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People of the Lie




#DAYLIGHT – Daily #MenOfLight#GospelReflection
August 28, 2019
Wednesday of the 21st Week in Ordinary Time
Gospel: Mt 23: 27 - 32
Sharer: Bro. Mike Lapid


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The Gospel
27 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You are like whitewashed tombs, which appear beautiful on the outside, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and every kind of filth. 28 Even so, on the outside you appear righteous, but inside you are filled with hypocrisy and evildoing.
29 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the memorials of the righteous, 30 and you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our ancestors, we would not have joined them in shedding the prophets’ blood.’ 31 Thus you bear witness against yourselves that you are the children of those who murdered the prophets; 32 now fill up what your ancestors measured out!

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REFLECTION


People of the Lie

In today’s reading, Jesus addresses the scribes and Pharisees and calls them hypocrites. At that time, scribes and Pharisees were part of the religious elite. They knew the commandments of the Lord by heart. They taught and guided people to love the laws of God and played a vital role in the religious life of Israel.  

Notwithstanding their high status in religious circles, Jesus calls them hypocrites which is a very strong derogatory word. No one perhaps in those days had the courage to call them hypocrites. But Jesus did. Jesus compared them to whitewashed tombs that appeared beautiful on the outside but rotten and filthy on the inside. He described them as people who were filled with hypocrisy and evildoing. In other words, they were evil and Jesus was there to unmask this evil.

Jesus’ use of strong derogatory language against the scribes and Pharisees did not sit well with them. In fact, Jesus’ critical voice brought out into the light the evil that was inside their hearts as they plotted and conspired to condemn Jesus to die on the cross. Only people who are evil could have the guts to condemn an innocent man to death and still feel that what they have done is right.

This reading, moreover, also gives us a glimpse of who Jesus is. While Jesus doesn’t condemn sinners and all their wickedness, he seems to be intolerant of hypocrisy. He seems intolerant of those who put up a show of their righteousness before men but who, in reality, are evil to the core. It seems that these people will never get to repent about anything because they are blind to their own faults.

How then should this reading affect us?

First, it should be clear to us that we cannot hide anything from the Lord. The Lord knows us through and through. He knows what is in our hearts; our motives, our inclinations, the desires of our hearts and our sinfulness. There is no sense in trying to hide anything from the Lord who knows everything. When we pray in front of the Lord, we should open up ourselves to the Lord who knows all our weaknesses and failures and with great candor speak to the Lord about our personal struggles in life. This makes us humble and sincere before the Lord.

Second, there is always our human tendency to make a show of our righteousness. Like the scribes and Pharisees, we are tempted to project to others that we are fine and good people; that we are devout and religious; that we are generous, caring and giving; that we are oh, so good and deserving of praise and affirmation from the people around us.

Unfortunately, when we put up a show of our good deeds to impress people, to please them and to create a positive image of ourselves in society, we end up manipulating the minds of people whom we want to impress. Hypocrisy is a kind of manipulation because we project to others what is not real and true. Unfortunately, there is another word for what is not real and true – it is called a lie. Hypocrites are people living a lie; indeed, they are people of the lie who have put up something which is not true and real. The biggest tragedy of hypocrites is that they think they can even fool God with their lies. Not so, the wicked not so, says Psalm 1; they are like chaff that the wind drives away. This is why perhaps Jesus was ever so intolerant of hypocrites because they will never be able to stand when judgment comes.


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PRAYER

Jesus, you know me through and through. You know my thoughts, my words and my actions. There is nothing that remains hidden, nothing that you do not know. Yet, despite of this, I always have the tendency to make a show of what is good in me, seeking the affirmation of people around me. At times, I end up not being real in what I show people because it is not really who I am. Help me Lord not to live the lie of hypocrisy. Purify my heart , Lord. Guide me so that I may be humble and sincere of heart. Amen.


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ASSIGNMENT


Pray Psalm 139.
Quietly and peacefully reflect on how God knows you perfectly well.


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