The Holy Gospel according to St. Mark 7:14-23
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.”
Reflection:
We’ve heard the saying “You are what you eat.” This is true in terms of healthy living. Yet in the gospel reading above, Jesus tells us to be careful of what comes out from within, not what goes inside us. Previously, He scolded the religious leaders for being too meticulous about external behaviors such as the washing of hands before eating. Now He continues to teach us that food intake which is also external does not make us sinful. It is what comes from within us that makes us so.
The heart as mentioned by Jesus includes your conscience, your thoughts, your moods, and your feelings. Your thoughts and feelings become your word and actions which then become your choices, your attitudes, and your habits. If your heart is true and pure, it will reveal itself outwardly in your speech and behavior. On the other hand, evil thoughts, as Jesus explained, can readily turn into the twelve evil acts namely that He speaks of in the Gospel.
I will make one clarification to my first statement – it is on a spiritual level that “You are what you eat.” When we receive Holy Communion, we receive our Lord fully and completely – Body, Blood, Soul & Divinity! So yes, we most certainly are and become Who we eat!
Action of the Day
At the end of your day, you must look inwardly. What guided your actions today?. Although we were made in the image and likeness of God, we are prone to harbor evil thoughts and the tendency to rebel. So what is in your heart? Do you have a heart of stone or a heart that is willing to accept the presence of God? Do we live out of love or out of fear?
Audio Reflection:
