In today’s Gospel we hear religious leaders chastising Jesus
that He and his disciples do not always follow the Jewish laws and traditions
(i.e. not performing the correct washing of hands before and after meals, etc.).
Does Jesus think all laws are useless? In today’s Gospel Jesus is not being
antinomian; He is not promoting getting rid of laws and traditions but helping
us to understand the deeper meaning and value behind them.
Laws and traditions exist to provide us a pathway to what is good,
to our human flourishing that we might
have life and have it to the full. Laws and traditions are like the side
barriers on the Golden Gate Bridge. Imagine yourself driving on the Golden Gate
Bridge with no sides where the road ends in a sheer drop to the ocean. Like the
barriers, laws and traditions do not get in the way of our freedom, they keep
us safe and properly oriented because breaking them, (driving off the bridge)
does not make us more free or alive (quite the opposite actually!). Yet when we
drive we should not try to drive right next to the barrier as though driving
along the barrier bumping into them from time to time is the goal. Similarly we
should not live for the letter of the law alone without understanding the
deeper spirit and meaning the law has for our lives. Laws and traditions are
living breathing things; they live in us. The word tradition should be
understood as a verb as we play a role in traditioning
the love of Jesus through history as members of Christ’s body, the Church.
So how then should we live as people and as a Church? St.
Paul in today’s Second Reading provides a clear path: Religion that is pure and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to
care for orphans and widows in their affliction and to keep oneself unstained
by the world.
When we follow the message of Jesus to stay close to the
poor: physically, emotionally, intellectually and spiritually we are traditioning the love of Jesus in our
world today and transforming ourselves into an icon of Christ in the world.
Imitating Christ is that having life to the full for this is what
God created us for. Following rules and traditions can help us to get there.
Questions for Reflection and Discussion
-What laws and traditions do I
want to understand more?
-What laws and traditions are
difficult to follow that I could work?
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