Tuesday, August 25, 2015

Legalism


"This people honors me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me," says Jesus in one of several passages in the Gospels where Jesus criticizes the Pharisees for their legalism (Mark 7: 1-23.)    Religious people must be careful not to make an idol of the law, holding it in place of God.  Richard Rohr has said that law is necessary, of course, but it is not the guiding star; it has been wrong and cruel too many times.

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