The Third Notorious Mystery
There is no sin that arouses our Lord’s ire like that of hypocrisy. Jesus holds nothing back in his negative assessment of the scribes, religious lawyers and the Pharisees. Like the whipping of the money-changers, we are shocked by his words and behavior. His woe-statements are literally curses against them. This flies in the face of the passive wimp-image that so many have of Jesus, today. Indeed, people who are challenged for misconduct will say things like, “Who are you to judge?” and “Jesus would not condemn me.” But can we be so sure? Jesus is also the great Pantocrator (as imaged in the large mosaic at the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception) — the God of Judgment. Are we the disciples that we claim to be or have we compromised ourselves? All sin, large and small, from believers is a form of hypocrisy. The person’s intention is literally communicated through his action that “at this moment,” “here and now,” “I freely choose” to “disobey” Almighty God. It is in this light that all sin is serious. Jesus wants us wholly for himself. Anything less is from the evil one.
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