Abundant Life

 
 To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable: “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.  The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector.  I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’
“But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’
  “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

                                                                                                                                      Luke 18:9-14

Now that I'm able to get into the blog, my task is to get back into the habit of writing.  Patience appreciated!

This morning during my reading, the Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector leapt out at me.  Anyone reading the news is aware that there are a lot of Pharisees out there, religious leaders ready to proclaim that only they have the correct teachings, that everyone else is somehow not Christian at all. 

What struck me about this familiar parable was the description of the Pharisee as someone confident of  his own righteousness and who looked down on everyone else.  Although the Pharisee fasted and tithed and obeyed the laws - it was not enough.  And although it is not mentioned in the text, I am struck by the degree of judgment displayed by the Pharisee.

We talk about humility in the church, and many of those Pharisees out there are quick to say they are sinners. I wonder, though, if in so doing they are simply complying with the letter of the law, so to speak.  What strikes me is that pride and judgment go hand in hand. 

It's hard not to judge, as we are called to judge constantly in life.  We must judge whether a teacher's words are in keeping with what we understand to be the teachings of Christ; we are called to do that by Jesus himself. 

It seems to me that the key is Love.  The Pharisee's problem was that he regarded others through eyes of condemnation, not eyes of love.  We MUST reject teachings that are incompatible with Love, teachings that do not place love above the law, as Christ did.  In so doing, though, we must be on guard against our human tendency to reject those who follow such teachings. 

That's that hard part, isn't it!