“DIDJA KNOW?”
by: Deacon Paul Rooney (deaconpaul@cox.net)
31st Sunday in Ordinary Time
(Cycle “A" – October 30, 2005)

Q. 343:   What does Jesus mean in today’s gospel (Matt 23:1-12) when he says, “do all things they [the Pharisees] tell you, but don’t follow their example”?

A. 343:   The Pharisees were the most influential religious group in Jesus’ time, and the majority of scribes and lawyers were Pharisees.   Thus, as a Group they were the guardians and interpreters of the Law.   They prided themselves on knowing the Law backwards and forwards, and debated endlessly about the smallest details of various words and commands.

The “problem” was not their knowledge of the words of the Law.   Rather, the “problem” was that their pride in that knowledge led them to focus exclusively on the external dimension of the law, and neglecting the more important internal dimension of spirituality.   They became argumentative in their self pride, even trying to trap Jesus and show him they knew more than he did.

Jesus recognized their proud self-importance, simply by observing their external habits.   They wore prayer boxes (phylacteries) that grew larger and larger than required by Torah; their prayer tassels on their cloaks got longer and fancier than required by Torah; they looked for seats of honor and public recognition.   In short, they lacked the humility which is the very essence of true inner spirituality.   Thus Jesus told the crowds and his disciples, “do as they say, not as they do.”   They would not mislead them regarding the words of the Law; but they did not themselves live out the spirit and meaning of the Law.

We find that same pride – lack of humility – today in Catholics who refuse to humbly accept all of the teachings of the Magisterium, the official teaching office of the Church that Jesus established. They “pick and choose” what they want to believe, just like the Pharisees at their worst level of behavior - - woefully deficient at the level of inner spirituality, and deceiving themselves about that fact.

KNOW YOUR CATECHISM!   The condition for entering the kingdom is that of becoming like a child in relation to God. This means “humbling ourselves,” being open to the truth as taught by the Magisterium of the Catholic Church so that Christ may be formed in us (CCC #526).  Pride is a capital sin because it sets oneself in competition with God (CCC, Glossary on Pride; also #1866).

Deacon Paul Rooney
Mary Our Queen Parish, Omaha