Memorial of Saint Teresa of Jesus, Virgin, and Doctor of the Church

My wife, a retired nurse, remarked as we were discussing my reflections on this daily reading that mentions circumcision and why it is still performed today. She said that circumcision reduces the chances of cervical cancer among women. I realized that both Jesus and Paul are speaking to the Pharisees and the scrupulous who think, like the Pharisees, that religious laws such as circumcision or washing hands before eating have no direct relationship to our spiritual health. The fact that God told them to be circumcised long before humans had any scientific knowledge of the corporal benefits shows we have always had a loving God. Jesus and Paul emphasized the importance of the spiritual side to humankind, which is neglected today.

In the gospel for today, Jesus is rebuking the Pharisees and instructing them in the ways of love. Being clean on the outside is essential for humans, but so is being clean on the inside. Giving alms is one way of being clean on the inside. Faith in Jesus’s teachings, such as the beatitudes, is essential for us entering the Kingdom of God now and for eternity. Both our corporal and spiritual cleanliness are necessary, as Jesus put it: “But for what is within, give alms, and behold, everything will be clean for you.”

In her treatise “Interior Castles,” Saint Teresa of Avila emphasized that we are both body and soul made in the image of God using the metaphor of mansions within a castle. The castle is the body that contains the mansions representing our soul-seeking union with God. We enter the castle through prayer. A series of mansions lead us to the seventh mansion, where we encounter God in a profound union. Saint Teresa experienced this communion in the seventh mansion.

Prayer:

Oh Jesus, send your Holy Spirit to keep me healthy in body and spirit. Amen!