31st Sunday in Ordinary Time 2023
Malachi 1:14 – 2:2, 8-10 1 Thessalonians 2:7-9, 13 Matthew 23:1-12
According to Saint Matthew the relationship between Jesus and the Scribes and Pharisees was very fractious and hostile. This may have been Matthew’s editing and his view rather than the reality because we know that Jesus did have some friendly encounters with Pharisees, as seen in the other Gospels. Chapter 23 of Matthew’s Gospel is full of “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees”. Particularly Jesus condemned them for their exaggerated observance of the law while being unaware of the real spirit or meaning of the law. In the gospel stories of the last two Sundays we observed the Pharisees trying to catch out Jesus in his interpretation of and observance of the law in regard to loyalty and primacy of laws. In today’s Gospel Jesus has his chance to reply to them. His reply is on the topic of hypocrisy. Because of Matthew’s reporting, we have traditionally associated hypocrisy with Pharisees! The word ‘hypocrite’ comes from the Greek word for ‘actor’ and hypocrites are ones who act out an exterior role of piety and goodness which does not match up to their true selves. Jesus points out three types of hypocrisy evident in the Pharisees’ way of life. We can easily see that these types of hypocrisy are not confined to the Pharisees alone. We need to examine our consciences too.
The first type of hypocrisy is ‘not practicing what we preach’. All of us are quick to point to the faults of others while making excuses for own behaviour. Don’t’ forget that when you point one finger at others there are three of your fingers pointing back at yourself!
Most of us do not have the authority to ‘lay burdens on the shoulders of others’. But we still blame others for what is wrong or unfair in the world while avoiding or evading our own responsibilities to society and to the world in which we live. This, the second type of hypocrisy, is surely rampant in our world today.
The third mark of the hypocrite is to depend on praise and honour and people’s attention. When we are weak and cowardly we tend to bolster our self-esteem and confidence by outward frills and shows. Hypocrites expect to find their security through their own merits and talents. But we know that whatever we are and whoever we are is not of our doing. And so, Jesus, having spoken about hypocrisy immediately goes on to talk about humility. The word humility comes from the Latin word, ‘Humus’, meaning ‘earth’. It means having your feet firmly on the ground, earthed on a bedrock of truth. We realise how weak we are and our many faults and, most of all, we become aware of how dependent we are on God for who are and what we can do. In this way, Jesus tells us that “those who humble themselves will be exalted”. The Lord, Himself, is our exemplar. It was He who “humbled himself and became one of us - to the Glory of God the Father.”
Today’s Responsorial Psalm (Psalm 130) expresses the prayer of the humble soul, totally secure in the presence of God:
O Lord, my heart is not proud nor haughty my eyes. I have not gone after things too great nor marvels beyond me Truly, I have set my soul in silence and peace. A weaned child on its mother’s breast, even so my soul.