Joke: A cab driver reaches the Pearly Gates and announces his presence to St. Peter, who looks him up in his Big Book. Upon reading the entry for the cabby, St. Peter invites him to take a silk robe and a golden staff and to proceed into Heaven. A preacher is next in line behind the cabby and has been watching these proceedings with interest. He announces himself to St. Peter. Upon scanning the preacher's entry in the Big Book, St. Peter furrows his brow and says, "Okay, we'll let you in, but take that cotton robe and wooden staff." The preacher is astonished and replies, "But I am a clergy. You gave that cab driver a golden staff and a silk robe. Surely, I rate higher than a cabby." St. Peter responded matter-of-factly: "Here we are interested in results. When you preached, people slept. When the cabby drove his taxi, people prayed."

In all today’s readings, the Church puts together to help us examine ourselves how do we follow and observe God’s laws? Is there any conflict between our words and our actions? Have our words and actions followed God’s will?

In today’s Gospel, from the lips of the prophet Isaiah, Jesus repeated the words of his prophesy saying, “This people honors me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines human precepts.” The Scribes studied the law and taught it, while the full job of the Pharisees was to impose it on the people. They did it so well that they often had an honored seat in the synagogue, and people greeted them with high respect on the streets. Their appearances earned their respect, but in their hearts, Jesus accused them saying, “You disregard God’s commandment but cling to human tradition.” They worshipped the Lord with their lips, but their hearts were far away from worshiping Him. The question is what is it in the heart and not in the actions that Jesus criticized? Listen to the words of Jesus teaching us in today’s Gospel, “From within people, from their hearts, come evil thoughts, unchastity, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, licentiousness, envy, blasphemy, arrogance, folly. All these evils come from within and they defile.” Why is that the heart or rather the inner being? The heart, we might say, is what brings life to our human being. Without a heart, one cannot have life because it pumps blood to all parts of the body. It is a hub for transporting blood throughout the whole body.

We all can hear with our ears, to see with our eyes together with other senses of our being because the heart continues to pump the blood to nurture all parts of this body to bring all these senses into being. However, what is that that directs our eyes, for example, to see what to see and not see what ought not to see if it’s not what we call the inner being, our soul? The inner being is what triggers the delivery of actions that are either good actions or bad. The inner being tells the eyes, oh that stuff is bad, don’t watch, but temptation sometimes is so great that our inner being falls into the temptation to watch what ought not to watch. This inner being is what Jesus invites us to pay attention to. People might hear, but they might not observe because the inner being is either sick, numb, or dead. This is exactly why Moses in today’s first reading instructed the Israelites saying, “Now, Israel, hear the statutes and decrees which I am teaching you to observe, that you may live, and may enter in and take possession of the land.” The laws that Moses taught them were not just for listening or hearing, but to observe. In observing the laws, Moses clearly said, “In your observance of the commandments of the LORD, your God, you shall not add to what I command you nor subtract from it.” Someone might say, that the laws of Moses were many, not counting the Ten Commandments that the Lord instructed him to deliver to the people, but Jesus gave us only two laws, is that adding or subtracting or what? It is not adding nor subtracting, but rather, the Lord Jesus condensed these laws into two laws. According to the laws of Moses, for example, when the wife had wrinkles on her face (sorry ladies,) the husband had a right to divorce her. The Lord Jesus teaches us to love, love unconditionally. “I promise to be true to you in good times and in bad times, in sickness and in health. I will love you and honor you all the days of my life.” Those of you who are living in marriage life should remember this phrase when you exchanged your vow and your rings at the matrimony celebration. So, not that when you have wrinkles on your face, he will divorce you, but he will love you all the days of his life. Our inner being fails to direct our actions to follow the Lord’s teaching. What then makes our inner being fail to direct our actions according to God’s teaching?

If we can only hear or listen to God’s words or his teaching, it’s done no good to us. However, if we practice observing God’s commandments, not just reciting but doing that Saint James beautifully explains in today’s second reading saying, “Be doers of the word and not hearers only, deluding yourselves.” How do we act on the Word of God? Saint James teaches us saying, “to care for orphans and widows in their affliction and to keep oneself unstained by the world.” It is the act of charity for oneself and others, especially to those who are in need, and to keep oneself unstained by the world. What is exactly the act of charity when there is no one around us as an orphan or widow in their affliction? How do we isolate ourselves unstained from this world with all kinds of attractions?

The act of charity is when we are kind and nice to those we meet at work, in school, at Church, at home, or even on the street; when we extend our help even though our bodies ached and pain; when you are kind and nice to your spouse and your children at home; and when you are kind and nice to one another at home, you are a peacemaker at your own home. If each individual in the family is a peacemaker, the whole family will be at peace. If each family lives in peace, the whole world will be at peace. Christ, the prince of peace, is truly present in our lives. Is it called the act of charity when we have no problem helping others but family, especially the one who hurts us? Why is it that our children have no problem listening to their friends and being influenced by their peers but have difficulty listening and to respect to their parents? What is the act of charity if it’s not rooted truly in the inner being guided by the Holy Spirit and delivered into actions? Just as Jesus says in today’s Gospel, “Nothing that enters one from outside can defile that person; but the things that come out from within are what defile,” how would we conform our inner being to God’s will and deliver our actions into peace and joy if it’s not to be constantly conscious and aware of our words and actions? All our actions shall be sound when our inner being, our soul, is conformed to God’s will and guided by the Holy Spirit. Is there any conflict among God’s will for you with your inner being and your actions? The decision is yours.