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Gospel: Mark 7:14-23
Jesus summoned the crowd again and said to them,
“Hear me, all of you, and understand.
Nothing that enters one from outside can defile that person;
but the things that come out from within are what defile.”
When he got home away from the crowd
his disciples questioned him about the parable.
He said to them,
“Are even you likewise without understanding?
Do you not realize that everything
that goes into a person from outside cannot defile,
since it enters not the heart but the stomach
and passes out into the latrine?”
(Thus he declared all foods clean.)
“But what comes out of the man, that is what defiles him.
From within the man, from his heart,
come evil thoughts, unchastity, theft, murder,
adultery, greed, malice, deceit,
licentiousness, envy, blasphemy, arrogance, folly.
All these evils come from within and they defile.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
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“Nothing that enters one from outside can defile,” Jesus says, “but the things that come out from within are what defile.”
In Judaism, to be “defiled” meant that a person lost access to the Temple, and therefore access to God. In order to remain pure – or “undefiled” – religious scholars created over 600 commandments that observant Jews needed to follow.
This included everything from the washing of hands and dishes to the treatment of birds. Jesus overrides these commandments and insists upon one thing only:
A pure heart.
“From within a person, from his heart, come evil thoughts, unchastity, theft, and greed,” says the Lord. These things sour our relationship with God and with our neighbors.
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The Native Americans believe in a similar idea, stated in a different way.
They say there are two wolves living within each of us. One feeds on negativity – things like selfishness and anger – while the other feeds on positivity – things like hope and love.
The question is: “Which wolf wins?”
The one we feed.
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May we make every effort, in the words of Saint Peter, “to be found without spot or blemish before God.”
Holy, undefiled, by feeding that good wolf – Christ – within.
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Image credits: (1) Hope 103.2 (2) Chabad.org (3) Apostles of the Interior Life