Cleanliness is next to Godliness

As we move on in chapter eleven, verse 37, Luke tells us how Jesus reacted to the judgmental religious leaders of His day. In response to a dinner invitation, Jesus entered the home of a Pharisee and immediately sat down to eat without taking part in the Jewish custom of ceremonial washing.

Let’s talk about a couple of things that relate to this passage. First of all, who were the Pharisees and what did they believe? The answer to this question is quite detailed and can be read in its entirety at the following web page, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pharisees.

The word Pharisee comes from the Hebrew word, meaning “separated”. The Pharisee was, depending on the time, a political party, a social movement and a school of thought among Jews. They were a strict, law abiding religious group who had strong ties to the more common member of society, in contrast with Sadducees who were associated with the ruling classes. The Pharisees believed in specific interpretations of the Bible and how to apply the Torah to Jewish life and unlike the Sadducees, believed in life after death.

Secondly, the hand washing ritual had superstitious roots and was related to normal hygiene.

The following information came from Rabbi Lerner who writes for About.com at the following link, http://judaism.about.com/library/3_askrabbi_c/bl_wash_hands.htm

The hand washing ritual was, and is done for a variety of reasons. For instance, there is the blesssing (bracha) "Netilat yadayim" in the morning, some suggest in commentaries on the Gemara, has an origin in superstition. "Mazikin" - demon spirits - dance on the body while it sleeps and when one stirs in the morning, they run to the fingertips, pausing there until certain whether one is or is not going to awaken. As they pause, we wash them away, spiritually preparing the body for the morning prayers.

Hygiene, on the other hand, shows respect for the body as a sanctuary for the soul. In Judaism there is an emphasis on regular meals, diet, dental care and aspects of personal bodily cleanliness. However, since these occasions are for hygiene rather than preceding religious acts, no blessing is recited. (See Code of Jewish Law, OH chapter 4)

This is interesting to me because I always read this act of Jesus not washing His hands to be a rejection of the law when instead, it is possible that He just washed His hands before arriving and felt they were clean enough to eat with. It is evident that His hosts were hypersensitive and waiting to criticize anything that He did as against the Jewish custom or law.

In response to their criticism He explained that even though they washed the outside of their bodies that the inside was filthy. Wow, talk about breaking the ice at a dinner party! Jesus then went after his critics with a warning that the following of traditions of men and religious legalism, instead of having God in our hearts, will not save us or our souls.