Monday, August 10, 2026

Matthew 15:10-11 

“[Jesus] called the crowd to him and said to them, “Listen and understand: it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but it is what comes out of the mouth that defiles.”  

Many scholars believe that the original audience of Matthew’s gospel were familiar with the traditions and practices of Jewish faith, including the cleanliness codes referenced in this text. Contemporaries of Jesus would understand the phrase “cleanliness is close to godliness” quite literally: those who were ritually clean were allowed to go into the temple, in the holy places, and draw close to God in worship. But those who were unclean, or exposed to impurities (corpses, bodily fluids, diseases, etc.) were not. In this way, we can see how people of faith came to associate goodness and faithfulness with cleanliness. Unfortunately, that also came to mean the opposite: that there were associations of badness, disobedience, and distance from God with uncleanliness.  

But is that fair? Is it even true? Jesus seems to be making a different argument...  

– Pr. Alex 

Let us pray: Loving God, you welcome us in all our imperfections. Give us hope in new life as we encounter your holy presence. We thank you for the waters of baptism that wash us forever. Amen.