Question. How many laws are necessary to help us lead dignified, well ordered, and morally responsible lives?
Answer. Not many!
In today’s first reading we hear Moses instruct the Israelites to follow the laws and statutes that God has given to them. According to Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon, one of the greatest medieval Jewish scholars, there were 613 mitzvot (commandments). Of these commandments 248 were positive – thou shall commandments and 365 were negative – thou shall not. These commandments stated the obvious in some cases such as: #1- to know that G-d exists (Ex20:2); #10 - to imitate His good and upright ways (Deut 28:9); #27 - not to stand idly by when a human life is in danger (Lev 19:16). There were also some interesting commandments such as: #159 - not to slaughter an animal and its young on the same day (Lev 22:28), or #364 - not to work with beasts of different species, yoked together (Deut 22:10). There were commandments for every facet of daily life and they were intended to help the people live together in peace and harmony. But that ideal was never realized.
By the time Jesus comes along, we can understand his compassion for those who were suffering from the burden of so many unnecessary “statutes and decrees”. In the hours he spent in prayer Jesus must have been amazed that so many "additions" to the law had been place upon the people’s shoulders. And so, as he performed his ministry, Jesus teaches his disciples the sure-fire way to live fully in the context of the Mosaic Law without getting caught up in all the nitty-gritty. It follows along the lines of the “Keep it Simple Principle and it sums up the teaching ministry of Jesus: "Love God with all your heart, mind, and strength; and, love your neighbor as yourself”.
So, when Jesus is challenged by some Pharisees about washing his hands before eating, he calls them what they are, “hypocrites”. Jesus knows that this notion of ritualistic purity is a diversion from doing the real work that God calls us to do. In fact, a lot of the work God calls us to do is pretty dirty, if not totally ritualistically unclean. Working with the homeless or in prison or with the people who frequent our soup kitchens, the lepers of our day, may get your hands dirty but such activity is sure to open your eyes to a level of poverty and personal degradation many poor men, women, and children experience each and every day. There is a large contingency of our brothers and sisters today for whom eating off of dirty plates is the least of their problems. Newsflash… Jesus is not worried about us eating from dirty dishes! The filth Jesus wants to alert and cleans us from is that which comes from within – our hard heartedness, our deafness to the needs and concerns of others, our self-centeredness, our out-of-control desires, our lusting for what’s not ours. So again, how many commandments do we need to save us from ourselves? Ten? Seventeen? Do we decide which number is right for us – just like the Serta sleep bed, or are we going to listen to what the teacher has to say…and take up our cross and follow him by loving God and placing ourselves in the service of one another?
God didn’t bring us into creation to have us get caught up in the minutia. Nor did Jesus die on the cross to defend any prevailing legalistic way of life. We do need rules to guide us and govern our lives. For that reason, Jesus gave us some simple ones to live by. If we want to live happy and fulfilling lives, we must see in ourselves and in each other the dignity that God has given to us. We must come to recognize that the Divine Presence is in each and every one of us. And, we must realize that we come to know, love, and serve Him by knowing, loving, and serving one another. We don’t need a lot of rules to live a good life. Rather we must, in the words of St. James, “Be doers of the word and not hearers only” following Jesus’ example by Loving God and each other.
Last Sunday we heard that many of Jesus disciples departed from him because his teaching was too difficult. The truth is that ALL Jesus's teachings are difficult. It is difficult for us to be doers of the word. Now, perhaps more than ever before, it's time to put our faith into practice and show our love for God and one another by putting aside our biases and judgements and act like the Children of God that we are.
Enjoy the day!
Deacon Tom
Please Visit www.deaconspod.com and listen in as the three deacons engage in a contemporary conversation exploring the treasures our Catholic faith has to offer to those on the threshold, those thinking of joining our Catholic Community or walking away from it.
OTHER RESOURCE
Recommended Reading: Dating God - Live and Love in the Way of St. Francis by Fr Dan Horan O.F.M. It may seem shocking to compare our relationship with God with the notion of "dating." But this book does. With fresh insight and a deep personal spirituality, Horan points out that the desire, uncertainty, and love we experience in relationship with God resembles our earthly relationships. In our human relationships, we set aside time for the people who are most important to us. Horan reminds us that St. Francis of Assisi understood and even described his relationship with God in a similar way. Drawing from the Franciscan tradition, Dating God encourages us to see St. Francis's spirituality in a new light, challenging us to reexamine our own spirituality, prayer, and relationships, and inviting us into a more intimate relationship with our Creator.
Recommended YouTube Video: The Name of God is Relationship a presentation by Fr. Dan Horan, O.F.M. Fr. Dan attempts to enlighten us on several of those lingering questions we may have from time to time such as: What we can know about God?; What we can’t know about God; What is God’s Name?. Listen in on his presentation at the Center for Christian Spirituality Lecture at the University of San Diego.
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