{"id":4662,"date":"2021-02-10T19:39:04","date_gmt":"2021-02-10T19:39:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/?p=4662"},"modified":"2021-02-26T04:34:08","modified_gmt":"2021-02-26T04:34:08","slug":"another-saint-a-riot-and-mark-715","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/another-saint-a-riot-and-mark-715\/","title":{"rendered":"Another Saint, a Riot and Mark 7:15"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/a><\/p>\n

Yesterday’s headlines oozed acrimony, animosity and anger. So do today’s.<\/p>\n

It could be worse. I could have been reading about a replay of Oxford’s St. Scholastica Day riot. I’ll get back to that.<\/p>\n

February 10th is the Memorial of Saint Scholastica.<\/p>\n

It’s also when Mark 7:14<\/a>–23<\/a> is the Gospel reading. The gist of which is at the start \u2014<\/p>\n

“He summoned the crowd again and said to them, ‘Hear me, all of you, and understand.
\n“Nothing that enters one from outside can defile that person; but the things that come out from within are what defile.'”
\n(Mark 7:14<\/a>–15<\/a>)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

As usual, our Lord’s disciples waited until later to ask about the parable. And I suggest reading Mark 7:18<\/a> as an example of patience with cluelessness.<\/p>\n

Which reminds me. I’m planning on using the daily readings as a starting point for these daily journal entries. At least for a while. That being the case, I’d better do a quick review.<\/p>\n

<\/a>Sacred Scripture, Tradition and Making Sense<\/h4>\n

\"Gutenberg<\/a>Reading and studying the Bible is part of being Catholic. Or should be. But this isn’t one of those roll-your-own-theology ‘Bible and me’ faiths. I can and should learn from the Bible, the Magisterium and Tradition. (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 74<\/a>–95<\/a>, 101<\/a>–133<\/a>)<\/p>\n

Our Tradition \u2014 capital “T” \u2014 is the Apostolic Tradition, passed along from the Apostles. The Magisterium is the Church’s teaching authority, also passed along through the millennia.<\/p>\n

As a Catholic, I must respect and follow our Tradition. Which isn’t even close to trying to live as if it’s still 1947, and that’s another topic.<\/p>\n

Back to today’s gospel.<\/p>\n

Jesus explained that externals, like eating non-kosher food, don’t “defile” us.<\/p>\n

It’s what we can generate inside that’s a problem. As examples, our Lord listed things that defile a person:<\/p>\n