Father Csaba’s reflection on the gospel Wednesday 7 February 2018
“There is nothing outside a person that by going in can defile, but the things that come out are what defile.” Mark 7, 14
This beautiful teaching of Jesus is very important for all those , who would like to fulfil our Master’s commandment pertaining to us :"Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. “ Matthew 5, 48 . Man cannot be sullied from the outside and this is not only proclaimed by our Redeemer , but He also proved it in His own life during the events of Holy Thursday , Good Friday that even on the cross one can live and die purely, saintly ! The lives of the saints following Christ are also testifying this very important teaching ! We saw in the life of Father Saint Maximilian Kolbe , since he lived his own sanctity of life in the midst of his suffering, in the hell of the second world war with undiminished faith!
It is important to think about the other side of this teaching as well ! Nobody can be sanctified from the outside ! Jesus , although He certainly would have liked , could not sanctify the priests from Herod’s court , the rich young man , Judas, neither the thief on His left hand side ! Our features are contorted by the evil, vileness coming from within, but the love springing up in our hearts , goodness , mercy , wisdom are capable to sanctify us ! From the outside neither theological studies , nor even the tranquil surrounding of a monastery are going to make a saint automatically out of anybody !
I am the master of my own life , I cannot lean back , I cannot count on anybody picking me up and lugging me into the Kingdom of Heaven ! But for my own damnation neither can I make somebody the scapegoat , regardless whom I accuse of my own “corruption”, because I am responsible for my own life ! Every man is there on the field , with the ball bouncing , the audience can barrack for us, or whistle , the winning goal we have to score , neither the referee , nor our trainer , nor our shouting supporters, fans are able to do it!
Lets wake up to our duties and with big strides lets get going on the way of the sanctity of life !
With love ,
Father Csaba ,
translated by dr k.e.
Then he called the crowd again and said to them, "Listen to me, all of you, and understand: there is nothing outside a person that by going in can defile, but the things that come out are what defile." When he had left the crowd and entered the house, his disciples asked him about the parable. He said to them, "Then do you also fail to understand? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile, since it enters, not the heart but the stomach, and goes out into the sewer?" (Thus he declared all foods clean.) And he said, "It is what comes out of a person that defiles. For it is from within, from the human heart, that evil intentions come: fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person."
Mark 7, 14-23
Father Csaba’s reflection on the gospel Wednesday 7 February 2018