Do we love more the Law of God or the God of the Law? - Parish Version

Homily for Ordinary Time – 22^nd Sunday Year B 2012

Deuteronomy 4:1-2,6-8 • Mark 7:1-8,14-15,21-23

Introduction

What role does the law play in my relationship with God?  Does observing rules and commandments strengthen or weaken how I relate with God?  Today’s readings teach that the law can do either of these things, depending on how I choose to approach it.

Scripture and Theology

In the first reading Moses speaks very admiringly of God’s law, saying: “What great nation has statutes and decrees that are as just as this whole law which I am setting before you today?” One mark of a great nation is having just laws.

Most non-Americans like me are envious of the rule of law that more or less exists in this country.  The fact that presidents can be impeached, governors arrested and mayors prosecuted, is testimony to the rule of law.  Even TV shows, the old ones like Matlock and Columbo, the new ones like Law and Order and CSI remind us that bad things happen when people don’t obey the law.  Even the lawlessness that followed Katrina reminds us of how useful the rule of law is.

And so like many law-abiding citizens, Moses is grateful that God has given his people clear statutes and commandments.  By observing these commandments the people will live in and take possession of the Promised Land.  By observing these commandments they will be seen by other nations as a wise and intelligent people.  Moses is very clear; obey the law and you will be at peace with God.

But in the gospel, we see another side of the law.  There the law is not helpful.  The law in question is the law, which required Jews to purify themselves by washing their hands and their utensils.  And the Pharisees accuse the disciples of Jesus of not obeying this law.  But Jesus disagrees; he suggests that in applying this law, the Pharisees have completely misunderstood its purpose and are imposing an unnecessary burden on the people.

In one of my favorite sitcoms, The Big Bang Theory, we see an example of this wrong approach to the law.  In this show about a group of nerds and their girlfriends, Sheldon Cooper stands out.  Besides his annoying habit of showing off his book-smarts, Sheldon also lives by a strict adherence to routine, hygiene and rules.  Even his relationships are based on rules laid down in contracts:

·        There is the roommate agreement with Leonard that regulates all kinds of things including how long he can use the shower in the morning.

·        There is the 31-page relationship agreement with his girlfriend Amy, which regulates in Section 5 under what conditions they can hold hands.

·        As for the others, their status as friends depends on how many strikes they have accumulated or how many Cooper coupons they have earned.

Like the Pharisees, Sheldon often whips out the agreements, to point out to his friends their failings, even minor departures from the letter of the agreement.

Jesus chastises the Pharisees for misapplying the law in this way.  They have taken what was originally a well-intentioned tradition, and turned it into a burden for the people.  For the Jews, washing one’s hands before a meal was not just good hygiene or good etiquette; it was also a religious activity.  It was a sign of washing away all the impurities that one encountered as they went about the day’s work, not just physical impurities, the germs, but spiritual impurities such as hate, infidelity, lies, jealousy, envy and many others.

Jesus concedes that his disciples might be breaking the letter of this law, if it was even a law at all; but they are certainly not breaking its spirit.  Hand-washing by itself, without any inner conversion of the heart, does not purify one from the impurities of “evil thoughts, unchastity, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, licentiousness, envy, blasphemy, arrogance, folly.”  These things are found in the heart.  Jesus explains that it is hypocritical to pay mere lip service to the letter of the law, without actually doing the good that the law intends to achieve.  Isaiah and many of the prophets riled against this hypocrisy in their time, when the people obeyed the law of offering sacrifices, but did not have in their hearts that love for God that the sacrifice was supposed to represent.

Christian Life

Aside from government laws we Christians have God’s law contained in the Ten Commandments of Moses, in the seven commandments of the Church, in Canon Law, in Liturgical Law and in the general teaching of the Church.  Just like for the people of Israel and the Pharisees, these laws can either enhance our relationship with God or they can stand in the way.  Let me suggest two possible pitfalls that can make observing the law an obstacle rather than a help: a mechanical observance of the law and a hypocritical observance of the law.

If when we obey the law, all we are interested in is the letter not the spirit of the law, we are acting mechanically and failing to achieve the good of the law.

A story is told about a religious guru and his cat.  When the guru sat down to pray each evening, the cat would get in the way, as cats often do, and distract the worshipers. So he ordered that the cat be tied during evening worship.

After the guru died the cat continued to be tied during evening worship. And when the cat died, another cat was bought for the temple so that it could be duly tied during evening worship.

Centuries later, books were written by the guru’s disciples on the religious and liturgical significance of tying up a cat while worship is performed.

This is a case of disciples obeying a rule without understanding its meaning. 

We, who are law-abiding must make the effort to know, not just what God’s law wants us to do, but also why he wants us to do it that way.  If we know the spirit of the law we shall fulfill the law even better, for we shall bring about the good God wants.  When we do this, we cannot but grow in our relationship with him.

A second pitfall to avoid is a hypocritical observance of the law.  We are hypocrites when in observing the letter of the law we at the same time break the spirit of the law.  This can happen, for example, when we go to Mass and therefore fulfill our Sunday obligation, but are unkind to each other right here in the parking lot.  Attending Sunday Mass is not just about fulfilling an obligation; it is celebrating the sacrifice of the Lord on the cross and then going out to live it in our daily lives, even in things as small as giving way to another car.

As we celebrate the 10^th anniversary of Katrina, we probably remember the dire situation as people were waiting for help.  Some of these delays were caused by a rigid observance of the letter of the law, rather than its spirit.

·        It is widely agreed that the work of General Russell Honore, the commander who coordinated the military's response to Katrina, was one of the few efficient government efforts in the aftermath of the storm.  In a video-clip you can see on YouTube, the General orders the soldiers to put their guns down and to stop pointing them at American citizens.  He realized that what was needed in this situation was not a strict adherence to protocol, but a personal response to the needs of suffering people.

·        I have heard of hotel managers in other states and towns, who gave out free rooms to Katrina refugees, supermarkets that gave out free groceries, property owners who let people use their apartments for free.  These people set aside, for a moment, the letter of the law, because they wanted to observe its spirit, which is helping those in need.

Conclusion

And so in observing the law, may we always try to bring about the true purpose of God’s laws, seeking to do good and avoid evil, rather than merely paying lip service to the letter of the law.  In this way, God’s laws will not be a hindrance but a help, not a burden but a blessing, not an obstacle but an opportunity to help us grow in our love for God and our love for our neighbor.