Tuesday in the Twenty-First Week of Ordinary Time

[Scripture Readings: 2 Thess 2:1-3a, 14-17; Mt 23:23-26]

Desert Fathers Jesus said, “First cleanse the inside of the cup so that the outside may also be clean.”

A disciple went to one of the desert fathers saying, “I feel like such a hypocrite when I confess my sins, because afterwards I fall into the same sins all over again. What am I to do?”

The elder replied, “After you pour water into a pot and wash the sides and bottom, you pour it out. The pot is clean even though it is left empty. So, too, when you confess your sins, even if you haven’t yet acquired the virtue never to sin again, your heart is clean after each confession. The real hypocrite never cleans the inside. He adds sin to sin and goes from bad to worse. In the end his pot is full of wickedness. Keep cleaning the inside and eventually you will not only look holy but you will be holy.”