Twenty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time

Twenty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time - Year B

All of us have become very familiar with images like this over the past few years. In fact, I still have the occasional Pavlovian response to sing Happy Birthday twice in my head whilst washing my hands. So, to hear that Jesus' disciples weren't taking the time to wash their hands before eating, and that Jesus was defending them for it, might sound odd to a modern-day listener.

But a close reading of this interaction between Jesus and the Pharisees reveals that it is not about handwashing at all. Jesus takes this opportunity as a teaching moment to tell all those who were witnessing this attempted 'gotcha' that outward signs of observance are meaningless, if what comes from within is unworthy of us as people created in the image and likeness of God.

(And doesn't Jesus give us a cracking list of what to avoid? Fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, malice, deceit, indecency, envy, slander, pride and folly.)

This is not to say that outward expressions of piety have no value. The postures that we adopt in prayer, the moments that we sit, stand and kneel in the Mass; all these have their place in bringing focus to our hearts and minds. To truly have value, however, these actions need to be informed by faith - by understanding and a disposition to engage in them meaningfully.

For a long time now, I have had the privilege of working with parents that bring their children to be baptised in our parish. As part of their preparation, we ask these parents to consider why they are doing it. Because it's what people do? Because their mother-in-law won't leave them alone until they do? Or because their own faith has brought such joy and consolation into their lives that they want to share it with their children? This is what we mean by disposition. It is not just what we do, but why we do it. Our inner being engaging with the world.

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Scripture Reflections Seeking Understanding

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