and he does not judge by appearances but searches the secrets of the heart.
4. No amount of washing of hands could change a bad character. Let us not coat our bad character with hypocrisy, duplicity, pretext and condemnation of others or even by the projection of our weaknesses on others.
5. In the sacrament of penance, God creates a new heart for us. Do not joke with that sacrament. It is important to frequent it.
6. Do not let your religious observances end on only externalities. If our faith does not have interiority it collapses. We must build up love and interiority in observing the commandments. Otherwise, Isaiah’s account that “These people honour me with lip-service, yet their hearts are far from me…” (Is. 29:13) will apply to us. Lip-service makes a mockery of Christianity, it is just like washing the exterior of the cup while the inside is very dirty.
7. If our relationship with God is like an investment or business oriented then we miss the mark. Any faith built on such worldview or expectations lacks interiority and will not stand the test of time.
8. We are not meant to shop when it comes to keeping the tenets of our faith or in observing the commandments of God. The Christian doctrine does not permit one to uphold it and yet be pro-choice.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT: What are those elements in my faith that make me no better than the Pharisees and Scribes that I need to eschew? Have I based my faith and religious practices only on external things or do I labour to build up a solid relationship with God? What more can I do to build up a solid relationship with God?
Jesus desires to create a new heart in us. Let us make the prayer of the Psalmist ours “Create a clean heart, O God, and renew in me a right spirit within me.”
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