Genesis 47:27-48:7
Psalm 87, 90, 136
1 Corinthians 10:1-13
Mark 7:1-23
Mark 7:1-23
This morning’s reading from Mark once again pits Jesus against the Pharisees, who are shocked to find the disciples aren’t following their extensive purity codes for processing and eating foods. These codes, developed by scribes and elders, are part of an oral tradition which supplements the law handed to Moses by God, the covenant of the 10 commandments. Jesus’ response to the Pharisees’ criticism is one that we have come to expect: he points out their hypocrisy, saying that they are so concerned with following human rules and traditions that they fail to observe God’s commands. And once again Jesus turns tradition upside down, pointing out that it’s not what goes into a person that defiles them, but that which comes out of a person, from the evil intentions that reside in every human heart.
Each of us has darkness within us: shadowy impulses, thoughts and desires that try as we might to suppress them, keep popping up. And often the more we try to deny our sin to ourselves and others - the more we try to appear sinless and perfect -the more darkness grows inside of us. This is true just as much of the disciples as it was the Pharisees. It is a part of human nature.
Yet Jesus today offers us a new way of following the same commandments God gave to Moses. This new way involves the transformation of our innermost being – changing our character into the heart and mind of God’s character. In order to do this, we must confront the shadows in each of our hearts. Even if we don’t acknowledge them, God already knows that they are there. There is no shame in naming our sin. A mentor of mine, Episcopal priest and Jungian analyst Pittman McGeehee, tells me often that there is a difference between a thought thought, a thought spoken, a thought written, and a thought acted.
Once we discover and name those shadows that arise from our broken human hearts, we can begin the process of being made whole. This takes courage, but thanks to Jesus we have the hope of being transformed. Jesus can and will heal us if we ask him to. In this way we keep the covenant God made to Moses, passed down to Jesus, and finally to us.
Sarah Taylor