A reflection on Matthew 23:23-26 for Tuesday of the 21st Week in Ordinary Time.
I have noticed that when I am avoiding something difficult, I can become remarkably interested in something unimportant. Suddenly the drawer that has been disorganized for six months needs my immediate attention. The kitchen counter must be wiped down. The email inbox cries out for order. Apparently, I am capable of great discipline as long as it keeps me from making the phone call I do not want to make.
There is something uncomfortably familiar in Jesus’ words to the scribes and Pharisees. He tells them that they have become very careful about the smallest religious obligations while neglecting justice, mercy, and faithfulness.
Their problem is not that the small things are bad. Jesus does not tell them to abandon every religious practice or stop paying attention to details. The problem is that they have allowed the manageable things to distract them from the deeper work God is asking of them.
I understand the temptation.
It is easier to keep track of a rule than to examine my heart. It is easier to notice whether someone else is doing something correctly than to ask whether I have been merciful. It is easier to defend a tradition than to listen to someone who has been wounded by the Church. It is easier to say the right prayers than to repair a damaged relationship.
The small things often give us a satisfying sense of accomplishment. We can check them off. Done. Finished. Very respectable.
Justice and mercy are rarely so tidy.
Mercy might require listening to a person whose choices I do not understand. Justice might require noticing that something I have always accepted as normal is not fair to someone else. Faithfulness might mean admitting that I was wrong and changing my behavior.
There is no convenient little box to check for that.
Jesus is especially hard on religious hypocrisy because faith is supposed to draw us closer to the heart of God. If our religious practices make us more judgmental, more concerned with appearances, or less willing to notice suffering, then something has gone wrong along the way.
That can happen in parish life too. A community can spend tremendous energy arguing about schedules, decorations, music, wording, procedures, or who is supposed to sit where while someone quietly wonders whether anyone has noticed that she is grieving, lonely, hungry, frightened, or barely holding things together.
Some details do deserve attention. Order has value. Tradition has value. Good liturgy is important. Responsible leadership is important. But Jesus asks us to keep all of those things in proportion.
Justice. Mercy. Faithfulness.
Those are the heavier things.
I sometimes wonder what would change if I used those three words as a kind of spiritual examination at the end of the day. Where did I choose justice? Where did I offer mercy? Where was I faithful to the person God is calling me to become?
And perhaps just as importantly: what small thing did I spend too much time worrying about because it was easier than facing the big thing?
The Gospel does not ask us to become careless about the details of faith. It asks us to remember what those details are supposed to serve.
Our prayers should make us more loving. Our traditions should lead us toward Christ. Our religious practices should open our eyes to the people around us.
Otherwise, we may find ourselves carefully polishing the outside of the cup while God is still waiting for us to look inside.
Prayer
Jesus, help me recognize what is most important to you. When I hide behind rules, routines, or small concerns, give me the courage to look deeper. Teach me to seek justice, practice mercy, and remain faithful even when those things are complicated and uncomfortable. Let my faith change not only what I do, but who I am becoming. Amen.
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