Mark 7:1-8 NRSVue
1Now when the Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around him, 2they noticed that some of his disciples were eating with defiled hands, that is, without washing them. 3(For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, do not eat unless they wash their hands, thus observing the tradition of the elders, 4and they do not eat anything from the market unless they wash, and there are also many other traditions that they observe: the washing of cups and pots and bronze kettles and beds.) 5So the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, “Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders but eat with defiled hands?” 6He said to them, “Isaiah prophesied rightly about you hypocrites, as it is written,
‘This people honors me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me;
7in vain do they worship me, teaching human precepts as doctrines.’
8“You abandon the commandment of God and hold to human tradition.”
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Some thoughts on this scripture
Reflection
The Pharisees brought a 'policing' attitude to their practice of faith, they compared themselves to others, looking down on those who lived differently. I let Jesus speak to me about any similar attitude he might notice in me.
Reflection
Faced with a religious question, Jesus reached to the tradition of his people. What life does God have to offer me as I consider my roots and heritage?