Guard against the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod

TUESDAY 18 FEBRUARY (Mk 8,14-21)

When the yeast is put into the dough, it is all fermented. Different types of yeast reign in the community: falsehood, pride and foolishness. One of them is extremely dangerous. It is the leaven of immorality. It must be immediately removed from the community: “It is widely reported that there is immorality among you, and immorality of a kind not found even among pagans – a man living with his father’s wife. And you are inflated with pride. Should you not rather have been sorrowful? The one who did this deed should be expelled from your midst. I, for my part, although absent in body but present in spirit, have already, as if present, pronounced judgment on the one who has committed this deed, in the name of (our) Lord Jesus: when you have gathered together and I am with you in spirit with the power of the Lord Jesus, you are to deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of his flesh, so that his spirit may be saved on the day of the Lord. Your boasting is not appropriate. Do you not know that a little yeast leavens all the dough? Clear out the old yeast, so that you may become a fresh batch of dough, inasmuch as you are unleavened. For our paschal lamb, Christ, has been sacrificed. Therefore let us celebrate the feast, not with the old yeast, the yeast of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. I wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people, not at all referring to the immoral of this world or the greedy and robbers or idolaters; for you would then have to leave the world. But I now write to you not to associate with anyone named a brother, if he is immoral, greedy, an idolater, a slanderer, a drunkard, or a robber, not even to eat with such a person. For why should I be judging outsiders? Is it not your business to judge those within? God will judge those outside. “Purge the evil person from your midst” (1Cor 5,1-13). If immorality remains in it, all the dough could become immoral tomorrow. Immorality multiplies and conquers hearts.

Jesus wants his disciples to watch out, stay away from the leaven of the Pharisees and from the leaven of Herod. That of the Pharisees is a leaven of religion with the precepts of men who replace the Lord’s Commandments. That of Herod is the leaven of concupiscence, foolishness, immorality and debauchery: “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You lock the kingdom of heaven before human beings. You do not enter yourselves, nor do you allow entrance to those trying to enter. “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You traverse sea and land to make one convert, and when that happens you make him a child of Gehenna twice as much as yourselves. “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You pay tithes of mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier things of the law: judgment and mercy and fidelity. (But) these you should have done, without neglecting the others. Blind guides, who strain out the gnat and swallow the camel! “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You cleanse the outside of cup and dish, but inside they are full of plunder and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee, cleanse first the inside of the cup, so that the outside also may be clean” (Cf. Mt 23,1-39). If ancient justice is to be overcome, infinitely more we must stay away from this religion of great immorality, falsehood, blindness, injustice and denial of God.

They had forgotten to bring bread, and they had only one loaf with them in the boat. He enjoined them, “Watch out, guard against the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.” They concluded among themselves that it was because they had no bread. When he became aware of this he said to them, “Why do you conclude that it is because you have no bread? Do you not yet understand or comprehend? Are your hearts hardened? Do you have eyes and not see, ears and not hear? And do you not remember, when I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many wicker baskets full of fragments you picked up?” They answered him, “Twelve.” “When I broke the seven loaves for the four thousand, how many full baskets of fragments did you pick up?” They answered (him), “Seven.” He said to them, “Do you still not understand?”

Today there is an even more dangerous and intrusive yeast from which we must watch ourselves. It is the leaven of universal religion, of universal brotherhood; however built on the denial of Christ the Lord and the betrayal of his Gospel. This leaven builds the religion of sin and hell, not the religion of salvation and eternal life.

Mother of God, Angels and Saints, make us move away from every leaven that denies Christ Jesus.