Nothing that enters one from outside can defile that person; but the things that come out from within are what defile.
Mk 7:1-9. 14-15. 21-23
The issue of ritual purity involves keeping distance from certain things that were considered unclean. For example, pigs, blood, lepers and the dead were considered unclean. A person becomes unclean when he touches things that were ritually unclean. He has to undergo ritual purification or cleansing.
Jesus castigates the Pharisees on two counts. The first, for their hypocrisy. A hypocrite is someone who puts on a show in order to draw attention to himself. The second is for putting man’s law above God’s law. The Law of Moses is not just the Ten Commandments. It also 613 precepts. These observance of these pre-cepts is governed by rules and regulations which according to an author can fill up 50 volumes. The Pharisees have made these rules and regulations more important than God’s Law.
Nothing that enters one from outside can defile that person; but the things that come out from within are what defile.
From where do the things that defile a man come from? From within, that is, from his mind and heart. I shall speak about the mind and heart from which come not only evil but also good.
Because the mind and heart can be the source of evil, we not only sin in word and deed but also in thought. For example, when a colleague gets a promotion, I may react by being envious. We feel sad at the food fortune of another. When I accept that feeling of sadness, then I commit the sin of envy.
Sometimes envy leads to a sinful deed. For example, I can back stab that colleague who was promoted by criticizing him behind his back.
Another way by which I can sin is by entertaining wicked desires. The Ten Commandments forbids us from desiring what belongs to our fellowman. You shall not desire your neighbor’s wife. You shall not desire neighbor’s goods.
I met someone from the customs. He tells me that he has never been involved in corruption. I praised him for that. But he replied by saying that it was because there was never an opportunity. Although he never actually engaged in corruption he still committed evil because he entertained the evil desire of financial gain through corruption.
If the mind and heart is source of evil, it is also the source of good. A com-munist was engaged in organizing labor unions because he wanted to do something to improve the plight of the working class. One day he realized that his work among the labor unions did not produce as much good as he liked. He left the communist movement and now works an NGO. The desire to help the working class is a good desire. That good desire made him work with an NGO.
Sometimes the good thoughts planted in a person’s heart becomes an intense desire that leads to wonderful results.
One day Dominic Savio heard Don Bosco say these words in a sermon: “It is God’s will that we become saints. It is easy to become a saint. There is a great reward in heaven for those who become saints.” Those words inspired him. He went to Don Bosco and said: “I will never be at peace until I become a saint.” Don Bosco became his spiritual director. Today Dominic Savio is Saint Dominic Savio, a 15 yr. old Saint.
If the good is to take root in our hearts and minds, then we have to feed them with good thoughts and holy desires.
One way is through spiritual reading. When I was in high school, I read the life of St. Dominic Savio. I was inspired to imitate him. When I was in the novitiate, I read the book “The Family That Overtook Christ”. It was about the father and brothers of St. Bernard of Clairvaux. They either became Saints or Blesseds. That book also inspired me.
A second way is by prayerfully reading the Bible. God has touched the hearts of many saints who read or heard the Word of God, among them was St. Ignatius of Loyola who left the army and became a priest and founder of the Jesuits.
A third way is by keeping the company of people who are optimistic, who live by gospel values and who are motivated to achieve. This implies that one should avoid the company of people who are a bad influence.
One other saintly student of Don Bosco was Michael Magone. Don Bosco met him for the first time at the train station. When Don Bosco invited him to his school and learn a trade, he quickly accepted Don Bosco’s offer because he said that many of his friends were already in jail and he knew that he would also end up in jail if he did not leave their company.
How do we act in the face of depressing events? How do we get rid of our minds and hearts of negative thoughts?
The first is by counting your blessing. When we are depressed or discouraged, the natural tendency is to focus only on the bad news. By doing so, we become more depressed or discouraged. In order to drain our minds and hearts of negative thoughts, we should get a piece of paper and divide it into two columns. On one column we write what is causing us the depression and discouragement. On the second column we recall all the good things that have happened to us. We will be surprised at how long list will be. And we shall start to feel better.
The second is by making an act of faith. When the her husband died suddenly, she was left with three sons. One was already in college. She had to be strong for her sons. Where did she find the strength? In her faith in God. She told her sons: “Wag kayong mag-alala. Hindi tayo pababayaan ng Diyos.”
The mind and the heart is the source of both good and evil.
Hence, we should not entertain sinful thoughts and desires. On the contrary, we should nurture positive thoughts and desires.
In order to do that, we should engage in spiritual reading and keep the company of optimistic people, of good people, of people who aim high.
When we are depressed and discouraged, we can counteract the negative thoughts by counting our blessings and by making an act of faith.
