Bosom

Jesus takes a discussion about ritual washing to another level and insists that holiness is about removing grit from our hearts, not so much from our hands:

It is from within, from our hearts, that evil intentions emerge: fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, malice, deceit, indecency, envy, slander, pride, folly (Mark 7).

Holiness is where God is and God is not that far away. In fact, he dwells deeply within.

Two feminine images from our tradition convey this hidden mystery.

St. Cyril of Alexandria (376-444) utilises the image of the womb:

The Son has revealed the Father, and the Father reveals that in the womb of the consubstantial Trinity is relation.

St. John of the Cross (1542-1591), imprisoned in a dungeon by his religious brothers, wrote a poem based on the Song of Songs. He then wrote a commentary on the poem.

Echoing John 1 in the Spiritual Canticle, John says:

Jesus is in the bosom of the Father, and Father, Son, and Holy Spirit reside deeply in the bosom of humanity.

God is closer to us than we are to ourselves (St. Augustine).

Can we identify our evil intentions and let God reign a little more within?

Amen.