Love trumps Rules!

Woe to you Pharisees! Luke 11. 43

In the gospel of Luke, Jesus sternly chastises the Pharisees for their hypocrisy with several “woes to you” and “you fools.” And then later in the gospel sends them away saying “I do not know where you come from; go away from me, all you evildoers! There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” The Pharisees only seem to care about the rules: who’s important, what happens on the outside and what punishment will follow if there is any violation.  And very few people measure up with those kinds of laws.

  Pharisaical behavior can be likened to what we see today in the institutional church when the rules are more important than love. It is especially frightening when a very narrow interpretation of scripture puts God in a box which is created by man.

One of the things I love about my church is how kindly the priests at the altar handle mistakes made by anyone at the altar…chalice bearers, acolytes, torch bearers, vergers, adults and children alike.  There is no “gnashing of teeth” as I have seen at other altars, but instead there is a gracious nod of the head, or pat on the back or the mouthing of “it’s ok.”

Where can we let Love replace rules today?