Monday, February 5, 2018

5th Week, Ordinary Time, Tuesday, 06-02-18

1 Kings 8:22-23, 27-30 / Mark 7:1-13

The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that "The Church is both visible and spiritual, a hierarchical society and the Mystical Body of Christ. She is one, yet formed of two components, human and divine. That is her mystery, which only faith can accept." (#779)

Yes, the Church is human as well as divine. Yet at times, the flawed humanness of the Church has also blurred the divine aspect of the Church.

In other words, if the Church fails to be like Jesus Christ her Lord, then she has failed in being essentially what she was created to be.

In the 1st reading, king Solomon marvelled and praised God for coming down from the highest heavens to dwell in the humble Temple he had built.

Yet his prayer is nothing less than a plea - Listen to the prayer and entreaty of your servant, Lord my God; listen to the cry and to the prayer your servant makes to you today. Day and night let your eyes watch over this house, over this place of which you have said, "My name shall be there".

Yes, it is so easy for people to lose the sense of the divine presence in the house of God and when that happens, the presence of evil starts to grow in the hearts of the people who can be right there in the house of God.

That was why king Solomon pleaded that God watches over the Temple which is a sign of His presence among His people.

Similarly in the gospel, Jesus admonished Pharisees and scribes for putting aside the commandment of God to cling to human traditions.

So it is like doing something religious but with an ulterior human motive and vested interest.

When that happens in the Church, then we have failed. We have showed a sinful human side of the Church and suppressed the divine aspect.

We need to plead to God as one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church: Listen to the prayer and entreaty of your servants, Lord my God; listen to the cry and to the prayer your servants make to You today. Day and night let Your eyes watch over this house, over this place of which You have said, "My name shall be there".