Lent

March 26, 2022

Scripture Reading:
Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32

Now all the tax-collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to him. And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, ‘This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them.’ –Luke 15:1-3

who say, ‘Keep to yourself,
   do not come near me, for I am too holy for you.’
These are a smoke in my nostrils,
   a fire that burns all day long. –Isaiah 65:5

Holier-than-thou describes someone who behaves as if he is morally superior, though in fact, he is not. A holier-than-thou person is considered sanctimonious, self-righteous and not of any higher moral qualities than anyone else*.

The phrase holier-than-thou was derived from the Isaiah scripture quoted above. The verses leading up to verse five list the sins of those who were too holy for others. I fear we live in a world where holier-than-thou behavior is practiced.  Our justice system even acknowledges that status, when white color crimes result in finds and stealing food, results in a jail term. In Oklahoma, if you cannot meet bail you go to jail even though no determination of guilt has been made. Often because of the backup in the justice system, a person can sit in jail for weeks, months before they are tried. In such instances, they often lose jobs and may be evicted for failure to pay rent, and may have not been guilty of a crime at all. As people of faith, we are called to do justice ourselves but also to assure that our governments at all levels do justice.

Prayer: Lord, open our eyes to the injustice that is all around us and help us to do justice and support the rights of all to justice. Amen.

*https://grammarist.com/usage/holier-than-thou/

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.