Tuesday, 15 October 2024. Readings: Galatians 5:1-6, Ps. 119:41,43-45,47-48, Luke 11:37-41
“Now you Pharisees cleanse the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are full of extortion and wickedness. You fools! Did not he who made the outside make the inside also?” (Luke 11:39-40)
A few days ago, we read from St. Paul’s letter to the Galatians, where he wrote: “O foolish Galatians! … Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law, or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun with the Spirit, are you now ending with the flesh?” (Galatians 3:1-3). In today’s Gospel passage, a Pharisee invited Jesus to dinner, and right before him and his friends, Jesus addressed them as fools.
- This passage depicts Jesus as a man of integrity. Not even food was enough to bribe or prevent Him from saying the truth. How many ministers will be bold enough to address their hosts (and friends) like this today? Jesus spoke the truth to power because he was not afraid of death. You will fall for everything until you are ready to die for something. Life becomes meaningful when we overcome the fear of death.
- Why did Jesus address the Pharisees as fools? The Pharisees thought they could deceive God by their external show of religiosity. They dressed well and prayed in the marketplaces to attract the praise of men, but their hearts were “full of extortion and wickedness.” It is better to be hated for who you are than loved for who you are not. Just as the Galatians were foolish to assume that circumcision was more important than the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the Cross of Calvary, the Pharisees were foolish to assume their secrets were hidden from God.
- How do we avoid foolishness? In today’s First Reading, St. Paul says: “Stand fast therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.” (Galatians 5:1). While in today’s Gospel passage, Jesus says: “Give for alms those things which are within; and behold, everything is clean for you.” (Luke 11:41). In other words, “cleanse the inside of the cup and the outside would be clean.”
- Do you know that God will judge us even for the kind of thoughts we accommodate in our hearts? You might say, “No one knows what I am thinking… I only thought about it; I didn’t do it.” This is how the Pharisees thought, and Jesus called them fools. First, your thoughts are not hidden from God, and second, thinking evil is equivalent to doing evil. Lust is adultery, and anger is murder. (cf. Matthew 5:21-22, 27-28). “For out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks. The good man out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil man out of his evil treasure brings forth evil.” Matthew 12:34-35
- How do we cleanse what is inside us? 1. Get rid of negative thoughts. Have faith in God. Replace your worries with prayers and expect the best (cf. Hebrews 11:6). 2. Shun immoral thoughts. Stop feeding your eyes with indecent entertainment. Remember that only the pure in heart will see God. (cf. Matthew 5:8) 3. Never let a day pass without meditating on God’s Word. “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.” (Matthew 4:4). 4. Do not plan evil against others in your heart like the Pharisees who were planning to kill Jesus but invited him to dine with them. Do not be wicked or vengeful. Forgive others. 5. Avoid complaining (judging others). The Pharisees were watching Jesus to see if he would make any mistakes. They didn’t know Jesus was reading their thoughts. Jesus knew the law, but He deliberately ate without washing his hands.
- Today, we remember St Teresa of Ávila (1515 - 1582). She was born in Ávila, Spain, and entered the Carmelite convent at age 20. Despite ill-health, she made great progress in contemplative prayer and had several mystical experiences. Teresa’s prayer led her to seek a more perfect life, and in 1562, in the face of much opposition, she founded a convent of Discalced Carmelite nuns in Ávila. “Discalced” (“shoeless”) signified their devotion to poverty. St. Teresa is an outstanding example of how the contemplative life can well up and overflow into action. In addition, she wrote much on contemplative prayer, and her writings are still standard works today. She was declared a Doctor of the Church by Pope Paul VI in 1970.
- A favourite story about St Teresa illustrates the intimate relationship that the saints have with God. When she was on one of her innumerable journeys across Spain, her horse threw her as she crossed a river. Soaked to the skin, she looked to heaven and said, “If this is how you treat your friends, it’s no wonder you have so few of them!”
Let us pray: Almighty, ever-living God, teach us to clean what is inside us constantly. We ask this through Our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God forever and ever. Amen.
Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. May God’s abundant blessings be upon us all. (Saint Teresa of Ávila, Virgin, Doctor. Bible Study: Galatians 5:1-6, Ps. 119:41,43-45,47-48, Luke 11:37-41).
@Rev. Fr. Evaristus E. Abu
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