It used to be the case, not so very long ago, that the most important question facing humanity (according to the Church) was: “Where are you going to spend eternity? – in the bliss of Heaven or in the fires of Hell?” Whether Protestant, Catholic, or somewhere in-between, that was the question that held the church's attention for ages..., even though it was definitely not the most important question for Jesus.

Jesus was focused on a very different kind of question, that had to do with Heaven and Hell, not as concrete destinations somewhere above and below the earth, but as sacred symbols, pointing to two very different paths, the path of “true religion” and the path of “false religion.” Heaven, in the Gospel of Jesus is the ultimate symbol of the true spiritual path, and its fruits. Hell, in contrast, is the ultimate symbol of a false spiritual path, and its fruits. This is not just some fancy liberal twist that I have dreamed up; it is an orthodox understanding of what Heaven and Hell actually mean in the teachings of Jesus.

Now, so what? Why does any of this matter? Well, it matters because our understanding of these things influences what we come to believe is the most important question facing us in life, facing humanity, facing the Church.

In today's gospel text (Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23) Jesus is concerned, as he always is, with the movement away from a more mindless, conventional path, which he judged to be false, and toward a more mindful, contemplative path, which Jesus himself followed and promoted, and died to transmit to others, because it was... and is... genuinely transforming, because it actually works, it actually makes us “like Christ.”

I find it very helpful and revealing of the spirituality of Jesus to reflect on the key difference between Contemplative traditions and Conventional traditions... It is a difference that is so important for us to understand. It is the key to what Jesus is teaching in today's Gospel text, and throughout the Old and New Testaments.¹ In my view, it is the most important question facing the church of the 21^st century – Is this Christian tradition of ours is basically a “conventional” or a “contemplative” tradition? Let me briefly explain what I mean by these two types of tradition.

Conventional traditions are traditions that essentially tell us what to do and what not to do if we want to get rewarded and avoid being punished. And, even more importantly, Conventional traditions actively discourage us from having any conversations that might alter the meaning of what we've been told to do and not do. That famous line of the military superior to his inferior – “Your job is not to think; your job is to follow my orders... or else...” perfectly captures the spirit of conventional traditions. There is no dialogue or genuine conversation, because there is no need to understand the person's inner perceptions or feelings or wishes. The conventional focus is only on how people speak, and look, and outwardly behave. What matters most is being, or at least appearing to be, in compliance with whatever the particular conventions of the tradition are.

In contrast to all of that, Contemplative traditions are traditions that essentially teach us how to care for ourselves as human beings, how to be responsible for our own hearts and minds and, as a result, responsible for our own lives... including our outward behavior. The aim of contemplative traditions is not for us to become “compliant” with one convention or another. Rather, contemplative paths aim for us to become genuinely wise in how we live our lives. And they do this by inviting us into the kinds of conversations which are necessary for us to grow and become wise. Without a doubt, the best Christian definition of the word “contemplative” is simply... Jesus. Jesus' own life and ministry perfectly illustrate the contemplative way of being with, and teaching, others:

First of all, Jesus is genuinely kind and receptive enough for people to really express themselves in his presence, even if, in conventional terms, they are considered “inferior” – even gentiles, women, children, lepers, criminals, and so on... were made to feel safe in his presence (Mat 25:40; Mark 2:16-17; John 4:9). This is a distinctive feature of contemplative traditions, because you just can't have a real conversation, much less perceive and explore new things about your life, unless you feel safe enough to fully express yourself. And so, the way that Jesus creates space for genuine conversation is crucial... but this is only his starting point.

When we look into the actual conversations that Jesus has with his disciples, we find that he is providing all sorts of interesting contemplative training experiences in the course of their common life together.² He is continually fostering the disciple's understanding of what is going on beneath the surface of their own personal lives (Mat 16:31-26; 26:33-34), beneath the surface of their lives as a group, (Luke 7:36-50; Mat 20:20-28) and beneath the surface of the larger society around them (Mat 22:15-22; 24:37-39). He does what is taboo in conventional traditions (Luke 7:32) – he teaches his disciples that things are not always as they appear on the surface, and he teaches them how they can discover the truth about themselves and others and God.

And, finally, when the disciples become able to perceive more within themselves and within their world, Jesus brings it all home by teaching them how to practically respond to all of these new discoveries that they have made – how to respond in ways that will enable them to actually “grow up” spiritually. The Way of Jesus could not be more different than the conventional demand to “just follow my orders, or else....”

In today's Gospel reading, the Pharisees and the scribes ask Jesus, “Why do your disciples not live according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?” It was a perfectly normal question to ask, for someone coming from a Conventional Tradition. But Jesus is not coming from a Conventional Tradition. In fact, his view of conventional tradition is that it perpetrates violence in the name of God, and has nothing whatsoever to do with the One he calls “Father.” It is very clear that the Jesus of the Gospels has an agenda – he wants to move all people (who will allow themselves to be moved)... out of a conventional way of understanding themselves, and others, and God... and into a contemplative way.³ But … many of the religious leaders of the day did not want that to happen. They were entrenched in a conventional way of understanding God and themselves and others, and it was working for them – it was making them more rich and powerful...., but not more holy. And so Jesus responds to them in no uncertain terms: “Isaiah was right, when he said about you: ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching human precepts as sacred doctrines.’”

Then he clarifies for his disciples the key issue that distinguishes these conventional Pharisees from true, contemplative worshipers of God (John 4:22-24), when he says: “Listen to me, all of you, and understand: there is nothing outside a person that by going in can defile; it is the things that come out from within that defile. For it is from within the human heart that evil intentions... arise and defile a person (Mark 7:20-23).”

I can only conclude that the God whom Jesus calls “Father” is not 'conventional.' The Living God does not desire to control what a person does outwardly....without concern for all that is going on at a soul-level in that person's life! On the contrary, that strategy is “the way of the world.” It is the superficial path of least resistance. The path that Jesus denounced as both false and harmful (Mat 23:15). In contrast, the Path of Jesus is the ultimate example of a contemplative tradition... a tradition that is concerned with growing genuinely wise and loving human beings, whose inner lives and outer lives are well cared for, harmonious, and pleasing to God.

Perhaps it is sad, but it is true that there really is no conventional way to walk the Path of Jesus. Attempts to do so, over the course of history, have only turned his Path and his Person into something else, something created in our own image and thus, in the end, unhelpful, if not destructive.

The question that is begging to be asked is: “Are we, the Church, becoming a Conventional or a Contemplative community?” I believe that how we respond to that question is going to set the course of the Church in this 21^st century, for better and for worse. The difference between these two kinds of traditions cuts far beneath all of the usual differences that we focus on – like Liberal & Conservative, Low Church & High Church, Protestant & Catholic, Mainline & Evangelical. We live in a world that works night and day to make us numb... to convert us into conventional clones.. who will buy the conventionally correct products, and speak the conventionally correct lines, and vote for the conventionally correct candidates, and even form our families into the conventionally correct mold. So, we need help!!!!!!!!!! We need contemplative resources to help us perceive and become more than that.... to become like Jesus, to become fully human beings.

I am so very grateful that this Anglican tradition of ours has such deep contemplative roots and resources.⁴ That is essentially why I became an Anglican. We have so very much to offer... as long as we take care to mind the gap, to steer clear of the easy, fast, conventional path that is so very easy to fall into unawares, precisely because it is “the way of the world.” One of the wonderful things about contemplative, or Jesus-style Christianity, is that a person doesn't need to know big words, like “contemplative,” in order to live contemplatively. In fact, according to the one true Head of the Church, it is the poor... and the weak of this world who are often the most contemplative souls on earth (Mat. 5:1-16; 1Cor 1:20-31; 1 Cor 12:8-10). It is no wonder that we are encouraged to spend time with them! We have so very much to learn!

It is good for us to remember that people came to Jesus for all kinds of reasons. And yet, what Jesus consistently offered them, regardless of what they came for, was love and wisdom for living...⁵ not ever a demand for compliance with convention.⁶ In the same way, people “out there” will come to us as the Church for all kinds of reasons. But whatever they come for, we want to assure, we will assure that what they find here is genuine love and wisdom for living, because, by grace, that is our calling as followers of Jesus.

I will close this morning with the Collect of the Day for this 14^th Sunday after Pentecost, a prayer which is worth praying more than once: “ Author and Giver of all good things, graft in our hearts the love of your name, increase in us true religion, nourish us in all goodness, and of your great mercy keep us in the same; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.” Amen.

FOOTNOTES