WATCHWORD:
1 One day some Jewish religious leaders arrived from Jerusalem to investigate him, 2 and noticed that some of his disciples failed to follow the usual Jewish rituals before eating. … 5 So the religious leaders asked him, “Why don’t your disciples follow our age-old customs? For they eat without first performing the washing ceremony.” 6-7 Jesus replied, “You bunch of hypocrites! Isaiah the prophet described you very well when he said, ‘These people speak very prettily about the Lord but they have no love for him at all. Their worship is a farce, for they claim that God commands the people to obey their petty rules.’ How right Isaiah was! … 14 Then Jesus called to the crowd to come and hear. “All of you listen,” he said, “and try to understand. 15 Your souls aren’t harmed by what you eat, but by what you think and say!” 21 For from within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts of lust, theft, murder, adultery, 22 wanting what belongs to others, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, pride, and all other folly. 23 All these vile things come from within; they are what pollute you and make you unfit for God.” Mark 7:1-2, 5-7,14-15, 21-23 NLT
Meditation:
Rules of Worship?
New York City painter Archie Rand likes to work on big art projects, with big themes, like jazz in American culture or the history of the Jews. He paints large pieces, murals on buildings and other surfaces. One collection of 54 paintings represents each division of the Hebrew Torah. However, nothing compares to his series of paintings entitled “The 613,”, completed in 2008, of 613 paintings, one for each Jewish law, all reflecting the artist’s sharp sense of humor.
Examples: Law #277 commands one to “redeem each firstborn donkey with a lamb given to the priesthood,” which Rand illustrates with a prosperous-looking burgher riding a forlorn donkey, perhaps on his way to deliver a lamb to the priest. #169 states “the high priest must not marry a widow,” which is dramatized by a cowering damsel, forlorn, it seems, that no priest will marry her. #500, “not to overcharge or underpay for an article,” illustrated with a buxom call girl lounging on a bed, reading a thick book, waiting for her john to arrive.
For the ancient Jew, the Laws were important guide rails for living a sacred life. What would those ancient Jewish religious leaders make of the “commandments”, or laws, that modern Christian denominations have thrown up to give guidance to our idea of worship? In the Mark passage we get the impression of conflict between our idea of Christian behavior and God‘s. It would be interesting to see Rand’s artistic interpretation of some of our “Rules of Worship”. How about the sanctity of “Pew Reservations”, the prohibition of women in the pulpit, frequency of Communion and who can receive the sacraments? How about dress codes? Not to mention rules that seem to exclude certain groups.
Each of the fifty thousand plus “brands” of Christianity seem to have different “commandments”, different seasons of worship; weekly, monthly, annual traditions; different understandings of Christian Education. Have you ever walked into a church, while traveling, and felt as if you didn’t belong? That just isn’t right. I’ve done that, sat in a pew and then was asked to move to a different pew, because I was sitting in ‘their’ place. That church is missing something important and it affects the worship of God.
Do you suppose we can count to 613 Christian laws? Probably. But having committed to #1 and #2, the remaining 611 mean nothing, nothing at all. Man-made, having nothing to do with God or worship. Love the Lord your God and Love others as God loves us, just about covers it. Come as you are, sit where you like. Worship the Lord. Don’t you think? So be it.
Closing Prayer:
Heavenly Father, help us, as we worship You, to give our lives to You. We crave the peace and joy that we find in knowing that you love us and that our commitment to love all others as you have loved us is a measure of praise for You. Instill in us the confidence, Lord, that you are in charge, that you love us, and you have a plan for our lives, and you have equipped us to accomplish that purpose. We offer our prayers in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Amen.
