Mark 7:18Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

As long as divine laws remain in effect, consuming food that contravenes these laws will indeed defile an individual, since such actions stem from a heart that disregards the law and serves the flesh). The latter part of the parable teaches that the root of moral impurity resides within the human heart, indicating that those who desire to remain pure before God must seek to cleanse their hearts. The Lord did not directly address the laws concerning what is permissible and impermissible to eat, which were destined to be rendered obsolete with the termination of the entire Old Testament framework upon the inception of the New Covenant between God and humanity, alongside the establishment of a spiritual law in the hearts of the new Israel. Nevertheless, He revealed to His disciples that these external laws are significantly inferior to the internal laws even at present.

The Apostles might have felt concerned that Christ’s words, meant to build up, had led to temptation among those who were to receive edification, or they themselves might have been troubled by His declaration regarding the non-defilement of food that enters the mouth.

The disciples conveyed to Christ the Pharisees’ disturbance, perhaps seeking clarification on His prior statement. The implication of His remark had ensnared the Pharisees, who had grown accustomed to the notion of needing to wash their hands before meals to maintain spiritual cleanliness, perceiving Christ’s words as a threat to the tradition of ritual washing. They might have been offended for several reasons; primarily, in His teaching, Christ addressed the people, challenging their authority. In response to the news of the Pharisees’ offense, Christ either referred to the Pharisaic doctrine, which originated from human tradition rather than divine command, thus warranting its removal, or indicated that the Pharisees themselves were misguided.

Though they held positions of pastoral authority, they were not rooted in God’s truth nor aligned with His divine will and, therefore, faced destruction. Thus, Christ urged them to disregard the Pharisees. This could be interpreted as a warning not to follow their teachings lest they fall into the same pit, or to leave them to their own misguided paths. Subsequently, the Apostle Peter, speaking for the rest of the disciples, requested clarification from the Lord regarding the puzzling issue of what constitutes true defilement—what enters the mouth and what does not. The Lord explained clearly that the food entering one’s body is not what defiles; rather, it is the evil thoughts, desires, and intentions that emerge from the heart which indicate spiritual impurity. These latter reflect the corruption of the human soul and its inner struggles, while food, once ingested, passes through without affecting the spirit.

This explanation of Jesus Christ's words needs no further elaboration; it is all straightforward. However, many interpret these statements to mean that Christ condemned fasting. We cannot support this interpretation. Fasting, whether complete abstinence from food or consuming only what is minimally necessary for sustenance, has historically been recognized as a potent means for overcoming the desires of the flesh. Individuals striving for a life of reason rather than beastliness have consistently sought to temper their passions and bring them under the authority of their spirit, understanding that excessive food consumption, particularly certain items like meat and wine, tends to inflame passions and dull the conscience. Such individuals often turned to total abstinence from all food for a time, or limited their intake of meat and wine, or maintained a very moderate diet overall. Christ Himself encouraged His disciples to resist the desires of the flesh and, as an example for us, fasted for forty days in the wilderness. Therefore, it is incorrect to conclude from His statement, "Not that which goes into the mouth defiles a man," that He dismissed the value and necessity of fasting. What truly defiles a person, making him unworthy of the Kingdom of Heaven, is not the food itself but the spirit of self-indulgence arising from consuming food, which leads to wicked thoughts and sinful actions. Thus, eating and its consumption, especially when lacking the external purity valued by the Pharisees, like eating with unwashed hands, do not defile a man. With these final words, He clarified the true meaning of this discussion.

Thus, leaving the scribes to their impotent malice, Christ turned towards the crowd and proclaimed in a loud voice: “Hear and understand!” He then conveyed to both the people and His disciples that in the kingdom of heaven, the purity of the heart outweighs the purity of hands, “for out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witnesses, blasphemies.” Indeed, all these acts “defile a man; and eating with unwashed hands does not defile a man.” This notion is merely the result of a common ritualistic requirement and, contrary to the Pharisees' interpretations, does not possess an absolute moral essence, as they, the “blind leaders of the blind,” would suggest.