Pay attention to what comes out of you (HOMILY FOR THURSDAY OF THE EIGHTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME, CYCLE II (ST. DOMINIC - AUGUST 08, 2024)

HOMILY FOR THURSDAY OF THE EIGHTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME, CYCLE II (ST. DOMINIC - AUGUST 08, 2024)

Jer.31:31-34; Ps.51; Matthew 16:13-23

Pay attention to what comes out of you

In the gospel reading of today, the Pharisees and the Scribes complained to Jesus about the uncleanliness of his disciples especially as regards observing the rituals of etiquette. For Jesus, this was a good opportunity to address the pretentious religiosity of the Pharisees and the Scribes. While they accused Jesus’ disciples of paying no attention to the outside, they were guiltier of paying no attention to the inside. Jesus said that a man becomes unclean on account of what emerges from him; not on the basis of what goes into him. So, if we want to be holy, we should be more mindful of what we emit. This includes our actions, behaviours, habits, words, gesticulations, body languages and so on. All of these can have moral undertone. When they are positive, they lead us to holiness; but when they are negative, they lead us to sin.

Today, we celebrate the memorial of St. Dominic; the founder of the Order of Preachers (Dominicans). The name is of Spanish origin (Domingo) meaning “I belong to God”. Truly, Dominic was an ardent and eloquent preacher of God’s word. What came out of him was simply God’s message for His people. He was very instrumental in combating the heresies of his time especially that of Albigenses that believed that flesh and all matter was evil. How can this be true when the world was created by God and Jesus came in the flesh! Dominic was notable for his obsession with truth, an acute sense of duty, devotion to the Rosary, and so on. His miracles, which included the raising of the dead, were a testimony to his holiness.

Truly, what comes out of a man is what makes him either clean or unclean. So, St. Dominic would say: “A man who governs his passions is master of the world”. Let us seek to grow in holiness in this regard.