Living Faith is a Balancing Act
I have no doubt that it was in encounters like the one in today’s Gospel (MT12:1-8) that Jesus antagonized the Pharisees. They lived by the law, and they defined themselves by the law. They followed the rules, all 613 of them, and by doing so, they knew they were doing what God wanted.
Eating grain, or more precisely picking grain, on the Sabbath was against the law. Here comes the rub. The Pharisees see Jesus and his disciples picking the grain and eating it, and they challenge Jesus. Aren’t you supposed to be good Jews? What are you doing breaking the Sabbath law and encouraging your followers to break the law too? Can’t you just hear what was going on in the minds of the Pharisees? What is the matter with them? They know better than that? Who do they think they are?
Jesus does not get into an argument with them. Instead, He brings them back to what they know and trust. Jesus reminds them of David, who fed his hungry troops from the sacred bread in the temple, and the priests who do not follow the law on the Sabbath and yet are considered innocent. He first shows them examples from their own faith when the law was broken. And it was acceptable. Then he calls them to the higher standard of the prophets. This week, we heard in Isaiah, and we also know from Micah that God desires mercy, not sacrifice.
So how does that fit our life and our living out of our faith? There are two ways that people tend to look at religion and the Church. Those on one side know the rules and follow the rules. Any deviation from the laws either by them or others is judged harshly. People who fall into this camp we often call scrupulous. We find their faith and their image of God, harsh and forbidding.
The other camp is made up of those who do not believe any rule binds them. If their heart desires to do something, there is always a way to justify it. People who fall into this camp often are called” cafeteria Catholics” or “A&P (Ashes and Palms) Catholics.” They believe but usually on their own terms, and they certainly are not going to get caught up in following the rules just because the Church said to follow them.
Of course, these are the 2 extremes. Most of us fall somewhere in the middle yet tend toward one side or the other. There are dangers and fallacies on both sides.
Being wedded to the letter of the law can make us rigid and judgmental. We lose the love of God both for ourselves and others.
Equally so, being unfazed by the teachings of the Church and the expectations of our faith, except when they are convenient, is a very slippery slope. It is nearly impossible to walk without losing our balance and slipping away from the heart of the faith that binds us together.
The truth is, faith would be a lot easier if Jesus did away with the law entirely or insisted upon it being followed precisely to the letter. But He doesn’t. If Jesus insisted on one or the other, it would give us all an easy way out in our moral decision making.
Jesus calls on us to be more. He calls us to be people rooted in faith and integrity. Jesus calls us to know and understand the teachings of the Church and value them and hold them sacred. Jesus also calls us to remember the law of love. Love as I have loved you. Jesus does not make our moral choices in life easy. Instead, he calls on us to be people of knowledge, prayer, and a relationship with God. Jesus calls on us to look deeply at our decision-making process and use our faith and conscience to guide us. We are asked to use prayer and our relationship with God to make faithful moral decisions when difficult situations in life are placed before us.
Today, let’s pray for ourselves and those we love. We pray we will be faithful to the Word of God spoken in our hearts. We pray that we will neither be rigid or frivolous in our decision making. We pray God’s love and compassion, and the responsibility to live His Word, inspire us, and all those in decision making roles in our Church and our world.
In God’s Unending Love,
Gwen
