γράψω

For as long as I can remember, people in religious circles have attempted to identify who the modern-day pharisees are. We read the NT, and there is a lot of negative attention given to this group of religious leaders, so much so that they have become more a caricature than anything else. They are like the villains in an 80s movie – completely evil with no depth to their personalities or character. We think of them as constantly wringing their hands, ready to cry out “blasphemy” at a moments notice, and ready to spill the blood of any radicals.

Because of this, we seem to want to project their characteristics on some group of people in the Christian world today. When we come across some strict group of Christians or some other group that uses heavy liturgy, we’re ready with the name tag “Pharisee!”

I also loved participating in Pharisee bashing whenever I had the chance, and would not pass up an opportunity to label someone (and therefore write them off) as being “Pharisaical.” Lately, I’ve been more hesitant about that. This is mostly due to the fact that often when I was so eager to label someone a Pharisee, I was most focused on a characteristic of my own in that other person, and it was this characteristic that I saw as being Pharisaical, if that makes sense. Another way to say it is that I would never consider myself a Pharisee; only others, even if the very “sins” I wanted to label in another person were second nature to me.

I think what might be better is for us to consider how we make the mistakes that some Pharisees made in the NT.* A big mistake we often make is assuming that God is done working and speaking. So often, we assume that Revelation is the end of God’s word – God does not speak anything more. Now, I know most people would not go so far as to actually say this, but I believe most people live this way. Nothing new can be said beyond what the Bible addresses. This is seen in the way so many people hold the Bible above all else – including the Holy Spirit inspired community of believers. It’s as if we think God does not want to continually be revealed in our presence. God was revealed in the Bible, and that is enough.

This is one of the more grievous mistakes the Pharisees made. They could not see that God was doing a new thing. They held tight to their tradition and practices and would not recognize God’s active hand in the world. In fact, they felt so strongly that God could not be working through Jesus and the disciples that they had them killed. Their inability to see God’s continued revelation beyond their own scriptures and traditions led to very serious consequences for those who promoted the new move of God.

How do we make this mistake? Are we ever approached with an idea that challenges us and makes us uncomfortable, and we choose to “put it to death” because it is against our tradition? Do we revere the Bible more than the living word of God and the active Holy Spirit? Have we become so good at “living” and “perfecting” our religious motions that we can’t see God’s revelation anymore? I hope not.

So who are the modern-day Pharisees? They are you and me; or, rather, their stories could be ours if we don’t guard ourselves from making their mistakes.

*I say “some Pharisees” because there are several Pharisees in the NT narratives that were quite noble in their response to Jesus and the early Christian movement. For example, consider Nicodemus and Gamaliel.