This blog follows the daily bible readings of the Catholic Church

Reading 1: Gal 5:1-6

Brothers and sisters:

For freedom Christ set us free;

so stand firm and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery.

It is I, Paul, who am telling you

that if you have yourselves circumcised,

Christ will be of no benefit to you.

Once again I declare to every man who has himself circumcised

that he is bound to observe the entire law.

You are separated from Christ,

you who are trying to be justified by law;

you have fallen from grace.

For through the Spirit, by faith, we await the hope of righteousness.

For in Christ Jesus,

neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything,

but only faith working through love. 

We’ve managed to get a very decorous word for the Jewish initiation: “circumcision” sounds appropriately medical, whereas the Greek periptome means something like “snipping”. To a Greek reader Paul is saying “neither snipped not unsnipped counts for anything.”

Paul is concerned on two levels: firstly, that a concentration on Torah obedience will involve believers in irrelevant outward observances that do not affect the heart. This is the concern of Jesus when he attacks the Pharisees observances. God is not satisfied with outward show. Secondly, trying to earn God’s favour by legal obedience ignores God’s gift of his Spirit and the righteousness that flows from it. Paul wants his converts to realise that God has given far more than a code of Law; He has given Himself in His Son and in His Spirit. His summing up is masterly:

“For through the Spirit (God’s own self) by faith (trust) we await the hope of righteousness (expect to grow in goodness) for in Christ Jesus (Messiah Jesus) neither snipped nor unsnipped counts for anything, but only faith (trust) working through love.”

Lk 11:37-41

Gospel

After Jesus had spoken,

a Pharisee invited him to dine at his home.

He entered and reclined at table to eat.

The Pharisee was amazed to see

that he did not observe the prescribed washing before the meal.

The Lord said to him, “Oh you Pharisees!

Although you cleanse the outside of the cup and the dish,

inside you are filled with plunder and evil.

You fools!

Did not the maker of the outside also make the inside?

But as to what is within, give alms,

and behold, everything will be clean for you.”

outside/inside

Jesus teaches that outward religious observance, however intricate, does nothing for a person’s character. Giving to the poor, on the other hand, is a good spring-clean for the soul. Elsewhere (Matthew 6) Jesus is reported as teaching that alms must be given as if the left hand didn’t know what the right was doing, that is, it mustn’t be done for show or self-congratulation. Here he suggests that true compassion is cleansing, and will make all kinds of ritual cleansing irrelevant. Sometimes these vital details of Jesus’ teaching are ignored. Today’s Lectionary allows us to focus on one of them.

The incident serves to remind us that in spite of arguments, Pharisees invited Jesus and Jesus accepted their invitations.