Purity

To be pure in heart. Oh my. If we want to struggle, let us think about that for a day get ready for a task. Does anyone think it is possible? The Galilean did, for he told us:

“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.” Matthew 5:8 (NIV)

What in the wide world did he mean?

We enjoy two far distant extremes in this area today. That’s one reason we hear so little about the Sermon on the Mount except from the old mainstream churches. When the topic is mentioned, we find one extreme version claims that one must be totally pure within our thinking and actions, both internally and externally. Not surprisingly, this achievement is reserved for the one person espousing the view. Like those custom-made criteria lists that tell us what city is best in which to live, the supporters of this view maintain their own criteria that, you guessed it, prove them pure of heart and ready to see their god.

On the other extreme, there are supporters who teach that if a person supports one, and only one, of the principles the viewer holds dear, that person is not only pure of heart but appointed by the appropriate god to lead us through the wilderness of life. Politicians win elections by claiming such views.

Where does that leave the vast majority who would invoke the act of seeking purity? It is difficult to believe, simultaneously, that history has produced for us only one perfect person, but that we all must be perfect in order to see our god.

The Galilean didn’t help much. He didn’t say, “Blessed are those who strive to be pure in heart.” Nor did the say “Blessed are those who seek to be pure in heart.” No, there was no “give it your best shot” exemption in what he said.

Even President Jimmy Carter, whom most would regard as pure in heart, admitted to improper thoughts on occasion. One doesn’t have to be a muscular pool boy or naughty movie star to solicit a wayward thought, or action. Even a film concerning Mister Rogers, a model hard to surpass in this purity of heart discussion, had his wife’s character say, “He has a temper.”

How does a person cope with such a standard? Perhaps we can adopt the stance that a cleansed and purified heart is one that operates without guile, or untoward purpose. One who is pure of heart may make mistakes, or fall short of the glory, if the effort is made with righteous intent.

That still leaves out a lot of people, many in high places. But the very act of valuing purity may lead us away from the many dark caverns of impurity. As the poet Alfred Lord Tennyson once wrote, “I must lose myself in action lest I wither in despair.”

Yes, that amounts to nothing more than simple striving, but it’s better than following the impure of heart off a cliff.