Imposing Burdens on Others

“Woe also to you scholars of the law! You impose on people burdens hard to carry, but you yourselves do not lift one finger to touch them.” Lk 11:46

First the Pharisees, now the scholars of the law. Anyone who imposes burdens on others without helping them to know and do better, has no place in the heart of Jesus. Committed to freeing people from the burdens of the law, and the weight of poverty and illness, Jesus assures his listeners that God wants to set them free. God does not seek to punish us for our faults, even less for our illnesses, but to heal us and fill us with hope.

Why some people seek to make God into a soldier protecting the law from intruders as if it were a hidden treasure entrusted to them alone, and punishing anyone who interprets the law leniently, is always troubling. The God of the Scriptures, while sometimes demanding and hard on leaders, is nonetheless merciful, kind and endlessly forgiving. The story of the Prodigal Son (Lk 15:11-32) assures us that God, even when we have wasted our inheritance, waits for and embraces us when we return to our senses. God does not want to punish, but to fold us back into the family of faith and help us to live lives of compassion and service.

Sometimes, by insisting loudly on our opinion, we lay heavy burdens on peoples' backs.. The force with which we present our point of view is intimidating and dismissive of others whose speaking skills are weak, and makes it impossible to recognize or acknowledge the insights they have. Worse, when we ignore the uneducated, we make them invisible, and fail to profit from the wisdom they have gained "on the streets" of life.

Jesus insists that we treat every person with dignity, even awe. (Lk 7:44) Only then can we avoid the condemnation visited upon the Pharisees.

Today, listen to someone from whom you expect nothing.

Have you ever learned about life and faith from the poor and uneducated?