In our final reading from Galatians (Galatians 5:18-25), St. Paul gives a list of things the Galatians should avoid. He says they are the fruits of self-indulgence. When we hear some of them, like idolatry, sorcery, drunkenness, or orgies, we might feel relieved and exclaim: Oh Good! I don’t fit in there. This could lead to complacency or even a feeling that we are better than others. However, if we scan the list more closely, we might be able to see a reflection of ourselves: envy, selfishness, dissension, outbursts of anger. These hit a little closer to home and we understand that we are not yet fully people led by the Spirit of God.
In the Gospel reading of today (Luke 11:42-46), three woes are issued against the Pharisees and the lawyers. Why did Jesus pronounce these woes? The first woe contrasts the Pharisees concern for details, all the while building fences around the law, neglecting what is really important. The second castigates the lawyers for self-aggrandizement. The third apply to both groups, for not even realizing that they are not what they seem to be.
Jesus singles out the teachers and lawyers with rather strong words of rebuke. Jesus used the example of tithing to show how far they had missed the mark. The offering of the tithe, one-tenth of one’s produce or possessions to the Lord, is recorded in Deuteronomy 14: 22-29 and Leviticus 27: 30-33. The purpose of this offering also is mentioned there: to support the Levites and the poor in the land – sojourners, orphans, and widows. God had commanded a tithe of the first fruits of one’s labor as an expression of thanksgiving and honor for his providential care for his people. The leaders, however, went to extreme lengths to tithe on insignificant things, with great mathematical precision, thereby missing the point. They neglected to care for the needy and the weak. They were filled with pride for themselves and contempt for others. Jesus compares them to “unmarked graves”. That term was not unlike the great insult we used when I as a boy, “your mother wears combat boots!” Contact with a grave, even an unmarked grave, made a person ritually unclean for seven days (Numbers 19:16). In the same way, Jesus said that those who come into contact with the Pharisees and listened to their teachings are defiled by their false doctrines.
The readings want us to understand that the essence of God’s commandments is love. God is love and everything he does flows from his love for us. Do you allow the love of God to transform your mind and heart? Are you willing to grow in virtue and inflame your heart with love for God and your neighbors?
May God Bless You and Grant You His Peace!