Dear People Whom God Loves,

PURITY/DUTY – I

John the Baptist and Jesus both announced the reign of God.  Both made it clear that purity codes were not the way to enter the reign of God.  John called the Pharisees “a brood of vipers.”  Jesus called them “whitened sepulchers.”  Jesus was drawn to John and received baptism from John.  Jesus also saw that John’s vision of the reign of God was incomplete.  He experienced the love that God is and that we need to call on that love to transform us into people of compassion and mercy…that we must go deeper than external purity and duty.

Why aren’t purity codes a path to entering the reign of God?  Remember that entering the reign of God means growing in the inner transformation that allows us to share and live out God’s vision of love and acceptance for people of all kinds.  That is compassion, respect, and mercy for everyone.  No one is outside of God’s embrace.

Adherence to the purity codes meant following the numerous prescriptions of the law of Moses.  A lot of this is good.  So what is the problem?

This focus on externals easily draws us into the trap of striving for perfection.  Where is the danger?  It easily leads us to disown our humanity with all its imperfections.  We try to rid ourselves by will-power of these human wants, needs, impulses, and drives that we see as bad.  This can result in the condition where these human aspects are driven underground and result in bad behavior that we don’t recognize as bad.

What are some possible results?

We may see ourselves as better than those who seem less perfect than us.  We don’t want to associate with them.  We will also be drawn to discriminate and scapegoat these “bad” ones.  We do this because it helps us not to see our own sins.  We also think that they will contaminate our community.

This also can lead to loneliness.  Our pride covers the emptiness inside, but we will feel that emptiness at times.  This feeling of our emptiness is a blessing because it can drive us to change.  Also we may try to avoid the empty feeling by feeling the high of proclaiming how right we are.  And often we need more and bigger highs.  An extreme example is the suicide bombers.  We are not that extreme, but I find it helpful to look at less extreme examples in myself.  I need conversion and the loving mercy of God as much as anyone.

More next time.

Smile, God Loves You,

Father Clay

Dear People Whom God Loves,

PURITY/DUTY –  II

We now turn to duty.  Doing one’s duty sure seems good and it often is.  The Pharisees did their duty extremely well.  Yet Jesus saw them not entering the reign of God.  Why is that?  There is some overlapping of purity codes and duty.

When we are doing our duty, we are motivated by “should”.  With the transformation that results in entering the reign of God, our motivation is compassion and mercy.  When we are motivated by compassion and mercy, we usually have no need to be paid back.  The compassionate and merciful action is its own reward.  When we are motivated by “should”, we are more likely to think that we are owed.

Another limitation of duty is the feeling of resentment we have when we have overridden our desires by will-power.  When our desires are not overridden by willpower but are integrated into our whole human person by the love that God has put in all of us, we are not resentful but grateful.

Another possible limitation of duty is the distaste we have for those who have not done their duty as we have.  When we are moved by compassion and mercy, we are not likely to make comparisons.

When we are pushed by feelings of duty, there is no end to duty and it becomes overwhelming.  When duty grows and grows, we likely go over the cliff by quitting or breaking down.  We easily become bitter.  When we have done our duty, we will often feel relief but there is no joy within us.

In life, things are not as cut and dried as I have written.  Often duty, compassion, and mercy get interwoven and the consequences are more mixed.  But this helps me sort things out.

More next time.

Smile, God Loves You,

Father Clay

Dear People Whom God Loves,

PURITY/DUTY – III

Here are some suggestions for allowing God to transform us beyond purity and duty into the reign of God.

•        Being quietly aware of the Love (God) that is within all of us

•        Wanting and desiring that Love to slowly transform us into compassion

•        Accepting that we are human with limitations and flaws

•        Being quietly aware of the ways we harm ourselves and others

•        Having compassion for ourselves and others

•        Being quietly aware that we are good and that that goodness can blossom

•        Being quietly aware that Love is not mad at us and only wants us to grow in goodness and happiness

•        Being quietly aware that Love cherishes us

•        Laugh and take delight in how mixed up we are

Finally:

Sin is a betrayal of love and is not the breaking of a rule.  There are times when breaking a rule is also a betrayal of love and so would be a sin.  There are times when no rule is broken but there is a betrayal of love and so there would be a sin.  There are times when a rule is broken, but there is no betrayal of love.  Then there is no sin.  Sin is a theological category.  It is not a legal or canonical category.

Smile, God Loves You,

Father Clay