1 September 2024
XXII Sunday of Ordinary Time B
Mk 7,1-8.14-15.21-23
This Sunday's Liturgy of the Word takes us back into Mark's Gospel, after reading the entire Sixth Chapter of John's Gospel over the past few weeks.
The passage we read comes from Chapter 7 of Mark, not coincidentally placed between the two instances of bread multiplication, reported by the evangelist: the first takes place in the land of Israel; the second is in pagan land.
To get from one bank to the other a crossing must be made, not only physically, but also in terms of mentality and thinking.
This is precisely what is presented in Chapter 7. It serves as a turning point and offers the disciples an opportunity to make a genuine leap of faith, a true crossing.
Some Pharisees and scribes from Jerusalem see that Jesus' disciples eat food without having cleansed their hands and are scandalized by this (Mk 7:2). So, they ask Jesus a question about this strange attitude (Mk 7:5).
The question reflects a common religious mindset that believes there are prerequisites, such as specific rituals, observances, and rules, required to encounter the Lord.
Not only the encounter with the Lord, but also the relationship with the world is marked by a series of rituals. This is based on the belief that the world is impure and that interacting with it can lead to contamination, creating a constant need for purification.
The journey that Jesus leads his disciples on is meant to challenge this mindset in at least two ways.
The first point is in verse 15, where Jesus states that nothing external can make a person unclean by entering them; rather, it is what comes out from a person's heart that makes them unclean.
This statement highlights that the world, reality, and things are not inherently evil or something to be guarded against or avoided. The true source of evil lies not in these external elements but within ourselves.
Jesus aims to warn us against the temptation to seek the source of evil outside ourselves: attributing it to others or external factors. Jesus frees us from this illusion.
In other words, simply setting up barriers, creating separations, or excluding certain things or people is insufficient. Evil must be identified and healed at its true source.
The second aspect concerns another illusion, the one whereby rites or the observance of certain precepts would suffice to purify the heart.
In the sixth verse, Jesus provides a clue: an impure heart is one that is distant from the Lord, meaning a heart that seeks to save itself and does not trust in the salvation offered by God.
An impure heart is also one that is distant from others, especially the poor and suffering; it is a selfish heart, focused only on itself.
Therefore, Christian purity is not about external rituals or formalities, but rather about a spirit of brotherly solidarity: a person who loves is truly pure.
Nor should we wait till we are pure to seek the Lord and meet with him. We will never be completely ready. Instead, we should approach the Lord with the full weight of our sinful hearts and our struggle to love, so that He can nourish us with true words and living bread, transforming our hearts of stone into hearts of flesh.
+ Pierbattista
