ere greatly astonished for they had not learned the
lesson of the loaves, for they were slow to understand its meaning.

After crossing the sea they landed at Gennesaret and fastened the boat.
As soon as they had gone ashore, the people knew Jesus and searched all
that part of the country, and whenever they heard that he had come to a
certain place, they brought to him the sick on their beds. In every city
or town or village to which he went people would lay their sick in the
market-place and beg him to let them touch even the edge of his robe.
And all who touched him were made well.

JESUS TELLS WHAT IT MEANS TO BE CLEAN

The Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem went
together to Jesus, because they had seen that some of his disciples ate
their food without washing their hands as the scribes thought necessary.
For the Pharisees and all the Jews always wash their hands up to the
wrists before eating. So the Pharisees and scribes asked him, "Why do
not your disciples obey the old custom instead of eating food with
unwashed hands?" Jesus said to them, "Well did Isaiah prophesy about you
hypocrites: 'This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is
not with me; their worship is worthless, for they teach what are only
commands of men.' You set aside the command of God and follow that of
men.

"Moses said, 'Honor your father and your mother,' and, 'He who speaks
evil of father or mother shall die.' But you say, 'If a man says to his
father or to his mother, What you were to have received from me is given
to God,' you hold that he need not do anything for his father or mother.
In this way you set aside the command of God in favor of the teaching
which you have handed down; and you do many other things like that."

Then calling the crowd to him again, he said to them, "Hear me, all of
you, and understand. Nothing can make a man unclean by going into him
from outside. It is what comes from him that makes him unclean, for from
within, from the heart of man, come evil thoughts, acts of theft,
murder, greed, wickedness, deceit, impure thoughts, envy, slander,
pride, and recklessness. All these evil things come from within, and
they make a man unclean."

[Illustration: _Among the Lowly_

Painted by L. L'hermitte. In the Metropolitan Museum of Art]

JESUS IS KIND TO A STRANGER

Certain Pharisees came to Jesus and said to him, "Go away from here; for
Herod wishes to kill you." He said to