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1 The Pharisees and some of the teachers of the law who had come from Jerusalem gathered around Jesus 2 and saw some of his disciples eating food with hands that were defiled, that is, unwashed. 3 (The Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they give their hands a ceremonial washing, holding to the tradition of the elders. 4 When they come from the marketplace they do not eat unless they wash. And they observe many other traditions, such as the washing of cups, pitchers and kettles.)

5 So the Pharisees and teachers of the law asked Jesus, “Why don’t your disciples live according to the tradition of the elders instead of eating their food with defiled hands?”

6 He replied, “Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written:

“‘These people honor me with their lips,

but their hearts are far from me.

7 They worship me in vain;

their teachings are merely human rules.’

8 You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to human traditions.”

9 And he continued, “You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions! 10 For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and mother,’ and, ‘Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death.’ 11 But you say that if anyone declares that what might have been used to help their father or mother is Corban (that is, devoted to God)— 12 then you no longer let them do anything for their father or mother. 13 Thus you nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And you do many things like that.”

 

I recall a scene from the movie Titanic, when Rose was touring the deck of the boat with the ship’s architect on a sunny day, early in the voyage. She pointed out that there did not seem to be enough lifeboats for everyone aboard. “But half, actually,” he said. “It was thought, by some, that having any more would make the deck look too cluttered.”

Well, from the image of the deck as they walked along, I agree with those who said that having twice as many lifeboats may have made the deck look cluttered. It was much neater and tidier to have only enough lifeboats on board for half the passengers. Therefore, this was the correct decision to make, wasn’t it?

You see where I’m going.

We make many of life’s decisions based on what will give the best outward appearance. The Pharisees reference to washing referred to a particular ceremonial washing—first one hand, then the other, accompanied by specific prayers and nuances, and done so in a public way. It had little to do with germs and cleanliness.

It’s not that having a tidy deck on a beautiful ship is a bad thing. But are other things more important, so maybe some clutter is worth it?

It’s not that ritual cleansing is a bad thing, especially when done in true devotion to God. I find it a beautiful ritual, personally. Ritual cleansing before meals is a practice among Orthodox Jews to this day. For instance, if you go to Saint Louis and visit a retirement center in the Jewish community, you will be sure to find a young associate Rabbi from the nearby Temple visiting to clean, inspect and pray over the vegetables each morning; Kosher separation of food items in the pantry and cooking areas; and a hand washing station with a pitcher and basin of water and laminated Hebrew prayers in the dining area for residents’ use.

It is lovely and honorable.

But if any of God’s faithful people—Jews, Christians, or any of us, become so obsessed, as Jesus confronts the Pharisees that day, with various types of “works” that we forget the heart of our faith, which is love...is it worth it?

I struggle with this as much as anyone. As a parent, I sometimes focus more on the works of my household than the grace and love that we are called to embody as a family. That creates a darker atmosphere that I want to have in my home and my kids’ spirits. In the church, it can be difficult for me to remember to place compassion toward my neighbor above how I want things to look and the traditions that I feel we need to keep, which are often only of human invention. These are some examples in my life. What are some in yours?

We pray: Dear God, together we confess that we find grace, beauty and peace in too much of our own work. Help us to entrust that your work is enough for us, and to rest in your love, so that we may devote ourselves to the true heart of our faith. In our Savior’s name we pray. Amen.

Pastor Beverly Struckmann

pastorbev@livinglord.org