I believe we all have a certain amount of desire for making the community we live in a better one. Let us reflect on our history of the effort to make it. I do believe, like me, all of you have loads of stories about it. Some delightful, and some painful. For me actually mostly painful. What about you?
We live in the community of the family, the neighbour, the school, or the country. We make our great effort to make it a better place for ourselves and for others. However, it is not always successful. Unfortunately, it is mostly unsuccessful. We try and we fail. We try and we fail. We do this over and over again until we realise that is not in our hands.
One of the biggest reason for our failure in that try is our will to change other people in the community as we want. The worst part of it is putting severe moral standards to others without any support to that person who will clearly suffer if he or she follows the standard we put on.
It is really easy to say "You should do that". We feel we are superior to others. We feel we are good and clean. But it is incomparably difficult to say "I will help you if you do that". It is much more difficult to say "I will help you whether you do that or not". That is because we easily get ourselves wrong.
We think the reason we are pushing other people to do something is to make our community a better one. But actually, we are pursuing our satisfaction by watching others following what we say and watching things are going as we want. It is not for the community. It is for ourselves. I see it happens a lot from me, and also from other people. It is the same attitude with the Pharisees we see in today's Gospel. It is, like today's Gospel says, "we cleanse the outside of the cup and the dish, inside we are filled with plunder and evil."
Now in Korea abortion law is controversial. This is from the article of Korea times today. "In-line with the 1973 Roe vs Wade ruling in the United States, the government's current proposal will allow abortions to be carried out within the first 14 weeks of pregnancy according to a woman's own decision and judgment. In the second trimester, up to week 24, abortions will be permitted if health is at risk or extenuating circumstances require it."
Catholic clearly is against it. It is important to talk about what is a more meaningful decision with people in the community. But It is also important to talk about how we can help the people who will suffer from following the rule we push.
And it is also the same circumstances in the community where I live. When I think of making a better community, I have to think of how I can help others before pushing others to follow the way I think is right.
That is what today's Gospel teaches us, "How to clean everything."
"Did not the maker of the outside also make the inside?
But as to what is within, give alms,
and behold, everything will be clean for you.”