Do You Still Not…?

Tuesday, February 18, 2025

Gen 6:5-8, 7:1-5, 10; Mk 8:14-21

Today’s Gospel highlights the warning given by Jesus regarding the ‘leaven’ of the Pharisees and the Herodians.

Israelites were known to use leaven as a metaphor for change, growth, and influence, either of evil or good. 

In the Gospel, when Jesus refers to the leaven of the Pharisees and the Herodians, because of the hypocrisy, corruption, and opportunism they stood for, we assume that Jesus is not referring to the benign yeast we are familiar with but the one that wields its corruptive power and influence. 

Affirming the same, the Pharisees and the Herodians showed their disbelief toward Jesus, especially through their rejection and condemnation of him. 

But what worries Jesus all the more is the discovery of such negative influence catching up with his disciples, who argue over not having taken bread with them, unperceptive of what he did to feed the crowds of five and four thousand. 

Jesus finds, to his shock, that, just like the Pharisees and the Herodians, his disciples could only make a material connection at the utterance of the word ‘leaven,’ losing sight of its spiritual side. 

It bothers Jesus to discover that his own disciples are falling prey to what his enemies have excelled in in the name of God and spirituality. In other words, what Jesus is cautioning his disciples about is already present in them. 

Having faith in Jesus is also about removing the obstacles that forbid its growth in us. 

Unlike his enemies, who rejected Jesus utterly, the disciples of Jesus made genuine efforts to increase their faith in Jesus, but without removing the obstacles. 

Our desire to grow in faith must be complemented by a sincere openness to embrace Jesus and all that leads to our faith in him. 

Let us pray that our faith in Jesus may be nourished more by our understanding, acceptance, and openness toward spiritual truths. 

Fr. Dhinakaran Savariyar