Jesus saw that the Pharisees and lawyers were self-satisfied.

They paid attention to what was outside while neglecting the life of the spirit.                                                                                                                                 

                                                                                                            

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊  

Ｇalatians 5:18-25

 But when you are led by the Spirit

You are not under the Law.  You know what comes from the flesh: fornication, impurity and shame­lessness, idol worship and sorcery, hatred, jealousy and violence, anger, ambition, division, factions, and envy, drunkenness, orgies and the like.  I again say to you what I have already said: those who do these things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

 But the fruit of the Spirit is charity, joy and peace, patience, understanding of others, kind­­ness and fidelity, gentleness and self-control. For such things there is no Law or punishment.   Those who belong to Christ have crucified the flesh with its vices and desires.

 If we live by the Spirit, let us live in a spiritual way.  Let us not be conceited; let there be no rivalry or envy of one another.

 

Ps 1:1-2, 3, 4 & 6

Those who follow you, Lord, will have the light of life.

 

＊＊＊＊ Gospel ＊＊＊＊

Luke 11:42-46

 A curse is on you, Pharisees; for the Temple you give a tenth of all, including mint and rue and the other herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God. This ought to be practiced, without neglecting the other.

 A curse is on you, Pharisees, for you love the best seats in the synagogues and to be greeted in the marketplace.  A curse is on you for you are like tombstones of the dead which can hardly be seen; people don’t notice them and make themselves unclean by stepping on them.”

Then a teacher of the Law spoke up and said, “Master, when you speak like this, you insult us, too.”  And Jesus answered, “A curse is on you also, teachers of the Law. For you prepare unbearable burdens and load them on the people, while you yourselves don’t move a finger to help them.

  

  Gospel Reflection：

Led by the Spirit

Note that Paul speaks about “fruit(s) of the Spirit.” The nine fruits listed are not something that we produce on our own; they are the results and fruition of the Holy Spirit who dwells within us.

Christian character and holiness are produced by the Holy Spirit and not by any forced discipline practiced under the law. that’s why Paul states that when we are led by the Spirit, we are not under the law.

However, this is not about being law-less or becoming agents of anarchy; on the contrary, when we let ourselves be led by the Spirit of Christ, we do not necessarily need external laws to do the right thing and prevent bad behavior; we spontaneously, inspired by the Spirit, do the right thing, or rather, the right actions will flow out of us.

when led by the Spirit, we might even break the law for the sake of upholding the spirit of the law and at the service of higher demands of love.