The Rule of the Heart

Gospel: Mark 7: 7-12

If you are part of a system with a myriad of laws and rules one might wonder what is the thread that keeps them together - what is the most important rule that can help us keep all the rest? What is the core value that provides a foundation for all these rules.  Jesus provides that answer in today's reading: the Golden Rule - do unto others as you would have them do to you.

This rule is found in every culture of every time and place.  It can be found in China, India, African cultures, indigenous cultures of every continent on earth.  The law of God is found in the heart of every human being; it is not the product of a particular culture.  It is inherent in the fabric of the universe; it is the fundamental element of morality and ethics.  

In a very real sense Jesus is present in every human life through this law, by the very fact of being itself as God's presence is found in every existent thing, and by the fact that human beings are made in God's image and likeness.  Herein lies the Good News that brings together every human being of every culture and place.  It is in the human heart, the field where the struggle lies, the stage for the drama of human existence.