Lord, Jesus Christ, teach me to pray.
Prepare yourself for the reading of the scripture passage by quieting yourself and asking God to speak to you in this passage. Read the passage slowly with both the mind and the heart, at least two times.
A Reading from the gospel according to Mark [7:1-5; 14-23]
Now when the Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around Jesus, they noticed that some of his disciples were eating with defiled hands, that is, without washing them. (For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, do not eat unless they thoroughly wash their hands, thus observing the tradition of the elders; and they do not eat anything from the market unless they wash it; and there are also many other traditions that they observe, the washing of cups, pots, and bronze kettles.) So the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, “Why do your disciples not live according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?”
Then Jesus called to the crowd and said to them, “Listen to me, all of you, and understand: There is nothing outside a person that by going in can defile, but the things that come out are what defile.” When he had left the crowd and entered the house, his disciples asked him about the parable. He said to them, “Then do you also fail to understand? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile, since it enters, not the heart but the stomach, and goes out into the sewer?” (Thus he declared all foods clean.) And he said, “It is what comes out of a person that defiles. For it is from within, from the human heart, that evil intentions come: fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”
In the scripture today we see that the Pharisees knew very well how to clean their hands, food and containers, things that are on the outside, but Jesus points out that they don’t really have any idea about how to clean what is on the inside, in the heart. Christians practice cleaning the inside through confession.
You may look at the list above and feel that the evil intentions listed have little to do with you. Most of us consider ourselves moral and decent people. But, our hearts still get cluttered with the “small” things that build up and then hinder our growth as Christians. How many of us can say that we never react in anger or irritation, complain loudly (at least inwardly and sometimes outwardly) about the slow person in front of us in a line, or spread rumors or gossip even though we tell ourselves that it’s just information? Have any of us said or done hurtful things to our family members and loved ones? Do we stretch the truth? What about pride? Do we want people to think that we are better than we actually are? We can say that these are all small things and in the eyes of our culture they are. But we are called to a higher standard. We are called to be like Jesus and I, for one, am far from the mark. A regular cleaning definitely does us all good.
Today, I invite you to a form of confession using the body. This prayer is taken from the book, 50 Ways to Pray, by Teresa A. Blythe.
Begin by placing yourself in the presence of a loving and accepting God. You may want to use an image of Jesus or some sense of the Holy Spirit. All are God in our tradition.
~Make your hands into two fists. In your mind’s eye, put all that comes between you and God--all your sin and brokenness--in your clenched hands.
~Open your hands and offer these shortcomings to God. Allow God to forgive you. Allow God to completely remove what you are holding.
~Now, cup your hands and ask for God’s blessing. Imagine God pouring his love and grace into your open hands.
~Place your palms together in front of your heart in a traditional prayer pose as you express your gratitude to God.
~Repeat as often as you like.
What are your reactions to a prayer of confession? Do you feel that you need forgiveness? Did God bring anything specific into your heart or your mind that needed forgiveness? Is there anything for which you need to forgive yourself?
Record your thoughts and prayers in your prayer journal.
Loving God, As I move through this day and through the remaining days of Lent, may I forgive others as you have forgiven me. Amen.
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