(You can listen to this reflection here. Sunday's gospel reading is here.)
How ironic to hear the man who healed the lame, the maimed, and the blind suggest people put themselves in such states. But here it is, one of the toughest of all of Jesus’ tough teachings:
“If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life maimed than to have two hands and to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire. And if your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame than to have two feet and to be thrown into hell. And if your eye causes you to stumble, tear it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and to be thrown into hell, where their worm never dies, and the fire is never quenched.”
It is a challenge to find Good News in this most “Grand Guignol” of Jesus’ sayings. This is a violent, if hyperbolic, wake-up call to be clear about our priorities, to be realistic about the consequences of sin – and to put God-Life first, no matter what. This teaching is short on grace and forgiveness, yet in its stark clarity it offers a kind of tough love we might employ in some circumstances.
Think, for instance, what we might say to an addict one bender away from losing her life. In such light, this language doesn’t look so harsh. Or an oncologist telling a patient his only hope is to cut out a tumor, even if that compromises healthy tissue. We wouldn’t think twice. Often we fail to connect sin with such dire consequences in our lives – surely we have time to shape up, ask forgiveness, we think; we can get straightened out tomorrow. One more day of gossip or petty lies or gluttony won’t make such a difference, right?
If we’re willing to take sin seriously, there are many more gentle measures we can take before it becomes a cancer in our lives, or a will-weakening addiction. We can adopt a practice of regular confession, not to wallow in our sins, but to shine the light of truth upon ourselves and recognize the often unseen effects of our sinful tendencies. The operative question in confession is not “what did I do,” but “who was hurt?” Usually we have been, often others, and always God.
We can practice forgiving others regularly, so we don’t let resentment and judgment build up. We can cultivate compassion, which helps us to look past the damage we do or endure, and pray for the wounded person behind the actions.
Are there patterns, habits, even people in your life whom you would do well to cut off, cut out, so that you can live in greater freedom and purpose? Are there parts of yourself that need to be cut away? I was once praying about an over-dependency, and got an image of this big, bloody, tuberous tumor in a chest cavity, attached by numerous blood vessels, which I had to let Jesus remove and heal. Yuck – and Alleluia.
Jesus speaks of entering life. This teaching is not about “getting into heaven" so much as being freed to live the God-Life already here and now. We can trust ourselves to the Great Physician, the surgeon who knows how to cut cleanly, the healer who knows how to apply balm to our wounds and restore us to wholeness.
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