There is a book, called Ritual Notes, that has been printed in several editions since 1894. It is the resource for learning how to celebrate a very high church Eucharist. It has a lot of good things, especially when trying to understand the reason behind a liturgical act. However, it does seem to generate its own authority. Take, for example its discussion on candles, "The law about the composition of the candles [on the altar] is that [they} …must contain not less than 65% of beeswax" The use of tallow is strictly forbidden. Altar guild, you're in trouble.

I had a discussion with a young man recently about different translations of the bible. He was strongly in favor of only using the King James Version, translated in 1611. He claimed that translation's authority by the little known fact that it is the only translation not copy-righted. I think the Vulgate, translated into Latin by Jerome in the 5th century, probably has outlived its copy-right, but there was no chance of him being confused by the facts. He also said that, as in our Old Testament reading today, Revelation says we should not add one word to or take one word away from the scripture. This guy actually knew how many words were in 3 or 4 translations. None of them match the 1611, ergo, false scripture.

Following custom or tradition is in itself is not a bad thing. In fact, it is often those traditions that feed a particular person's soul and helps them grow in Christ. Boy, don't take crossing oneself, or singing the Sanctus (Holy, Holy, Holy) away from me. I still grieve the loss of Sunday Morning Prayer with all of those great canticles.

As in most things, it's not the what, it's the why. There is nothing wrong with washing ones hands before dinner. There is nothing wrong with doing liturgy thoughtfully and consistently. There is nothing wrong with finding God in one specific translation of His Word. Those "what's" are good things. It's the why's that give me trouble, and at least in the case of hand washing, that was Jesus' problem as well.

In the candle example, there is no good reason why a 61% beeswax candle is unlawful. In the case of biblical translations, there is no independent source that can prove that the 1611 is the closest translation to the Aramaic oral tradition. And in the case of hand washing, the Pharisees insisted on it for ritualistic reasons and not to avoid getting a cold.

The Jews of that time, and in some branches, still today, had very strict rules about food preparation, hygiene, and the like.. I would not want to criticize faithful Jews for following the traditions of their faith. The problem Jesus had with the Pharisees was that they focused so intently on the ritual aspects of their life, that they forgot mercy, justice, compassion and love.

Washing ones hands for ritual purity gave credence to the notion that ones spiritual health was dependent on how one related to the external world. If a man had touched a woman during her period, he was unclean. It was so easy to be unclean that the Pharisees lived in constant vigilance for those things which would cause it.

Jesus said that ones purity wasn't dependent on who you touched, or what you ate. These external influences didn't corrupt or pollute a person. It was the things of ones character that made one impure, defiled, polluted.

It's the stuff inside us that keeps us from fully loving God The list is familiar. All of these things listed come from a corrupted heart and character. It takes the transformation of ones life to cleanse away the evil lurking inside. Washing your hand in the light of a beeswax candle and reciting verses from the King James bible are not going to right our relationship with God.

James seems to have encountered a Pharisaic lot during his travels. He warned them that hearing the Word of God wasn't enough. Worship that ended with everyone feeling good about them selves wasn't enough. Claiming to be religious was, certainly, not enough.

Faith without works is dead. (Martin Luther hated that line.) Now, works without faith is simply social work. But a truly religious person will not only worship and study, but will also act. They will help the needy and the socially fragile.

I think that if the Pharisees had a better track record of fighting for the rights of the poor and the outcast, Jesus may have let them slide on their ritual fundamentalism.

It's not the stuff of worship that really matters. It is the reason, the motivation, the sincerity of that worship that matters most.

I certainly don't want to imply that everyone should be equally comfortable in every type of worship style. I believe that when the One Church began to divide, Jesus wept. I think that our denominational, and intra-denominational differences grieve God. But, I also believe that out of the sin of separation, God picked up the pieces and led people to the formation of religious expressions that met the worship needs of individuals.

And so, we worship God through Jesus Christ in different ways. We are fed with the same spiritual food, but on different plates. We sing our praises in different voices and with different tempos. We honor God with different hand motions and different times to kneel. It's not the what, it's the why.

Why are traditions important? The Old Testament is full of instruction to pass the stories and the traditions on to our future generations. We pass them on to remember how God worked in our lives and the lives of all the faithful. We pass them on so that our identity as Children of God is still seen in the public forum. We pass them on so that our children's children will understand why we did what we did. And, frankly, so that we remember why we do what we do.

Why do we do what we do? Why the worship? Why the traditions? Why study the bible? Why learn the creeds? Why do we worship in one faith community and not another? Because we are called to reconcile the world with God through Jesus Christ. And, we do that in 2 ways - spiritual formation and evangelism.

By spiritual formation, I mean strengthening the faith of those who are currently on that faith journey among us. By evangelism, I mean attracting those who do not have a faith community to help them come to know God in Christ. Spiritual Formation and Evangelism. Those are the whys.

If you look around during the service, you will see a wide variety of acts of piety. You see that there are times that I cross myself, or genuflect, or kiss the altar. Ritual Notes may have something to say about those things, but I do them because they help to remind me of the purpose of the words being said. They are important to me. They are that part of a specific tradition that feeds me.

Should we make these things mandatory? Nah. I'd hope that we'd challenge ourselves and ask ourselves why we do the liturgical things we do. Why are issues of ordination and blessings important to us. Why do we believe the way we do.

The Pharisees shut off their ability to see the realities of the world around them and relied on traditions which had long lost their whys. Challenge yourselves. Challenge your leaders. Challenge your clergy, your bishop, your Church. Ask why. And ask often.

Ritual without meaning is simply theater. A Christian without belief is an actor. And God deserves, and demands, much much more.