Meditation Minute

My Dearest Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

“It is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but it is what comes out of the mouth that defiles.”

Gospel Reading: Matthew 15:1-2, 10-14

1 Then Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem and said, 2 "Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands before they eat." 10 Then he called the crowd to him and said to them, "Listen and understand: 11 it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but it is what comes out of the mouth that defiles." 12 Then the disciples approached and said to him, "Do you know that the Pharisees took offense when they heard what you said?" 13 He answered, "Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted. 14 Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind. And if one blind person guides another, both will fall into a pit."

Today’s gospel message is quite clear. It’s not what’s on the outside that important but what’s on the inside. We must have a clean heart and a clean mind if we are to find the kingdom of heaven. The Jews were more worried about what went into their mouths and not what came out. Jesus tells us that the true defilement is in our words and the sentiment in our hearts. Hatred and evil are born within us, deep inside our minds and our hearts. It starts in our thoughts and our desires. Our soul is the source of our hatred. If we do not purify the thoughts of our soul, what good is it to have clean hands. Jesus compares our thoughts and desires to the seeds of plants. The thoughts and desires are like plants in our soul. We must uproot the weeds so the good plants can grow and prosper. If we do not tend the garden, the weeds will overtake the goodness that was naturally placed in our souls at our birth. We must be ever vigilant. It is through the grace of God that we can kill the weeds and purify our hearts.

What is inside our hearts is what comes out our mouths. If we have a clean soul, we will have clean thoughts and our words will be the words of God. Only God can change our hearts. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, we can find the power we need to clean out the junk that prevents us from doing God’s will. We must be willing to see and recognize the sins in our lives. Once we recognize the sins, we can call upon the Holy Spirit to give the strength we need to purge ourselves of these sins and desires. Eventually, you can overcome the evil which dwells within, but only through the grace of God. It is through the loving grace of our Father in heaven that we are provided the power to change. Call upon God. Ask him to come forth into your life and purify your heart and your mind.

A Simple Prayer

Lord God, master of all.

Help me to identify the sins in my life.

Give me the wisdom to recognize wrong from right

And the power to change and cleanse my soul.

Yours in Christ

Michael Marcon