Good Or Evil? Our Heart Makes The Choice

Deut.4:1-2,6-8; James 1:17-18,21-22,27 & Mk. 7:1-8,14-15,21-23

In ordinary language, we us the words "tradition" and custom" interchangeably. They refer to practices which have become standard in our community over the years. Indeed, the word "tradition means "to hand on", that is, something which has been passed on from person to person, from one generation to the next, down through the years, perhaps even centuries. Today's readings invite us to examine our traditions to see where they come from, and how we are to approach them.

If we trace our traditions back to their origins, we will find that they come from one of two sources. Some traditions are of human origin and are conditioned by social and cultural factors; other traditions may be based on different principles, for example, hygiene, "Wash your hands before you eat.", or good manners, "Say please when making a request", or simply culture, "Turkey for Christmas dinner." Traditions which come from God are usually found in Sacred Scripture, for example, the Ten Commandments in the Old Testament, and the Eucharist in the Gospel where the Lord entrusted the Sacrament of His Body and Blood to the Apostles who treasured it and passed it down. Our attitude to traditions depend on their origin.

Traditions which come from God should hold highest priority. As for social customs, they may be good, indifferent or bad. The ultimate test in how they relate to God's tradition. If there is a conflict, then God's will takes priority and the social custom should be abandoned. One such example of a recent social custom is that of cohabitation. Having sex before or outside marriage has come to be considered not only tolerable, but even "fashionable" in society. However, such customs can never be right because they are contrary to God's plan. It is up to us to use our freedom responsibly, so as to reject what is wrong, and choose what God has taught us to be right.

The place where the choice between good and evil is made is the human heart. This brings us to the second part of today's Gospel where the Lord teaches us that the uncleanness of sin originates in the heart, which is the seat of our raw emotions and passions. These emotions are often spontaneous and in themselves are not sinful, but it is what we do with them which determines whether we sin or not. Sadly, because of our fallen nature, these raw emotions often end up including our will in the direction of sin, but that is entirely our choice. When faced with a temptation we can choose either to sin, or not to sin. This is where personal responsibility comes in. Let us take some examples.

Suppose a person has done me harm, and this has triggered a spontaneous emotion of anger within me. So far, there is no sin. However, at this point I can choose between two ways: I can either forgive this person in my heart and pray for him, or else I can choose to be resentful and hate the person. If I choose the latter, then I sin. This hatred can lead me further into sin if I choose to be aggressive or violent.

Likewise, in the area of sexuality, suppose a man encounters a beautiful woman and instinctively feels attracted, which is normal. However, if, instead of thanking God for her beauty and moving on, he wilfully desires her and indulges in sexual fantasies, then he has committed the sin of lust in his heart. This sin may lead the person into the futher sins of fornication or adultery.

The human heart is the ground where the battle between sin and virtue is fought. Temptations may come from outside and act as triggers, but we cannot blame the temptations for our sins. The source of sin is within each of us, and we have to accept responsibility for our action when we choose to sin whether in thought, word or deed.

Holy Spirit move our hearts always to do what is right, so that in our daily struggles, we choose God's will and not sin.