50-50? 60-40?

50-50?

14 Then the disciples of John approached him and said, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast [much], but your disciples do not fast?” 15 Jesus answered them, “Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.[a] 16 No one patches an old cloak with a piece of unshrunken cloth,[b] for its fullness pulls away from the cloak and the tear gets worse. 17 People do not put new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise the skins burst, the wine spills out, and the skins are ruined. Rather, they pour new wine into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved.”-Matthew9:14-17

I tried to sew a piece of cotton cloth with a different type of cloth. No matter how good I sew it with a machine, it just won't work. There is reason and logic in the ordinariness of life and in the simple things we do everyday like putting water in a glass. Today, Jesus is teaching us - not only the reason and logic behind patching cloths and putting new wine into new wineskins - but its deeper meaning that can be applied to life as a whole. Jesus is not disregarding the Old - prophets and the Law - just because He teaches differently and with authority. Rather, He fulfills it. We can say a fusion of two worlds - each complementing the other.

The 'New' is not always the answer; the 'Old' does not always have the answer. Sometimes the brand new 'me,' may work out and at other times, it may not. We need the past to help our present, and we need the present to mold the future. We bring to present the lessons of the past to help shape our future.

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The Law

The Law.

17 [a]“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. 18 Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter will pass from the law, until all things have taken place. 19 Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do so will be called least in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever obeys and teaches these commandments will be called greatest in the kingdom of heaven.[b]-Matthew5:17-19

It is very clear that Jesus did not come to abolish the law but to fulfill it. However, there is a big difference between fulfilling the law and merely observing it because it is what is taught. Jesus' way of fulfilling the law is by living out the very heart of the law - Love and Peace. Why is it that everything and everywhere we go, there is a law? Without the law there is chaos, even the universe has a law of its own. But laws do not impede or block our happiness. Rather, it directs us to the right path to happiness and holiness. The heart of the law is Love and Peace. If one has love and peace, then the law is in his/her heart. If love, peace and law is in one's heart, then God resides in the person.

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Teaching Authority

Jesus fulfilled the Law.

17 [a]“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. 18 Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter will pass from the law, until all things have taken place. 19 Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do so will be called least in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever obeys and teaches these commandments will be called greatest in the kingdom of heaven.[b]-Matthew5:17-19

The gospel reading made me wonder about something and made me remember someone. A world-renowned boxer was initially known for being a devout Catholic. So many people were touched at his piety. One day, he announced that he would leave the Catholic Church in favor of a born-again religious sect. I do not want to judge him, but it made me, and so many others, wonder if he did this just so that he can include it in his achievements - self-made man, millionaire, world-class boxer, philanthropist, politician (sic) and now a preacher. Can anybody preach just like that? Is the desire to be a motivational speaker enough reason to leave a Church in favor of another? What is more important - to preach the Scriptures with one's experiences as fuel, or to preach the Scriptures with years of studies as fuel? Preaching and evangelizing are noble acts and I am touched by men and women who do it, but can anybody just do it? Is there danger if somebody is just plucked from nowhere to do it?

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What comes out?

What comes out from us, define who we are.

14 He summoned the crowd again and said to them, “Hear me, all of you, and understand. 15 Nothing that enters one from outside can defile that person; but the things that come out from within are what defile.” [16 ][a]17 [b]When he got home away from the crowd his disciples questioned him about the parable. 18 He said to them, “Are even you likewise without understanding? Do you not realize that everything that goes into a person from outside cannot defile, 19 [c]since it enters not the heart but the stomach and passes out into the latrine?” (Thus he declared all foods clean.) 20 “But what comes out of a person, that is what defiles. 21 From within people, from their hearts, come evil thoughts, unchastity, theft, murder, 22 adultery, greed, malice, deceit, licentiousness, envy, blasphemy, arrogance, folly. 23 All these evils come from within and they defile.”-Mark7:14-23

The Gospel reading is indeed thought-provoking. There are many accounts in Leviticus where Yahweh Himself gave the "Do's and Don'ts" of the Jewish faith, including the foods to eat and not to eat. However, Jesus declared that all foods are clean. Jesus was clear when He said that food does not make a person unclean or defiled [according to Genesis, all are created good], rather, it is sin that comes from within ourselves that make one unclean or defiled. I was just wondering why Yahweh gave a prescription, only for Jesus to change later on. As I reflected, I do believe that the traditions and prescriptions are not bad at all. These serve as a guideline or parameter which is very ideal. However, it should have been coupled with love for God and love of neighbor, and an understanding that there is more to the Law, traditions and prescriptions. These are not supposed to isolate, judge or condemn others, but it is supposed to build and encourage growth. I do believe that Jesus made the Law, traditions and prescriptions perfect by living it out Himself in a way that speaks of love of God and neighbor.

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