Tuesday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time
Public perception matters. I wish it didn’t, but it matters a lot. The first reading today (2 Maccabees 6:18-31) gives a strong example of why and how we should take public perception into account. In the first reading we see Eleazar, a high-ranking Jewish official, taken captive and abused by his captors. Part of this abuse includes being force-fed pork, which is considered unclean by Jewish law. Eleazar, for his part, spits out the pork and refuses to eat it. The ensuing conversation struck me as I sat down to write this reflection.
Eleazar’s friends tell him that he should eat something that isn’t pork, but make it seem like that’s what he’s eating. This would prevent him from being killed by his captors (because they think he’s doing what they want – eating food normally outlawed by Jewish customs), but also it wouldn’t technically be sinful, as he wouldn’t actually be eating pork. Eleazar, offered this chance to avoid sin and stay alive, says no. Why does he say no? He says no because of his powerful position and the way rumors would spread.
Eleazar knows that he is in a position of authority. He also knows that if he ate “pork” to stay alive, the word would get out to others in the area - but that word would be stripped of the context that the pork was fake. Eleazar’s decision was not based on the purity of his own soul, but on that of those who look to him for guidance.
Eleazar was avoiding what we Catholics know as “scandal.” Unlike the way that the word is used in society (essentially – anything dramatic or shocking), we understand scandal to be any action which may cause another to sin. We commit scandal when we do something that causes someone else to say, “well Marty does this wrong thing, and he’s a good Catholic, so it’s okay if I do this wrong thing too, right?” If word had gotten out that Eleazar had chosen his own life over staying ritually clean, others would use that example to legitimize themselves doing the same.
If we are perceived by others to be sinful (or sinful without seeking forgiveness), we may be accidentally giving others permission to do the same. And here’s the problem – there’s always someone who looks to us for that level of guidance. We are parents, teachers, role models, spouses, coworkers, public figures, and older siblings. My younger brother took after me in a variety of ways, and that terrified me for a very long time. Having someone watch what you do for guidance is intimidating and overwhelming – it made me consider my actions not only as my own, but what he would see. Was I always perfect? Absolutely not. Not even close. But we must consider the example that we are setting by our actions – someone is probably watching us for guidance, and we should pray that the guidance they receive from us is good.
Let us pray today that we may remember that we are constantly setting an example for someone, and may that remembrance helps us to exist in a way that guides others (and ourselves!) closer to God and further from sin.
- Marty Bagatti