Be and Do your best at home!

Luke 4:38-44

38 He left the meeting place and went to Simon's house. Simon's mother- in- law was running a high fever and they asked him to do something for her. 39 He stood over her, told the fever to leave-- and it left. Before they knew it, she was up getting dinner for them. 40 When the sun went down, everyone who had anyone sick with some ailment or other brought them to him. One by one he placed his hands on them and healed them. 41 Demons left in droves, screaming, "Son of God! You're the Son of God!" But he shut them up, refusing to let them speak because they knew too much, knew him to be the Messiah. 42 He left the next day for open country. But the crowds went looking and, when they found him, clung to him so he couldn't go on. 43 He told them, "Don't you realize that there are yet other villages where I have to tell the Message of God's kingdom, that this is the work God sent me to do?" 44 Meanwhile he continued preaching in the meeting places of Galilee.

Food for thought!

There are great truths in this short incident.

(i) Jesus was always ready to serve. He had just left the synagogue. But no sooner had Jesus left the synagogue and entered Peter's house than the insistent cry of human need was at him. He did not claim that he was tired and must rest; he answered it without complaint.

(ii) Jesus did not need a crowd to work a miracle. Many people will put out an effort in a crowd that they will not make among their own private circle. Many of us are at our best at work and at our worst at home. All too commonly we are gracious, courteous, generous and polite to outsiders and the very opposite when at home. But Jesus was prepared to put out all his power in a small home. Be and do your best at home, first.

(iii) When Peter's mother-in-law was cured immediately she began to serve them. She realized that she had been given back her health to spend it in the service of others. She wanted no fussing and no petting; she wanted to get on with cooking and serving her own folk and Jesus. Mothers are always like that. We would do well to remember that if God gave us the priceless gift of health and strength, he gave it that we might use it always in the service of others.

(iv) Early in the morning Jesus went out to be alone. He was able to meet the insistent needs of men only because he first companied with God. Once, in the 1914-18 war, a staff conference was due to begin. All were present except Marshal Foch, the commander-in-chief. An officer who knew him well said, "I think I know where we may find him." He led them round to a ruined chapel close beside General Headquarters and there, before the shattered altar, the great soldier was kneeling in prayer. Before he met men he must first meet God.

(v) There is no word of complaint or resentment when Jesus' privacy was invaded by the crowds. Prayer is great but in the last analysis human need is greater. Pray we must; but prayer must never be an escape from reality; going to church should never be an escape from going to market place. Prayer cannot preserve us from the insistent cry of human need. It must prepare us for it; and sometimes we will need to rise from our knees too soon and get to attend human need.

As you know, we shall be judged by our attention to human need: "I was hungry, and you gave me something to eat. I was thirsty, and you gave me something to drink. I was a stranger, and you took me into your home. 36 I needed clothes, and you gave me something to wear. I was sick, and you took care of me. I was in prison, and you visited me" (Mt 25,35-36).

Close to the Lord means away from the devil!

Luke 4:31-37

31 He went down to Capernaum, a village in Galilee. He was teaching the people on the Sabbath. 32 They were surprised and impressed-- his teaching was so forthright, so confident, so authoritative, not the quibbling and quoting they were used to. 33 In the meeting place that day there was a man demonically disturbed. He screamed, 34 "Ho! What business do you have here with us, Jesus? Nazarene! I know what you're up to. You're the Holy One of God and you've come to destroy us!" 35 Jesus shut him up: "Quiet! Get out of him!" The demonic spirit threw the man down in front of them all and left. The demon didn't hurt him. 36 That set everyone back on their heels, whispering and wondering, "What's going on here? Someone whose words make things happen? Someone who orders demonic spirits to get out and they go?" 37 Jesus was the talk of the town.

Food for thought!

In the meeting place that day there was a man demonically disturbed! This is strange. Someone in the prayer meeting was possessed! Why would a possessed man go to a prayer meeting? And why could the other people stay in tranquility with a demon possessed man? Were they not aware that one of them was under the grip of the devil? Or was it that the possessed man pretended to be ok.

Be it as it may, there are things in us that escape us. There are things that we cannot know on our own; we need the Lord to know ourselves. Only with Jesus can we discover what's hidden in us and among us. Without Jesus we really don't know ourselves, we don't know one another. The gospel says that as soon as Jesus showed up, the devil showed himself and screamed aloud "Ho! What business do you have here with us, Jesus? Nazarene! I know what you're up to. You're the Holy One of God and you've come to destroy us!"

The devil did not and could not stay silent before Jesus. This means that while the devil can manage to stay silent among us, it cannot with Jesus. It means that the best way to fight devils and all evil spirits is by staying close to Jesus. "So place yourselves under God’s authority. Resist the devil, and he will run away from you." (James 4:7).

"Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith." (1 Peter 5:8-9).

"Put on the whole armour of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil." (Ephesians 6:11-12).

God custom-made us!

Luke 4:16-30

He came to Nazareth where he had been reared. As he always did on the Sabbath, he went to the meeting place. When he stood up to read, he was handed the scroll of the prophet Isaiah. Unrolling the scroll, he found the place where it was written,

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has chosen me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free the oppressed and announce that the time has come

when the Lord will save his people.”

Jesus rolled up the scroll, handed it back to the assistant, and sat down. Every eye in the place was on him, intent. Then he started in, “You’ve just heard Scripture make history. It came true just now in this place.”

All who were there, watching and listening, were surprised at how well he spoke. But they also said, “Isn’t this Joseph’s son, the one we’ve known since he was a youngster?” He answered, “I suppose you’re going to quote the proverb, ‘Doctor, go heal yourself. Do here in your hometown what we heard you did in Capernaum.’ Well, let me tell you something: No prophet is ever welcomed in his hometown. Isn’t it a fact that there were many widows in Israel at the time of Elijah during that three and a half years of drought when famine devastated the land, but the only widow to whom Elijah was sent was in Sarepta in Sidon? And there were many lepers in Israel at the time of the prophet Elisha but the only one cleansed was Naaman the Syrian.”

That set everyone in the meeting place seething with anger. They threw him out, banishing him from the village, then took him to a mountain cliff at the edge of the village to throw him to his doom, but he gave them the slip and was on his way.

Food for thought

What on earth am I here for? This is the question that Jesus answers in today's gospel reading. Jesus knows why he came down to earth: "to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free the oppressed and announce that the time has come

when the Lord will save his people.”

These words are the Jesus' Personal Mission Statement. They're his resume, his CV. Jesus knows why came. This is Jesus. What about you and I?

If you want to know why you were placed on this planet, you must begin with God, because you were born by his purpose and for his purpose. You didn't create yourself, so there is no way you can tell yourself what you were created for. You must begin with God, your Creator.

Did you notice how Jesus came to know his purpose? It was by reading the Bible. The gospel says, "He came to Nazareth where he had been reared. As he always did on the Sabbath, he went to the meeting place. When he stood up to read, he was handed the scroll of the prophet Isaiah. Unrolling the scroll, he found the place where it was written." In other words, the starting point is the Word of God, the Bible. When Jesus opened the Bible he saw himself in it. In other words, Jesus' destiny had already been foretold, by the prophet Isaiah.

It is only in the Word of God that we discover our origin, our identity, our meaning, our purpose, our significance, and our destiny. Every other path leads to dead end. You may choose your career, your spouse, your hobbies, and many other parts of your life, but you don't get to choose your purpose in life.

None of us is an accident. Our birth was no mistake or mishap, and our life is no fluke of nature. Our parents may not have planned us, but God did. He was not at all surprised by our birth. In fact, he expected it. He custom-made our body just the way he wanted it. He also determined the natural talents each one of us would possess and the uniqueness of our personality. This is what Jesus said, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has chosen me to...!" Yes, God custom-made each one of us for a purpose, for something very special. Do you know yours?

They watched Jesus & Jesus watched them!

Luke 14:1.7-11

1 One time when Jesus went for a Sabbath meal with one of the top leaders of the Pharisees, all the guests had their eyes on him, watching his every move. 7 He went on to tell a story to the guests around the table. Noticing how each had tried to elbow into the place of honour, he said, 8 "When someone invites you to dinner, don't take the place of honour. Somebody more important than you might have been invited by the host. 9 Then he'll come and call out in front of everybody, 'You're in the wrong place. The place of honour belongs to this man.' Red-faced, you'll have to make your way to the very last table, the only place left. 10 "When you're invited to dinner, go and sit at the last place. Then when the host comes he may very well say, 'Friend, come up to the front.' That will give the dinner guests something to talk about! 11 What I'm saying is, If you walk around with your nose in the air, you're going to end up flat on your face. But if you're content to be simply yourself, you will become more than yourself."

Food for thought!

This passage tells us certain things about Jesus and his enemies. It shows us the serenity with which Jesus met life. There is nothing more trying than to be under constant and critical scrutiny. When that happens to most people they lose their nerve and, even more often, lose their temper. They become irritable; and while there may be greater sins than irritability there is none that causes more pain and heartbreak.

But even in things which would have broken most men's spirit, Jesus remained serene. If we live with him, he can make us like himself.

It is to be noted that Jesus never refused any man's invitation of hospitality. He could turn any occasion into graceful moment to teach us some eternal truth. Jesus would not refuse even an enemy's invitation. It is as clear as daylight that we will never make our enemies our friends if we refuse to meet them and talk with them.

They watched Jesus' every move; but Jesus watched them too, with his divine eye. The gospel says that, "Noticing how each had tried to elbow into the place of honour". Jesus also notices us; looks at us; observes us! And when he sees us, he sees us from inside out; he sees our motivations and intentions.

On this occasion Jesus chose a homely illustration to illustrate what he saw. If a quite undistinguished guest arrived early at a feast and annexed the top place, and if a more distinguished person then arrived, and the man who had usurped the first place was told to step down, a most embarrassing situation resulted. If, on the other hand, a man deliberately slipped into the bottom place, and was then asked to occupy a more distinguished place, his humility gained him all the more honour.

Humility has always been one of the characteristics of great people; the great are humble.

Why we need humility?

We need it after realizing the facts. However much we know, we still know very little compared with the sum total of knowledge. However much we have achieved, we still have achieved very little in the end. However important we may believe ourselves to be, when death removes us or when we retire from our position, life and work will go on just the same.

We need it when we stand beside the perfect. It is when we see or hear the expert that we realize how poor our own performance is. And if we set our lives beside the life of Jesus, if we saw our unworthiness in comparison with the radiance of his stainless purity, our pride would die and be replaced by humility.

Dare to risk!

Matthew 25:14-30

Jesus said to the people that the kingdom of heaven "is also like a man going off on an extended trip. He called his servants together and delegated responsibilities. 15 To one he gave five thousand dollars, to another two thousand, to a third one thousand, depending on their abilities. Then he left. 16 Right off, the first servant went to work and doubled his master's investment. 17 The second did the same. 18 But the man with the single thousand dug a hole and carefully buried his master's money. 19" After a long absence, the master of those three servants came back and settled up with them. 20 The one given five thousand dollars showed him how he had doubled his investment. 21 His master commended him: 'Good work! You did your job well. From now on be my partner.' 22 "The servant with the two thousand showed how he also had doubled his master's investment. 23 His master commended him: 'Good work! You did your job well. From now on be my partner.' 24" The servant given one thousand said, 'Master, I know you have high standards and hate careless ways, that you demand the best and make no allowances for error. 25 I was afraid I might disappoint you, so I found a good hiding place and secured your money. Here it is, safe and sound down to the last cent.' 26 "The master was furious. 'That's a terrible way to live! It's criminal to live cautiously like that! If you knew I was after the best, why did you do less than the least? 27 The least you could have done would have been to invest the sum with the bankers, where at least I would have gotten a little interest. 28 29"' Take the thousand and give it to the one who risked the most. And get rid of this "play- it- safe" who won't go out on a limb. 30 Throw him out into utter darkness. '

Food for thought

In this parable Jesus tells us that there can be no life without adventure, and that God can find no use for the person afraid of adventure. Because he expects you and me to adventure, God gifted us. One man received five talents, another two, and another one. It is not a man's talent, which matters; what matters is how he uses it. God never demands from a man abilities which he has not got; but he does demand that a man should use to the full the abilities which he does possess. We are not equal in talent; but we can be equal in effort. The parable tells us that whatever talent we have, little or great, we must put to work.

Jesus still teaches us that the reward of work well done is still more work to do. The two servants who had done well are not told to lean back and rest because they have done well. They are given greater tasks and greater responsibilities in the work of the master.

The man who is punished is the man who will not try. Even in real life, the people who are punished by life are the people who do not want to try. The man with the one talent did not lose his talent; he simply did nothing with it. Even if he had adventured with it and lost it, it would have been better than to do nothing at all. It is always a temptation for the people with less to do even less.

Jesus lays down a rule of life which is universally true. It tells us that to him who has more will be given, and he who has not will lose even what he has. The meaning is this. If a man has a talent, a gift, an ability and exercises it, he is progressively able to do more with it. But, if he has a talent and fails to exercise it, he will inevitably lose it.

If we have some proficiency at a game or an art, if we have some gift for doing something, the more we exercise that proficiency and that gift, the harder the work and the bigger the task we will be able to tackle. Whereas, if we fail to use it, we lose it. That is equally true of playing golf or playing the piano, or singing songs or writing sermons, or carving wood or thinking out ideas. It is the lesson of life that the only way to keep a gift is to use the gift; the only way forward is to move forward; more breeds more; less breeds less; the rich get richer; the poor get poorer; the good get better; the bad get worse.

Don't procrastinate!

Matthew 25:1-13

1 "God's kingdom is like ten young virgins who took oil lamps and went out to greet the bridegroom. 2 Five were silly and five were smart. 3 The silly virgins took lamps, but no extra oil. 4 The smart virgins took jars of oil to feed their lamps. 5 The bridegroom didn't show up when they expected him, and they all fell asleep. 6" In the middle of the night someone yelled out, 'He's here! The bridegroom's here! Go out and greet him!' 7 "The ten virgins got up and got their lamps ready. 8 The silly virgins said to the smart ones, 'Our lamps are going out; lend us some of your oil. 9" They answered, 'There might not be enough to go around; go buy your own.' 10 "They did, but while they were out buying oil, the bridegroom arrived. When everyone who was there to greet him had gone into the wedding feast, the door was locked. 11" Much later, the other virgins, the silly ones, showed up and knocked on the door, saying, 'Master, we're here. Let us in.' 12 "He answered, 'Do I know you? I don't think I know you.' 13" So stay alert. You have no idea when he might arrive.

Food for thought

Jesus, by this parable, is teaching us at least two universal lessons:

(i) He teaches us that there are certain things which cannot be obtained at the last minute. It is easy to leave spiritual things so late that we can no longer do anything. To be late is always tragedy. Don't leave for later what you can do now; don't leave things for the last hour. Be prepared. Don't procrastinate.

(ii) He teaches us that there are certain things which cannot be given nor borrowed. The wise virgins couldn't give their oil, and the foolish virgins found it impossible to borrow oil, when they discovered they needed it. We cannot borrow a relationship with God or with any human; we must possess it for ourselves. We cannot borrow goodness; we must be clothed with it; we cannot pass on to others our goodness, our faith, our love, our dedication, our talents.

We cannot always be living on the spiritual capital which others have amassed. There are certain things we must win or acquire for ourselves, for we cannot borrow them from others. Because you live with a good and holy person is no guarantee that you're good and holy; you must be good yourself. If you live next to a devout person does not mean that automatically you too are devout.

Bad things do happen to good people!

Mark 6:17-29

17 Herod was the one who had ordered the arrest of John, put him in chains, and sent him to prison at the nagging of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife. 18 For John had provoked Herod by naming his relationship with Herodias "adultery." 19 Herodias, smoldering with hate, wanted to kill him, but didn't dare 20 because Herod was in awe of John. Convinced that he was a holy man, he gave him special treatment. Whenever he listened to him he was miserable with guilt, and yet he couldn't stay away. Something in John kept pulling him back. 21 But a portentous day arrived when Herod threw a birthday party, inviting all the brass and bluebloods in Galilee. 22 Herodias's daughter entered the banquet hall and danced for the guests. She dazzled Herod and the guests.

The king said to the girl, "Ask me anything. I'll give you anything you want." 23 Carried away, he kept on, "I swear, I'll split my kingdom with you if you say so!" 24 She went back to her mother and said, "What should I ask for?" "Ask for the head of John the Baptizer." 25 Excited, she ran back to the king and said, "I want the head of John the Baptizer served up on a platter. And I want it now!" 26 That sobered the king up fast. But unwilling to lose face with his guests, he caved in and let her have her wish. 27 The king sent the executioner off to the prison with orders to bring back John's head. He went, cut off John's head, 28 brought it back on a platter, and presented it to the girl, who gave it to her mother. 29 When John's disciples heard about this, they came and got the body and gave it a decent burial.

Food for thought

This passage is one of the saddest in the entire Bible. It records the events surrounding the death of John the Baptist. He was a special man, chosen for a special mission. He was the “forerunner” of the Messiah. He was the fulfilment of several Old Testament prophecies. He was the last of the Old Testament prophets. He was the last martyr of the Old Testament period and the first of the New Testament period. He was a powerful preacher. He was a fearless prophet. He was a true man of God. As Jesus Christ Himself testified, “Among them that are born of women there has not risen a greater than John the Baptist,” (Matt. 11:11). Why? Because bad things sometimes do happen to good people.

Contrary to John was Herod.

Herod was an odd mixture. At one and the same time he feared John and respected him. At one and the same time he dreaded John's tongue and yet found pleasure in listening to him. There is nothing in this world so queer a mixture as a human being. Herod could fear John and love him, could hate his message and yet not be able to free himself from its insistent fascination. Herod hated and loved the same man at the same time.

Convinced that John was a holy man, Herod gave him special treatment. Whenever he listened to him he was miserable with guilt, and yet he couldn't stay away. Something in John kept pulling him back. Herod was a man who acted on impulse. He made his reckless promise to Salome without thinking. We do well to think before we speak.

Herod feared what people might say. He kept his promise to Salome because he had made it in front of his guests and was unwilling to break it. He feared their jeers, their laughter; he feared that they would think him weak. Many of us do things we afterwards bitterly regret because we had not the moral courage to do the right thing; we do things right and not the right thing. And that is what Herod did.

At the centre of the controversy was Herodias.  She shows us what a wicked woman can do. There is nothing in this world as good as a good woman, and nothing as bad as a bad woman. The trouble with Herodias was that she wished to eliminate the one man who had the courage to confront her with her sin. She wished to do as she liked with no one to remind her of the moral law. She murdered John that she might sin in peace. She forgot that while she need no longer meet John, she still had to meet God.

Herodias had been waiting for an opportunity to see John the Baptist put to death. She saw her chance at Herod’s birthday party. This party was nothing more than a drunken party for Herod and his men. When they were all drunk with wine, Herodias seized the moment.

She sent in her teenage daughter Salome to dance for Herod and his friends. This particular dance would have been a suggestive, sensual, sexual dance designed to inflame the passions of the men in the room. Her dance had the desired effect, for Herod and those with him were captivated by the girl. Herodias was a wicked woman. Imagine putting your daughter on display in that fashion. Imagine sending her out to dance for a man who was both her uncle and step-father! What wickedness!

We are all learners!

Matthew 23:8-12

8-10 Jesus said to his disciples: “Don’t let people do that to you, put you on a pedestal like that. You all have a single Teacher, and you are all classmates. Don’t set people up as experts over your life, letting them tell you what to do. Save that authority for God; let him tell you what to do. No one else should carry the title of ‘Father’; you have only one Father, and he’s in heaven. And don’t let people maneuver you into taking charge of them. There is only one Life-Leader for you and them—Christ.

11-12 “Do you want to stand out? Then step down. Be a servant. If you puff yourself up, you’ll get the wind knocked out of you. But if you’re content to simply be yourself, your life will count for plenty.

Food for thought!

There's lot of food for thought for all of us in today's gospel reading. You can't read it and talk; its best response is silence.  It is a reading that reminds us a number of things that need to be corrected in our faith, our lives, our (Catholic) Church, in our world. Jesus is saying that we are all standing on level ground; nobody should pretend to stand on higher ground than others: "Don't let people do that to you, put you on a pedestal like that. You all have a single Teacher, and you are all classmates."

Why did Christ say these words? Because he is our saviour; he came to save us from bad practices, bad traditions, bad customs, bad policies. He came to show us the right way of living and being. He came to teach us; "You all have a single Teacher, and you are all classmates." This means that only Jesus can and must tell us what to do. In other words, " Don't set people up as experts over your life, letting them tell you what to do. Save that authority for God; let him tell you what to do."

Jesus warns us against divinizing humans. In other words, if any human, church member or politician, or any relative or friend, tells you anything that contradicts Jesus don't do it; only God can dictate to us.

A preacher is no better than the people in the pews! He is one of them, struggling like anybody, and given a call to proclaim the Goodnews to his or her brothers and sisters, but that is all! He is not to be exalted. He is not to be worshiped. He is not to be viewed as a superior, but as an equal in the eyes of God! "You all have a single Teacher, and you are all classmates."

If anybody whosoever tell you anything contradictory to what Jesus teaches you to do and be, don't do it. Nobody, should tell us to do what is contradictory to the gospel. Only God can tell us what to do. And He has told us whom to listen to, "This is my beloved Son, listen to him!"

Be genuine!

Matthew 23:23-26

Jesus said, "You're hopeless, you religion scholars and Pharisees! Hypocrites! You keep meticulous account books, tithing on every nickel and dime you get, but on the meat of God's Law, things like fairness and compassion and commitment-- the absolute basics!-- you carelessly take it or leave it. Careful bookkeeping is commendable, but the basics are required. 24 Do you have any idea how silly you look, writing a life story that's wrong from start to finish, nitpicking over commas and semicolons? 25 "You're hopeless, you religion scholars and Pharisees! Hypocrites! You burnish the surface of your cups and bowls so they sparkle in the sun, while the insides are maggoty with your greed and gluttony. 26 Stupid Pharisee! Scour the insides, and then the gleaming surface will mean something.

Food for thought!

Jesus continues from where he left off yesterday. He calls his contemporaries, the "religious", as hypocrites. What does this word mean? Originally, hypocrite was the regular Greek word for an actor, like in plays. It used to mean something amusing. But then it came to mean an actor in the worse sense of the term, a pretender, one who acts a part, one who wears a mask to cover his true feelings, one who puts on an external show while inwardly his thoughts and feelings are very different.

To Jesus the Scribes and Pharisees were men who were religious actors. What he meant was this. Their whole idea of religion consisted in outward observances, the wearing of elaborate garments and vestments, the meticulous observance of the rules and regulations of the Law. But in their hearts there was bitterness and envy and pride and arrogance. To Jesus these Scribes and Pharisees were men who, under a mask of elaborate godliness, concealed hearts in which the most godless feelings and emotions held sway.

That accusation holds good in greater or lesser degree of anybody, including you and me, whose life is on the assumption that religion consists in external observances and external acts. Religion is an act of the heart. The laws and rules and rituals and ceremonies are intended to be manifestations of our heart. When this does not correspond to those, when that which happens in the heart is different from religious laws and rules and rituals and ceremonies, we become mere actors, we become hypocritical. In theaters and plays this kind of hypocrisy is accepted and even expected; in religion it is condemned because it is sinful. In religion, we are called to be genuine and not actors.

Monday 26 Aug - Doing the right thing x Doing things right!

Mt 23:13-22

13 "I've had it with you! You're hopeless, you religion scholars, you Pharisees! Frauds! Your lives are roadblocks to God's kingdom. You refuse to enter, and won't let anyone else in either. 15" You're hopeless, you religion scholars and Pharisees! Frauds! You go halfway around the world to make a convert, but once you get him

you make him into a replica of yourselves, double- damned. 16 "You're hopeless! What arrogant stupidity! You say, 'If someone makes a promise with his fingers crossed, that's nothing; but if he swears with his hand on the Bible, that's serious.' 17 What ignorance! Does the leather on the Bible carry more weight than the

skin on your hands? 18 And what about this piece of trivia: 'If you shake hands on a promise, that's nothing; but if you raise your hand that God is your witness, that's serious'? 19 What ridiculous hair splitting! What difference does it make whether you shake hands or raise hands? 20 22 A promise is a promise. What difference does it make if you make your promise inside or outside a house of

worship? A promise is a promise. God is present, watching and holding you to account regardless.

Food for thought!

Woe to them and to us!

You must have heard the expression: Doing the right thing and doing things right! This expression is about two attitudes that characterize all of us; we're either on the side doing the right thing or on the side of doing things right. Today's Gospel is also about these two attitudes. Jesus is on the side of doing the right thing, while the so called religious people of his time are after doing things right, that is, practicing religion according to the laws and traditions of the elders.

The religious people of Jesus' time were hypocrites. A hypocrite was an actor,

a pretender, one who acted a part as in theatre, one who wore a mask to cover his true feelings, one who put on an external show while inwardly his thoughts and

feelings were very different.

To Jesus the Scribes and Pharisees were simply actors. Their whole idea of religion consisted in outward observances, the wearing of elaborate clothes, the meticulous observance of the rules and regulations of the Law. But in their

hearts there was bitterness and envy and pride and arrogance. To Jesus these Scribes and Pharisees were men who, under a mask of elaborate godliness, concealed hearts in which the most godless feelings and emotions held sway. And that accusation holds good in greater or lesser degree of anyone who lives life on the assumption that religion consists in external observances and external acts.

Religion is first and foremost an inside experience; it is our spirit talking to God, and God talking to our spirit. The external acts of religion are meant to reflect and mirror the internal acts of the spirit. Not vice versa. The same with religious rules and regulations; they're are not meant to complicate but to enhance the inner religious experience. If and when they begin to compromise religion, they cease to be relevant.

The Lord save us from hypocrisy, from seeming to be religious when we are not. Let us strive to really be and not just seem to be religious, to really be good and not just seem to be good, to really love and not just seem to love, to be Christians and not just seem to be Christians.