After
Jesus had spoken,a Pharisee invited him to dine at his home.
He entered and reclined at table to eat.
The Pharisee was amazed to see
that he did not observe the prescribed washing before the meal.
The Lord said to him, “Oh you Pharisees!
Although you cleanse the outside of the cup and the dish,
inside you are filled with plunder and evil.
You fools!
Did not the Maker of the outside also make the inside?
But as to what is within, give alms,
and behold, everything will be clean for you.”
Luke
11:37-41
Here
Jesus is challenging those who spend all their spiritual energy on ritual and
none on their interior lives. He insists
it will not work. Today, the pendulum
has swung the other way and many spend all their spiritual energy only their interior
lives and none on ritual.
Science
tells us we are not dualistic creatures with separate body and mind. Our bodies affect our minds just as clearly
as the other way around.
To
reach our full potential – to be whole - we need to attend to our whole selves.
Yes; attend to the individualistic, introspective,
rational self, but don’t neglect the communal, primordial self that craves
ritual. Did not the Maker of the inside
also make the outside?
Photo: Fire on the Beach
