Mark 7:14-23

Lectio (Reading)

Read the passage twice and get a sense of what it is saying. Pay attention to what strikes you.

Jesus summoned the crowd again and said to them,
“Hear me, all of you, and understand.
Nothing that enters one from outside can defile that person;
but the things that come out from within are what defile.”

When he got home away from the crowd
his disciples questioned him about the parable.
He said to them,
“Are even you likewise without understanding?
Do you not realize that everything
that goes into a person from outside cannot defile,
since it enters not the heart but the stomach
and passes out into the latrine?”
(Thus he declared all foods clean.)
“But what comes out of the man, that is what defiles him.
From within the man, from his heart,
come evil thoughts, unchastity, theft, murder,
adultery, greed, malice, deceit,
licentiousness, envy, blasphemy, arrogance, folly.
All these evils come from within and they defile.”

Meditatio (Reflecting)

Slowly read the passage again, pausing on words or phrases that stands out. Take time to consider the meaning. particularly in your life.

Hear me, all of you, and understand. Nothing that enters one from outside can defile that person; but the things that come out from within are what defile.

Oratio (Responding)

Read the passage again, slowly. Consider how God has spoken to you and respond back to Him. You may want to consider how this passage is asking you to act differently.

The jewish leaders had a crazy amount of laws regarding cleanliness, and all of them were related to defilement of the body. Specifically by coming into contact with things from the outside of the body. If you came in contact with things carrying disease, you suddenly became unclean. This type of uncleanliness had nothing to do with the state of your soul. Jesus is trying to help theses pharisees and scribes to understand that this was not what God intended with His law. What Jesus wants us to understand, is that to be truly unclean (in your relationship with God) that your defilement is on the inside. If you think disgusting things, if you pursue evil ends, if you say terrible things, then that is what makes you truly unclean, despite how many times a day you wash your hands.

The only way to wash away these internal defilements is to seek Gods forgiveness, and thus be changed from the inside out. This is what Jesus is teaching us, and this is why, whenever He encountered a person in need of healing, He always started by saying that their sins are forgiven. He always tended to the state of their soul, and to disposition of their heart first, and only after they were healed and cleaned on the inside did He then help them with their physical ailments.

It is still the same today, the illnesses of 2000 years ago have been all but irradicated by modern medicine, and basic sanitation, but the people of today are no less sick than they we were 2000 years ago, and I would argue maybe even worse. The answer then is the same as today, we must go to God, confess our sins, and ask for forgiveness. In God’s incredible mercy and forgiveness, we are then made clean. Then and only then, can we partake of the eucharist, and its life-giving sustenance and become one with Him, mind, body and spirit. God wants to heal your heart and then your body comes next. Go to Him and find His healing love.

Contemplatio (Contemplating)

Take time to simply remain in the presence of God.

Resolutio (Resolving)

Make a resolution that will improve your life, your relationships, or your faith. Make it small and attainable, and do it.

Oh lord help me today to be clean in your sight, and to stay clean for as long as I possibly can.