Lk.6: 39-45
Once, a senior monk and a junior monk travelled together. At one point, they reached a river with a strong current. They were getting ready to cross the river. Then they saw a young and beautiful woman attempting to cross the river. She asked if they could help her cross the river and reach the other side. The two monks glanced at each other because they had taken a vow not to touch any woman. But then, without a word, the senior monk carried her across the river and placed her on the other side gently, carrying on his journey. The younger monk could not digest what had happened. He was speechless after joining with the senior monk. An hour passed, they did not utter a word, and then two more hours. Finally, the younger monk broke the silence and shared his frustration. “As monks, we are not allowed to touch a woman, so how can you carry a woman on your shoulders?” Then the older monk looked at him and said, “I placed her on the other side of the river. Why are you still carrying her?”
Today we are invited to reflect on the third part of the beatitudes. These verses exhort us to take an inward journey of introspection. In fact, Jesus demands this self-renewal from his disciples in the context of the corrupted lives of the religious leaders of his time. Their lives were marked by religious hypocrisy. They were concerned about the exact observance of the law. Anyhow, it was only an external show. Their hearts were fully away from the spirit of the law. In fact, the faithful and they themselves were well aware of their moral corruption. However, they demanded respect and honour from people through their external pious dress code and deep knowledge of the law. Nevertheless, they could never claim closeness to God. Their hearts were far away from God and they did not have any personal God experience to share with others. Thus, they themselves were in darkness. In this context, Jesus poses the question: Can a blind person guide a blind person? Will they not both fall into a pit? (Lk.6:39)
In fact, this religious decline was happening in Jewish society as well. These religious leaders could not convey God’s experience, his mercy, and love to the people of Israel. They presented Judaism as a set of rules and regulations. They presented a very narrow picture of God to people, such as: strict judge, someone keen on observing the fulfilment of the law. Whatsoever, they wilfully violated all the laws according to their convenience. In this context, Jesus told his disciples, “You are the light of the world.” (Mt. 5:14) When we experience Christ the light in our personal lives, then we can only lead others who are in the dark to this light.
The second aspect that Jesus emphasises is their over-enthusiasm to find fault with their fellow brethren by pointing out their minor disruption from the law. They had a judgemental attitude towards so-called sinners like prostitutes and tax collectors. These religious leaders were highly criticised by these people. But private life was coloured with infidelity to Yahweh and his commandments. They took advantage of the law and exploited the poor, especially the widows. In this context, Jesus tells them to remove the log from their eyes and then remove the speck from the eyes of their neighbours.
Finally, Jesus tells them to lead a fruitful life by leading a good moral life. From our thoughts comes action. A bad tree can’t produce good fruits. Therefore, we need to strive for purity of thoughts and intentions. No one can examine or check our inner thoughts. It is our personal responsibility and integrity. A person can put up a good external show and keep his/her inner life filled with negative and immoral thoughts. Anyhow, no one can hide these issues for long. They will be revealed through one’s actions.
Today’s gospel passage exhorts us to make a total examination of our lives, our thoughts, our words, and actions as a whole. If our hearts are astray from God, our thoughts will not have the flavour of goodness. It will be reflected in our actions. As a result, we can’t live an integral and authentic life. The Lord’s invitation is to look inward and see where we are now. As we enter into the season of Lent, let us take this inner journey seriously and spend this season of Lent in a fruitful manner through our sincere repentance. May this season of Lent help us to transform our lives as true witnesses of Christ.