I think we were told that Jesus was wrong today

[Doom]

I'm not entirely certain; it is possible I missed the point, but we were told today that Jesus was wrong in the discussion about The Tradition of the Elders about eating with unwashed hands.

We were told that, of course, we should wash our hands before eating, that's just good hygiene, and that Jesus was "defensive' and "over the top" to respond by calling the Pharisees "hypocrites" and quote from Isaiah. He suggested that Jesus reacted that way perhaps he didn't want to admit that they had forgotten to wash their hands.

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Part of the problem is that this week's gospel is chopped up and very poorly edited. It omits the reason Jesus called the Pharisees "hypocrites" because of the whole "corban" discussion. What Jesus said conveniently edited out of the gospel for reasons I cannot understand, is that the Pharisees are hypocrites because they invented a human tradition, setting something aside as "corban", that is "dedicated to God," as a way to get out of having to financially support their parents. So they place human tradition above the commandments of God. That is why Jesus called them "hypocrites", not because he was being "defensive" because he forgot to wash his hands.

And the worst part is, he kept talking about hygiene, while the gospel, even in the part quoted in this week's gospel, makes the point that the "hand washing" the Pharisees were complaining about was NOT for hygiene, but due to purely ritually "uncleanness", it was a ritual washing that had nothing to do with hygiene.

Indeed, people didn't even know the importance of clean hands to good health until the pioneering work of Joseph Lister in the 1890s when he hypothesized that the reason for the high fatality rate in the hospital he was working at was that doctors were carrying infections to patients and insisted that doctors "scrub up" before surgery.

[Obi-Wan Kenobi]

That is ... odd.

[anawim]

That is ... odd.

You're being kind. Odd is not the word that came to my mind

[Doom]

He is very knowledgeable about modern Bible scholarship, and he likes to randomly say things like "Ephesians probably wasn't written by Paul but by an unknown disciple writing in Paul's name after he died," even if you thought that was true (and the arguments in favor of that position are weak at best) what possible reason is there for mentioning it?

[VeryTas]

Yeah, every time I hear or read, "Luke has Jesus say ...", I roll my eyes (up to heaven, asking How long O Lord).

[Obi-Wan Kenobi]

That is ... odd.

You're being kind. Odd is not the word that came to my mind

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UUOxEwCuEgQ

[Obi-Wan Kenobi]

He is very knowledgeable about modern Bible scholarship, and he likes to randomly say things like "Ephesians probably wasn't written by Paul but by an unknown disciple writing in Paul's name after he died," even if you thought that was true (and the arguments in favor of that position are weak at best) what possible reason is there for mentioning it?

You mean very knowledgeable about 20 years out-of-date Biblical scholarship. A lot of that is being rolled back, thanks be to God!

[Doom]

He has a degree in Bible and recently had the 25th anniversary of his ordination. And like most who are not required to do so as part of their job, I don't think he has kept up on the most recent scholarship but sticks with what he was taught in college in the 90s.

The sources he cites are things like "The Catholic Study Bible," which are heavily influenced by the historical-critical school and uses those tools uncritically. There are more recent sources like the "Catholic Commentary of Sacred Scripture" series, which employs historical-critical methods but does not mindlessly regurgitate all the skeptical conclusions. But, that is not only a new series, but it is one volume per book like the Anchor Bible, still incomplete, and you can't ask a busy priest with a limited budget to buy and read a 73-volume set.

[Obi-Wan Kenobi]

The New Jerome probably has an honored place on his bookshelf.

[Doom]

Probably. He tends to give very erudite homilies which I assume are probably not widely understood. Much like The Jermome Commebtary and similar works there is really good stuff but with a lot of unnecessary skepticism. There is nothing wrong with using these sources many of which are in my own library but you can’t use them uncritically

[peregrinator]

He has a degree in Bible and recently had the 25th anniversary of his ordination.

I expect better from a priest of my generation.

[anawim]

He has a degree in Bible and recently had the 25th anniversary of his ordination.

I expect better from a priest of my generation.

Yeah, he sounds more like a priest from my generation.

[Kage_ar]

He has a degree in Bible and recently had the 25th anniversary of his ordination.

I expect better from a priest of my generation.

Yeah, he sounds more like a priest from my generation.

https://youtu.be/MgJ9K7cPRKk?si=7WplNYO1__26YG19

You made me do it

[Riverboat]

He suggested that Jesus reacted that way perhaps he didn't want to admit that they had forgotten to wash their hands.

Are you referring to a local priest's homily?

Whatever the source, if I'd heard this, I would have been sorely tempted to stand up and shout, "I wash my hands of this nonsense!"