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knowledge concerning holiness makes one holy. It just so happens that yesterday the
Prophet Haggai was commemorated, and I read his short book of prophesy. It contains
startling moral teaching that very much applies to St Paul�-?s words. Haggai was rebuking
the faithless Jews who were not obeying the will of God to rebuild the temple, and asked
them a series of questions.

(2:11)

In the four and twentieth day of the ninth month, in the second year of

Darius the king, the word of the Lord came to Aggeus the prophet, saying:

(11)

(2:12)

Thus saith the Lord of hosts: Ask the priests the law, saying:

(12) (2:13)

If a

man carry sanctified flesh in the skirt of his garment, and touch with his skirt,
bread, or pottage, or wine, or oil, or any meat: shall it be sanctified? And the
priests answered, and said: No.

(13) (2:14)

And Aggeus said: If one that is unclean

by occasion of a soul touch any of all these things, shall it be defiled? And the
priests answered, and said: It shall be defiled.

(14) (2:15)

And Aggeus answered,

and said: So is this people, and so is this nation before my face, saith the Lord,
and so is all the work of their hands: and all that they have offered there, shall be
defiled. (Hag 2:10-14 DRB)

The jist of the holy prophet�-?s discourse, in so many words, is this: being around holiness
does not make one holy. Hearing about holiness (hearing the gospel preached) does not
make one holy. Only hearing and doing, with the heart changing, can make one holy.

The Gospel preached is just like a sanctified item wrapped in a garment. The Gospel
contains the words of life, and when it touches the ears, they are holy, but if these words
of life are not unwrapped and allowed to penetrate into the �-�joints and marrow�-?, then the
soul does not become holy.

How much holiness is all around us? We attend the liturgy every Sunday, and perhaps
even commune the Holy Mysteries, but do we change? Why do we not change? St Paul
tells us plainly: because the things we heard were not �-�mixed with faith�-?.

Faith is to do what we hear; and in time, to be what we hear. The Apostle gives us the
example of the Jews in the wilderness, who heard but did not do, and then asks us to
compare ourselves to them. He tells us we should be afraid, lest we end up in the same
state.

As a Christian, I am acutely aware of how little I have become holy, even though I am
surrounded by holiness. I wonder if I have done enough, changed enough. St Paul�-?s
words are a ringing rebuke to my ears.

Do they sting your ears too? What can you do about this?