Ritualistic Religion

"But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.  Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!   For you devour widows' houses, and for a pretense make long prayers.  Therefore you will receive greater comdemnatiion.  Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.  Woe to you, blind guides, who say, 'Whoever swears by the temple, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple, he is obliged to perform it.'  Fools and blind!  For which is greater, the gold or the temple that sanctifies the gold?"

Matthew 23: 13-17 NKJV 

A friend of mine recently made the decision to renew his vows with his wife, and therefore become a member of the Catholic church.  Now, becoming a member of the catholic church is no small feat.  For there are classes, meetings and considerations before one is found worthy enough to be called Catholic.  And for what?  Will the salvation of Jesus Christ suddenly become more relevant for a catholic than for any other believer?  Please, someone point out for me that portion of scripture where our Lord has instructed those willing to believe in him to sign up for a class!  Need I say that there is no such scripture.  No, we are only called to believe.  This ritualistic idea of religion is just what Jesus condemned the Pharisees for in Matthew 23.  For these men required those who worshiped to complete rituals as well.  Not only that, but they strived for the prominent places in society!  

Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to his disciples, saying: "The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat.  Therefore, whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do.  For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.  But all their works they do to be seen by men.  They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments.  They love the best places at feasts, the best seat in synagogues, greetings in the marketplaces,  and to be called by men, 'Rabbi, Rabbi.'; for one is your teacher, the Christ, and you are all brethren."

Matthew 23: 1-8 NKJV 

This is a pretty strong rebuke by Jesus on the ritualistic authorities of his day.  The old adage of absolute power corrupting was not lost on men such as these.  In fact, it was men such as these who ultimately called for the crucifiction of Jesus!  Of course, Jesus' destiny had to be fulfilled, and so it was that these men were used by God for our ultimate salvation.  It is Jesus who saw right through these so called men of God and their unholy behavior.  For wherever Jesus went he exemplified the love of his Father who sent him, something not seen in the religious authorities of the day.  No, their main concern was public recognition.  I submit that men such as this are more akin to polioticians than men of God.  Does one need to follow a tradition in order to love and please our Lord?  Well, let's take a look at that.

But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

Hebrews 11:6 NKJV 

Interestingly enough, I do not see any mention of a membership class in Hebrews 11:6.  So, either the author was not being totaly honest, or all those rituals do absolutely nothing for our salvation and comunion with our Lord.  For my part, I trust the written word of God over the rituals of men.  

~Scott~