Whatever proceeds out of the mouth comes from the heart

Then the scribes and Pharisees who were from Jerusalem came to Jesus, saying, "Why do your disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread. He answered and said to them, "Why do you also transgress the commandment of God because of your tradition? For God commanded, saying, 'Honor your father and your mother'; and, 'He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.' But you say, 'Whoever says to his father or mother, "Whatever profit you might have received from me is a gift to God" -- then he need not honor his father or mother.' Thus you have made the commandment of God of no effect by your tradition. Hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying:

'These people draw near to Me with their mouth,

And honor Me with their lips,

But their heart is far from Me,

And in vain they worship Me,

Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.' "

When he had called the multitude to himself, he said to them, "Hear and understand: Not what goes into the mouth defiles a man; but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man." Then his disciples came and said to him, "Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this saying?" But he answered and said, "Every plant which my heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted. Let them alone. They are blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch." Then Peter answered and said to him, "Explain this parable to us." So Jesus said, "Are you also still without understanding? Do you not yet understand that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and is eliminated? But those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies. These are the things which defile a man, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile a man."

- Matthew 15:1-20

In the past couple of readings, Jesus has manifested miracles that are of messianic status and import: he has fed the five thousand, and walked on water to his disciples. His apostles, in yesterday's reading, recognized him as "Son of God" for the first time. In today's reading, he begins to tangle with the scribes and Pharisees, engaging in confrontation over their hypocrisy.

Then the scribes and Pharisees who were from Jerusalem came to Jesus, saying, "Why do your disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread. My study bible has a note on the entire passage: "The tradition of the elders (v. 2) refers to the interpretations of the Mosaic Law by Jewish teachers, here regarding ritual purity. Jesus sharply refutes their views that ritual purity depends on what a person does or doesn't do. Rather, he points to the heart (v.8) as the source of evils which defile a person. We guard our hearts from evil to keep ourselves from error, to overcome unchastity, and to protect ourselves from any other sinful passion." To "guard our hearts" is to be aware of what is going on within ourselves, what choices we are making. This awareness is designed to keep us protected from falling into errors, going down roads we know are problematic to us.

He answered and said to them, "Why do you also transgress the commandment of God because of your tradition? For God commanded, saying, 'Honor your father and your mother'; and, 'He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.' But you say, 'Whoever says to his father or mother, "Whatever profit you might have received from me is a gift to God" -- then he need not honor his father or mother.' Thus you have made the commandment of God of no effect by your tradition. My study bible notes here: "The commandment to honor one's father and mother is the first of the Ten Commandments which deals with human relations. A work of service or devotion to God is of no value if in carrying it out one ignores personal responsibility to others. Right human relationships are a necessary element of Christian devotion." As always, Jesus' criticism is based on the difficulties encountered when laws, commands or traditions that are negated by other practice are those designed to help the poor, to maintain the social fabric of relations with those who are needy and would be destitute without help. In this case, elderly parents who must rely on children. The practice he criticizes is that which disobeys, in effect, the law through the imposition of a tradition that enriches the religious class - at the expense of the dependent parents, father and mother.

Hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying: 'These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me, and in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.' " See Isaiah 29:13 for the passage Jesus is quoting here. "Hypocrites" in its original meaning in Greek is "actor." Jesus is defining those who parody devotion, but their hearts are elsewhere.

"When he had called the multitude to himself, he said to them, "Hear and understand: Not what goes into the mouth defiles a man; but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man." As has been the case through the past several chapters of Matthew's gospel, Jesus calls the crowds together and preaches in parables before the multitude. As before, we get his explanation in private to his disciples in the next verses. We remember that "parable" can also mean "riddle" or "allegory" or "proverb."

Then his disciples came and said to him, "Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this saying?" But he answered and said, "Every plant which my heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted. Let them alone. They are blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch." Then Peter answered and said to him, "Explain this parable to us." The Pharisees understand Jesus' criticism. Repeatedly, they are portrayed as the religious experts (along with the scribes and other leadership in the temple) who know better. Jesus harshest criticism is reserved for those who have the capacity to grasp and know his teachings, and yet remain hypocrites for personal gain. The blind leaders of the blind, in this case, remain blind by their choices. In other parts of the gospels, we hear Jesus' criticism of those who choose their blindness. Here the emphasis is on their lack of credibility because "their hearts are far from God" (as in the quotation from Isaiah). Everything must be rooted in that reality as authentic spiritual teaching. This is a conflict of the reality of the heart, authenticity of spiritual grounding: from whence comes a Teacher's authority?

So Jesus said, "Are you also still without understanding? Do you not yet understand that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and is eliminated? But those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies. These are the things which defile a man, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile a man." We return again to themes of the heart, and what we practice and guard and keep within ourselves. The most important passage we reflect upon is the one from the Sermon on the Mount, in which Jesus taught that "where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." It is up to us to choose what we will love, what we keep in our hearts, and this defines who we are. That passage from the Sermon on the Mount came when Jesus taught about choosing between God and mammon. And here, the emphasis is similar. He is criticizing those who fail to worship with the heart, but only with the outward form, so that they may maintain the hypocrisy that gathers wealth to themselves. What we guard in our heart is our choice: all forms of vice - cruelty, avarice, envy, etc. and the myriad forms they take in our lives are those things we can either guard against or keep within our hearts. It is our choice. If we are blind then our awareness is dimmed, if we are awake to these spiritual choices, we keep our spiritual eyes and ears open, we guard our hearts against what we know is not good for us spiritually. But to eat with unwashed hands, to fail to follow form only, is not personally defiling. This is Jesus' greatest teaching on the power of the inner life, and one we must "take to heart." (See here and here for more commentary on this subject.) It is not the outside practice, but the inner life, the life of the heart, that is judged - after all, another name for our judge is the "knower of hearts."

How do you discern the reality of the heart? Where do you put your love, your passion in life? What do you guard against when it comes up for you? We are asked to practice awareness, to give conscious emphasis to the reality of what is within our center, to protect our hearts and to be aware of what it is that makes us who we are as human beings. Is it the outside, the image we cultivate before others? or is it something deeper, that dwells in the place where we decide that which we love and in which we participate? This is what defines us and places us where we belong in this method of discernment. To stay awake, to be spiritually aware is to have spiritual sight, and not to be a blind follower of the blind. Jesus teaches us also to "Watch!" when he warns his disciples of the time that he will be away, the time period we are in now, as we await his coming. Until that day of plain discernment and obvious choice, we are to remain awake, to watch and to understand that we not be deceived. We must do so in order not to deceive ourselves, as well.