TRAGIC MISTAKEN IDENTITY
In San Francisco last month, a family that had already been touched by tragedy was struck again. In 2008, in a case of mistaken identity, three members of the Tony Bologna family were killed in gang violence. Tony and two of his sons, Michael and Matthew, were murdered when Edwin Ramos, an MS-13 gang member, thought one of the sons was a member of a rival gang. Left behind were Tony’s third son, Andrew, and Tony’s wife, Danielle, and daughter, Francesca. But last month, Danielle and Francesca were killed when a car veered into their lane on a highway. Now Andrew Bologna has had to bury every member of his family. A GoFundMe page has been set up to allow people to provide assistance to him.
SINFUL FALSE IDENTITY
In today’s passage, the Pharisees came under the Lord’s discipline for hypocrisy. They presented a false identity of being pure and righteous, carrying their supposed love for God to the extent of giving Him a tenth of everything—even their garden herbs—and yet their hearts were full of sin and greed. Jesus exposed their façade and called them to make their true selves line up with the righteous identity they showed the world.
Questions
- When have you or someone you know been touched by false or mistaken identity?
- Why is it sometimes tempting to present a more positive, but not entirely accurate, version of ourselves to others?
- When has someone been honest with you about their faults?
