22nd Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year B
Who is a Christian? What does it entail to be a Christian? How can one become a better Christian? And why are we Christians? The answer to these questions can be found in today’s second reading and Gospel reading.
St. James in the letter of St. James, chapter 1:17-18, 21b-22, 27, today’s second reading, teaches us that a Christian is a doer of the word of God and not only a hearer of the word. This means that a true Christian is one who listens to the word of God. The word ‘listen’ means to give one's attention to a sound. So in order to listen to God’s word, we have to open our hearts and give our attention to Him. Giving God our attention entails understanding His word and accepting it. Then when we understand and accept His word, we can be able to do His word that we have listened to, understood and accepted.
In today’s gospel reading from the gospel of St. Mark chapter 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23, Jesus while responding to the Pharisees and scribes who questioned him on why his disciples did not follow the tradition of the elders but instead eat a meal with unclean hands, informs us that a Christian is one who does not disregard God’s commandment to cling to human tradition; or one who honors God with their hearts and not their lips and truly and sincerely worships God as prophesied by Prophet Isaiah. Jesus here tells us not to cling to human tradition and disregard God’s commandment as he condemns the legalism of the Pharisees and scribes, who hold on to the letter of the law but fail to pay attention to the spirit of the law. Jesus also goes on to give us a new moral doctrine, by stating the reason behind the Ten Commandments which God gave to Moses long ago on Mount Sinai, as He urges us to change our love of law to the law of love. Remember that Jesus’s words to us to not disregard God’s commandments means that we should love the Lord our God with all our heart, and with all our soul, and with all our mind, and with all our strength.’ And to love our neighbor as ourselves.’ So this is what it means to be a Christian.
Are you a true Christian? Do you listen to God’s word, try to understand it and accept it? Are you a doer of God’s word? Do you regard the commandments of God? Do you honor God with all your hearts and not just your lips? Do you truly and sincerely worship God? My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, it is time to become better Christians and doers of God’s word by exemplifying God’s love for us in our thoughts, words and actions daily and by loving others as God loves us. So, let us focus more on God’s commandments and center our hearts not just on the laws or on our self-glorification which nullifies our good acts, rather, let concentrate on God, and on our love for Him and our neighbors.
