* 22nd (B), August 30, 2003
* Theme:  Be Doers of the Word and Not Hearers Only

* For the most part, we are law abiding people
* We believe in laws – they protects us
* However, I might guess, for example,
* That many of us occasionally have exceeded the Speed Limit Law on the freeway or
* Broken the Church law and Missed Mass on a Sunday
* However, even given our infractions, we still believe in the law.

* We all know that Just Laws and Moral Codes are important both for civil society and for religious communities.
* Just civil law gives some kind of order to our existence
* Moral Codes give us a benchmark against which we can measure our actions.

* For Moses – in the first reading – the Statues and Decrees that he gave to the People were actually a Sign of how much God loved them
* He says, “For what great nation is there that has gods so close to it as the Lord, our God, is to us.”
* These laws set God’s people apart

* The Pharisees in today’s Gospel from Mark 7 got sidetracked.
* They were supposed to help people live God’s Law as handed on to them from Moses
* Both written and oral laws were sacred to them;
* Both were seen as gifts from God that would give life and everyday wisdom.

* However, Jesus took exception to the way the Pharisees treated the Law.
* For Jesus, the fundamental law is that of Love, which is what the Mosaic Law was meant to foster.
* For some Pharisees it was a way to stay in power,
* A way to feel superior to the “ordinary people,”
* A way to gloat and profit
* Jesus saw that the Pharisees made the Law into something that kills the spirit.
* Eventually they would use their interpretation of the Law to kill Jesus.
* Jesus quiets the Pharisees and the Scribes – and they melt away into the crowd.

* For Jesus, the issue, as always is what is in the heart.
* In Scripture, the heart is the seat of all feelings, passions and knowledge.
* It is in the heart where humans meet God,
* Hear the Word of God, and
* Where we speak to God
* For the Biblical writers, the condition of the heart indicates the quality of our relationship with God.
* However, Jesus wants more than a “clean heart”;
* True Christianity is more than a “Me and Jesus” affair.
* If we are in good relation with God, our acts will show it.
* If we are not, then “all these evils within” will consequently flow from our hearts to our actions.
* Jesus warns that it is these acts that “defile.”

* St. James in the Second reading invites us to be more than hearers of the Word.
* Yes, the word enters our hearts and can transform us.
* But James adds, “Be Doers of the Word, not just Hearers.”
* The words of James underscore the teaching of Jesus,
* If your heart is right – your actions should show it.

* The Pharisees thought that by observing the externals of the Law, they could merit salvation.
* Jesus says – Pay attention to your heart.
* If you have truly received God’s word and accepted it,
* You will be Alive with care for others.

* As we continue this liturgy,
* Let us pray that we can Hear God’s Word spoken to us by the events and people around us.
* Let us pray that God’s word be truly ALIVE in our hearts.
* Let us pray that we may become “Doers” of the “Word” and not just “Hearers”.

* Amen

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