Then he called the crowd again and said to them, ‘Listen to me, all of you, and understand: there is nothing outside a person that by going in can defile, but the things that come out are what defile.’ (Mark 7: 14-15)

This was an unambiguous and public challenge to the Pharisees. Elaborate rules and restrictions on what could be eaten, how food should be prepared, and how meals should be consumed were the most widely recognized aspect of Pharisee belief.

The liturgy of the temple had become a liturgy of eating together. What was chosen for the meal and how it was prepared served to make it sacred: put aside for God. The meal became a ritual by which the sacredness of those eating was emphasized.

The English word defile is not in our everyday vocabulary, but it carries a strong connotation. It means to make foul, dirty, or unclean. The Greek with which Jesus is translated seems to me a bit anemic in comparison. He says nothing ingested can koinoo - that is "make common."

Humanity is not more or less sacred by what we eat or drink, hear or see, or the result of any external influence. The extent to which we are in relationship with God cannot be determined by external or ritualistic evidence.

Rather our relationship with God is determined by things that come out. The Greek is ekporeuomai. This means that which emerges from a journey. As we live each day where are we aiming, what are we seeking, why have we chosen this path?

Above is Sunset Ride by Stephen Morath.