From Our Lay Leader
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices – mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law – justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter without neglecting the former.” Matthew 23:23
Jesus’ words here tell us that the letter of the law is important, but more important is the practice of justice, mercy and faithfulness. Notice that he did not say “as important” but “more important.” Jesus accused the teachers of the law and the Pharisees of not helping others to enter the gates of heaven. In Matthew 23:13, Jesus says, “You shut the kingdom of heaven in men’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to.”
We help others enter the kingdom of heaven through extending justice, mercy, and faithfulness. All of these are part of the law. Justice is teaching and applying the law to all and not ignoring it or showing favoritism to some and hardness to others. Mercy is applying restraint to the penalty, forgiving those who have seen the wrong of their sin and desire to make right their way of living and to seek recompense to those they have hurt. Faithfulness is trusting in the wisdom of the law and not reinterpreting it for your benefit or that of your group, and recognizing the good that the law does, sustaining it and abiding by it.
We are quick to judge others by the law, or our understanding of the law, but we tend to be lenient or lacking in acuity when it comes to our own transgressions. Much of the strife we experience in our relationships with others and between our respective groups, organizations, and parties, are due to our hypocritical application of the law for our own gain. We seem to be blind to the fact that most of what we say and do towards others is to influence the situation to be in our favor, for our benefit. That is the opposite of what Jesus calls us to do.
The next time you criticize or judge some person or group, become aware that you are neglecting “the more important matters of the law.” Look at your pointing finger, and then notice the other three fingers pointing back at you: the fingers of justice, mercy, and faithfulness.