The Lord said to him, “Oh you Pharisees!
Although you cleanse the outside of the cup and the dish,
inside you are filled with plunder and evil.

Luke 11:39

Luke 11:37-41

Reflection

Today, Jesus eats with a Pharisee, and as per usual, the Pharisee is astonished at Jesus’ behavior – this time, for not washing properly before the meal. Jesus goes on to rebuke him, saying that the Pharisees like to clean the outside of things to make them look clean, but interiorly, the items are dirty. Of course, this applies to the Pharisees themselves. They perform all the ‘proper’ rituals and play the part for the world, but inside, they are evil and filled with plunder, as Jesus says.

This can apply to our spiritual and interior lives today. Sometimes, we may put on a show of looking and acting like good Christians. Our cup and dish are clean exteriorly, but perhaps when we’re alone, we don’t act as Christlike. Hence, the dirty interior.

Today is a good reminder to check ourselves and see if we are behaving like the Pharisees, presenting a clean cup to the world but not truly believing or acting as such interiorly. It is easy to put on a facade that shows us to be holy and devout Catholic Christians. Have you checked behind that facade recently?

Let Jesus show you where you need to ‘clean up’ interiorly. God made you beautiful, inside and out. Let’s focus on our interior, entrusting our spiritual lives to Jesus, for he will surely help us purge the evil and filth, making it a clean and pure place for him to reside in.

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Saint of the Day

St. Teresa of Jesus (Ávila): 1515-1582

“Now, as I have said, it is most important that from the first we should be very resolute…. When we decide to give anything – such as this slight effort of recollection – to Him Who has given us so much, and Who is continually giving, it would be wrong for us not to be entirely resolute in doing so and to act like a person who lends something and expects to get it back again…. Does the Lord deserve less than this that we should mock Him by taking away the worthless gift which we have given Him?”

St. Teresa of Ávila, The Way of Perfection

St. Teresa of Ávila, pray for us!