Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time - Year B

 The readings for the Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time - Year B may be found at:  

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/090124.cfm

Over the past several weekends, we’ve heard St. John’s bread of life discourse where Jesus’ followers were challenged by eating our Lord’s flesh and blood.

This weekend, the evangelist, St. Mark shows us something no less challenging.

The Pharisees are watching Jesus and his followers very closely.

Looking for any slip-up to attack His credibility and discredit His teachings.

And they get their opening.

As Jesus and His followers gather for a meal, the Pharisee’s notice they fail to wash their hands before eating. 

Now to be clear - this isn’t about hygiene.

Everyone knows it’s proper to wash your hands before eating.

But for the Pharisees, washing hands before eating was a way of showing the overall purity of a person.

One of many observable signs required by Jewish purity laws.

Man-made requirements, wrongly elevated to an equal level with the Law of God.

You can imagine the Pharisees salivating over the smear campaign they would wage against Jesus for not following the law.

But instead, Jesus responds with a scathing commentary on what really makes a person unclean.

Saying that they reject the commandment of God while holding high their own tradition.  Ouch.

Jesus goes on to teach that a person is clean or unclean by what is inside, not outside.

And through this teaching, Jesus reveals a deeper truth - not about unclean hands - but about unholy hearts.

Now, outward signs are not just a Jewish concept.

In Catholicism, especially, we have many beautiful practices intended to deepen our faith.

But, Jesus tells us - we must not value these rituals over the internal state of our hearts. 

Let’s look at what this could mean through some examples.

Attending Mass regularly is a great gift.  

But do we treat it like a to do list item, our minds elsewhere during Mass; not fully engaging in the worship of God,

Do we present ourselves to receive Jesus in Holy Communion without being properly disposed to do so?   

Do we go to communion even when we know we shouldn’t, when we know we haven’t recently had a good sacramental confession?

Do we pray the rosary or wear the brown scapular or practice other devotions, so other people will see how holy we are, 

while our hearts secretly harbor resentment or unforgivness or uncharity towards others,

As I reflected on these points, I was reminded of a phrase my wife says to me about - “rearranging the deckchairs on the Titanic.” 

Those deckchairs sure are lined up nice, but does any of that really matter when the ship is sinking?

I think that is what Jesus is trying to tell us today.

He calls us to a deeper, more authentic faith to be lived from the inside out.

To grow in the holiness of heart, not just to look more holy on the outside - rearranging the deckchairs as it were.

Now if we want to truly grow in holiness, there are many practical things we can do.

We can participate frequently in Mass, leaving appropriate time for prayer before and after mass and offering the proper reverence rightfully due to our God.

We can have a regular sacramental Confession to be properly predisposed to receive Jesus in the Eucharist.  

Confession times are listed in the bulletin - and if those don’t work, our priests would be delighted to schedule an appointment with you at a more convenient time.

We can attend Eucharistic Adoration, which is from 3pm to 6:30 pm each Wednesday night here in the Church.  Pop in for just a few minutes and spend some time with Jesus.

And there are so many other practical things we can do to grow in holiness:

Personal Prayer.  Talk to God in your own words.  

Listen to what God is trying to say to you.

Spend time with Sacred Scripture or read about the lives of the saints, even if only for 5 minutes each day.

Pray the rosary as you go about your day.

Examine your conscience before going to bed.

Go on a retreat or day of reflection.

Build genuine relationships within our parish community.

Join a bible study.

Forgive someone who may not deserve it.

Show love to others through small acts of kindness.

Growing in holiness is not about purifying our hands; it’s about purifying our hearts.

About allowing God’s love to transform us from the inside out.

We just need to do our part.

If we do that,

God will do the rest.