In our last post we learned that Jesus taught God is spirit, and it is through spirit, or consciousness, that we truly worship and draw near to God. Worshipping God through the human spirit means conscious choice and action. As we choose to live consciously, consciousness will be elevated, and an elevation in consciousness is direct evidence of worshiping God.
In today’s post we will address Caroline Myss’s belief that there is a correlation, symbolically, between the meaning of the seven sacraments of the church and our seven chakras.
On the surface this idea might seem ludicrous, right? Traditionally, the seven chakras are an ancient Hindu explanation of the human conscious-energy system, whereas the seven sacraments are of Christian origin and are believed to bestow divine grace on the individual. But Myss has nailed the connection between them by showing that they both symbolically represent the elevation of consciousness!
How so?
In ancient Hindu thought, each chakra contains spiritual life-lessons to learn so as to advance individual consciousness. According to Myss, since the chakras are vertically aligned from the bottom of the spinal column to the top of the head, it suggests “…that we ascend toward the Divine by gradually mastering the seductive pull of the physical world.”
Notice that Myss didn’t say we need to escape the world, but that we’re not to be seduced by it. Jesus indicated the same when he stated:
“I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from evil” (John 17:15).
Jesus was praying to the father about his disciples. The evil Jesus is referring to is that which separates us from God, which is largely the seduction and illusions of the physical. As we expand consciousness, we gradually master its “seductive pull.” But we need to be in the world in order to incorporate higher consciousness through certain life-lessons. Myss agrees that it is through the life-lessons themselves that we “receive empowerment.” More on this in a moment.
The Sacraments
The symbolic meanings of the seven sacraments really aren’t much different.
According to Myss, “…the seven sacraments were, and still are, sacred ceremonies that imprint the individual with—to use Christian language—specific qualities of “grace or Divine energy.”
In order to understand the connection with the chakras, let’s focus on the “Divine energy” bestowed on the Christian for a moment. What is this “Divine” energy?
In esoteric thought energy is the expression and movement of consciousness. This goes for all energy, but by “Divine” we mean energy of a higher vibration and frequency. The higher the vibration, the closer it is to its source, or God. God is the source (and oneness) for all energy and consciousness.
In the Christian sacramental system, the believer has faith in the fact that Divine energy is being bestowed upon them through God’s grace. What would be the purpose for this Divine energy other than for the purpose of spiritual maturation, to bring one closer to God?
One Christian writer connected with the Catholic Church has this to say about the sacraments:
“Through the sacraments we are nourished, healed, and made holy.”
How is it that one is healed and made holy? Many have faith that as they literally participate in the sacraments, the divine energy of God automatically heals them. I am not going to say that this isn’t possible, but I do want to point out the superiority of the symbolic meaning. As Myss states, “Symbolically, each sacrament…represents a stage of empowerment that invites the Divine directly into a person’s spirit.” This is another way of saying that the sacraments symbolically represent the Divine being invited into our consciousness.
The true importance in this symbolic meaning is that as we live life, we eventually come to express this divine energy or higher consciousness by expressing higher thoughts and emotions in day to day life. Accomplishing this is the evidence of fulfilling our spiritual (and physical) purposes on earth. Such a person chooses to live to the calling of higher consciousness.
The Symbolic Meaning of the Sacraments and Chakras Compared
Below is Myss’s comparison of each chakra and each sacrament. If you’ve never seen it before, I think you’ll find it interesting.
1) The first chakra: lessons related to the material world
Baptism: to receive or bestow and expression of grace representing gratitude for one’s life in the physical world.
2) The second chakra: lessons related to sexuality, work, and physical desire
Communion: to receive or bestow an expression of grace—in the form of a “host”—that represents holy union with God and with the people in one’s life.
3) The third chakra: lessons related to the ego, personality, and self-esteem.
Confirmation: to receive or bestow an expression of grace that enhances one’s individuality and self-esteem.
4) The fourth chakra: lessons related to love, forgiveness, and compassion.
Marriage: to receive or bestow a blessing making a sacred union with oneself, symbolic of recognizing and honoring the essential need to love and care for oneself in order that one can fully love another.
5) The fifth chakra: lessons related to will and self-expression.
Confession: to receive or bestow the grace to cleanse one’s spirit of negative acts of will.
6) The sixth chakra: lessons related to mind, intuition, insight, and wisdom.
Ordination: to receive or bestow the grace to make sacred one’s path of service.
7) The seventh chakra: lessons related to spirituality.
Extreme unction: to receive or bestow the grace to finish one’s unfinished business not just before death, but as a daily part of one’s life, thus allowing a person to love in “present time.”
Scriptural Support for Myss’s Interpretation
Isaiah and the Book of Revelation teach us that God has seven spirits. These seven spirits are also related to the chakras and what the seven sacraments symbolically represent. Consider the scriptures from Revelation below:
“And out of the throne proceedeth lightnings and thunderings and voices: and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven spirits of God” (Rev. 4:5).
“And I beheld, and lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent forth into all the earth” (Rev. 5:6).
Obviously these are not literal descriptions. Rather they represent the one who has conquered the seduction of the physical world through sacrifice. This applies to all of us who are faithful to the spiritual path. But I want us to notice closely where these seven spirits originated from, and you will see the higher conscious connection.
The seven spirits originate as a prophecy about Christ in Isaiah. I quote below:
“And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of fear of the LORD” (Isaiah 11:2).
It breaks down as follows:
1) Spirit of the LORD
2) Spirit of wisdom
3) Spirit of understanding
4) Spirit of counsel
5) Spirit of might
6) Spirit of knowledge
7) Spirit of fear of the LORD
Why is it that Jesus was declared worthy? It is because as the Christ he developed these seven spirits which collectively are the one Spirit of the LORD, which is the spirit of higher consciousness developed through the conquering of the physical world.
Even Jesus had to develop higher consciousness. A scripture from Hebrews states:
“Though he were a son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered…” (Heb. 5:8).
This means that Christ learned obedience, which is BETTER than sacrifice, through life’s lessons. It is no different for us. This is also why we can faithfully say that Christ’s life represents our life as well. Jesus’ story is symbolically our story.
Remember when Jesus told us to be “perfect” like our Father in heaven (Matt. 5:48)? He was telling us to be whole and complete. Being “complete” is the meaning of the Greek word translated as perfect. In other words, in order to be complete, we must come to express higher consciousness on earth. It’s not so much about perfection as it is about being whole and complete both physically and spiritually (including emotionally and mentally).
This is also part of the true meaning of salvation. In fact the Greek word can also be translated “health.” We are to walk in health in all areas of our lives, not just in our physical bodies.
Closing thoughts
All in all, I think Myss has done an excellent job in revealing the deeper symbolic meaning of the sacraments by showing us how they transcend cultural boundaries and represent universal sacred truths. I recommend reading the rest of her book to learn more about gaining higher consciousness in our daily lives. It’s well worth the read!
For now, I give a few recommendations of my own to live consciously. Surrender to the present moment by accepting what is. Drop all resistance to life, and honor the NOW. Live from the heart, but also live ethically and lovingly towards yourself and your fellowman.
I also recommend daily meditation, which helps align us to our life purpose and lessons we are here to learn and incorporate into the human spirit. As we turn within ourselves, we draw near in stillness to God, giving us the chance to see ourselves more clearly.
I must also say that doing this post has given me a greater appreciation for the heritage tied up in the Catholic Church. I feel if the Catholic Church could only embrace (by teaching) the deeper symbolic meanings of this heritage, such as Myss has done, there would be more growth of the Christ within in all its members.
I am interested in comments from anyone on this post, but it would be especially great to get the perspective of someone who actively participates in the sacraments.
Many blessings.
Not sure if it makes a difference,but confession comes before communion.
d
Yes Dave, good to say “not sure if it makes a difference”. Since all of these are symbolically possibilities aspects within us in the process of evolution, for me what matters is what those of us on this path/journey are experiencing or felling within in relation to the manifestation to empowered chakras/sacrament/churches if this makes a bit of reality.
Hi Josh,
Once again an outstanding article on The Anatomy of the Sprit, and author Caroline Myss!
This may be a lengthy post as my early conditioning was that of a Catholic, in the early 60’s, Mass at the time was still being said in Latin, and there was a lot of standing and kneeling on unpadded, wooden pews. During Easter the ritual was “Stations of the Cross”, which took place every Friday, and were marched over to the Church (nearby the school), and knelt up and down, through the entire 12 Stations of the Cross, which took approximately an hour or more, the Priest would carry with him the incense, (Frankincense) which smoked the entire time, alter boys would assist following holding the Cross and holding of candles. Keep in mind folks reading, it is a memory from childhood, so I may be missing some of the ritual at that time, which have continually changed over the years. thank goodness for future Catholic children!!
For me it was almost like torture and probably all of us were not fully aware of why we had to go thru all this, not fully understanding as to why.
The Bible was not the book we learned from, we learned from a Catechism, and had a class on that each day in school, consisting of the teaching’s of the Roman Catholic religion.
Moving on here I will go through each of the Sacraments received as a child…
Baptism: Baby state, lots of family in attendance and a big celebration afterwards, we wore a very beautiful garment called a Christening gown, Baby’s were to be Baptized, as soon as possible and prior to coming out of the home, in other words it was our first trip outdoors! I have a nice picture of my Baptism day with my family, but no memory of it whatsoever. Our parents chose a Godmother & Godfather (they were to be our parents and spiritual guides if something went horribly wrong and we lost our birth parents) to present us at the alter, with the parents hovering close by, the Priest said a few prayers and the Holy Water was pored upon our foreheads.
Confession/Penance: The precepts of confession were learned through the Catechism, and our first confession was prior to receiving the sacrament of Communion, none of which I believe a 6/7 year old child fully understood, we just went along with the program and were scared to death to enter the confessional, as we stood in line waiting, we would think of what we would confess, I remember not really having anything bad to report, so I made up a few things, I lied and was disobedient, etc., but really with a regimen so strict who had time to be bad! We were just kids! The priest would issue absolution and we were ordered (our penance) to say 3 Hail Mary’s, 3 Our Father’s and sometimes an entire rosary, it was different all the time, we went to confession once a week. I might add, there were 2 category’s of sin; Mortal & Venial
Communion: My personal favorite, the females were all in white, with a veil, white dress and white shoes (we were all little Brides and feeling very pretty). The males wore a suit and tie, It was done in May, in honor of Mary, so it was a beautiful time of year with flowers blooming and all of life blossoming! Another day of celebration with a family/friends gathering after the ceremony! We also carried a missal, white for the girls and black for the boys, still this was not a Bible, but addressed other areas of being a good Catholic and the rosary, usually a family member gave you the set of all the necessity’s for the special day. I believe I still have my Communion missal, as mom probably saved it. My mother was the Catholic, my father was not raised Catholic, or did I really know his particular religious preferences, but I do know that he was a good loving father and
spent every moment of his life providing for his family, his testimony to me was in his actions. He was never unkind and treated people with dignity and respect…oh, he got mad for sure, but rarely displayed it openly. In all my years with him I never heard him judge or saw him mistreat anyone.
He also like myself and sister, loved nature and animals. He apparently agreed my sister and I would be raised Catholic, my Irish mother would have it no other way!! On that day we received from the priest, the body and blood of Christ, through a sacred wafer and grape juice.
Confirmation: Was performed in 6th grade, so we were 9/10 yrs. old, the ritual consisted of ashes being placed in the form of a Cross on our foreheads, and if I recall it was prior to Ash Wednesday, and a mass was also performed thus sealing believers in the Spirit, anointing them and empowering them to carry on the mission of Christ. By this time we knew something mysterious was going on but with no conscious understanding. So, along we went to Mass on Sundays and Holy Days and of course Confession once a week, until our day of Graduation from school.
These 4 Sacraments were administered under the direction of our parents, Priests, Teachers, Nuns, and our willing participation as obedient Catholic children!
Marriage: The description
LOL!! Funny, went to post mysteriously at this point!
continuing on…
Marriage: The description Josh/Myss gives is one I have cherished and loved, but I just simply could not be obedient to this Sacrament, due to a Christian alcoholic, abusive husband.
Not good at this one, and I have learned hard the lesson that God does not want us to be subjected to any of this, in any of our relationships, especially the Sacred Sacrament of Marriage.
I spent years of guilt and suffering because I thought I was not being a good wife.
As a result I have never re-married, and am childless.
Maybe someone else who was raised in the Catholic religion could help out here with a more positive outcome.
Ordination: This Sacrament was strictly reserved for those wanting to go into the service of teaching the precepts of the Catholic faith. Myss’s & Josh’s description is much more relevant in the aspect of understanding.
Extreme unction: Here I AM…after much angst and a deep yearning for Spiritual understanding, I find I am precisely where I should be as a Spiritual being!
Today, I find peace and understanding in my heart with my religious upbringing, it was the best they (my parents) could give me and I have always thought in my heart that for a child, something is better than nothing when it comes to religion, at least they are given a starting point…
Love & Blessings,
Sparks
Dave,
yes, you are correct there, as it was changed for some reason or another. Prior to it being changed Communion was received prior to Confession.
but, there have been many changes since and still occurring today, at least if we go to mass we can understand the words!
As Josh has stated:
“I must also say that doing this post has given me a greater appreciation for the heritage tied up in the Catholic Church. I feel if the Catholic Church could only embrace (by teaching) the deeper symbolic meanings of this heritage, such as Myss has done, there would be more growth of the Christ within in all its members”.
Josh’s description is more than perfect of where the Catholic Church should be at this time.
Maybe all these good & true changes will come to be!
Sparks
Hi Josh,
You write: “Traditionally, the seven chakras are an ancient Hindu explanation of the human conscious-energy system, whereas the seven sacraments are of Christian origin and are believed to bestow divine grace on the individual.”
I would say that chakras are the name that Hindus give to the energy centres in the non-physical bodies of man. They did not invent them so to speak but explain what they are and what they are fore. That is probably what you mean to say as well but somehow I got another impression at first glance, so I put it in somewhat different words.
The Hindus were not the only ones who knew about it as we can also read something about the subject in Genesis where Joseph receives a ‘coat of many colours’ (literally many stripes) from his father. As he is the symbol of the physical body that means that in his non-physical bodies the chakras have become fully active again. Only different terms were used.
As such also the early Church might still have known this and linked the sacraments to opening the chakras and by this slowly raising the level of awareness. A knowledge that was forgotten through time, as so many other things as well. However, they still kept it in the rituals.
There is one thing I wonder about. This sixth chakra/sacrament connection to ordination, does this mean the ordination of a priest? I do not know, as I have never been a Catholic. But if it does, it must mean that during the first period of Christianity priests were still allowed to be married. And women must have been allowed to perform priestly functions. How else could people ever receive all these sacraments? Opening only six out of seven chakras does not make sense to me.
However, it is great that Caroline Myss rediscovered this connection.
Hi Anny,
Yes, present day priest’s are the only one’s to receive the Sacrament of Ordination, then, they can go on to be bishop, cardinals, etc.
I also believe that nuns are ordained but the process is not the same as it is for a priest.
As far as I know, neither can marry and it has been this way since the inception of the Roman Catholic Church. They both take the vow of Chastity during Ordination.
Why would they take forsake one Sacrament for another? like you, I agree, this really doesn’t make any sense…but I am sure the Roman Catholic Church had their agenda & reasons for this.
This, even as a child I never felt was “normal”, and hence we now see all the child abuse that has gone on and we don’t even know how long it actually has gone on…hopefully that will be stopped completely. Kids were so afraid to say anything to their parents or anyone else, this was the conditioning then.
Now I believe many of the systems in the Catholic Schools have changed dramatically & in this neck of the woods, many of the schools and churches are closed or closing.
I would like to look further into this, and get some timelines as to when and why this Sacrament was reserved for Priests only.
Will keep you posted if I can gather some more precise info on this particular subject.
With love,
Sparks
.
Hi Sparks,
Thanks for your answer. And I am sorry to hear that you had such a bad time in church during your childhood. I grew up as a Protestant, who had their own issues, I can assure you, but in my type of church it was never that bad. I was not unhappy there and I was free to make up my own mind without being threatened with hell and damnation. They just could not follow me in the way I developped which felt very lonely but no worse than that.
What my point here really is, is that if Caroline Myss is right and the sacraments were linked up with the chakra’s and meant to help open and activate them, that tells us something about the church before things got messed up, the church from the very beginning.
If sacraments and chakra’s are linked, then everyone must have had the opportunity to open all their chakra’s by receiving the sacraments and of course going through an evolution of consciousness and some sort of training before they could receive them. To me that means that everyone could get married, including priests (Peter himself had a mother in law according to the Bible so he must have been married) and everyone must have got the opportunity to perform some priestly function. Only in that way could everyone have the opportunity to open all the chakra’s and go the way to ascension and enlightenment. Whether or not you took the opportunity and made the effort was of course up to every person. That is the only conclusion that is sensible to me.
If you work with the chakra system it just is not an option to organize it in a way that everyone can open six chakra’s at the most. But later they did not know anything about this connection and purpose anymore, so then anything that served the interest of those in power became possible. That is the way things go, not only in religion though. It is a thing we humans tend to do when we have lost our awareness and function on a lower level of consciousness.
Love,
Anny
Hi, Sparks.
Nuns do not receive Holy Orders (ordination), only priests. Celibacy was not mandatory for priests in the Western (Roman Catholic Church) until around the year 1000. Nuns, priests and religious brothers take vows of chastity. Many Catholic women (including nuns) are currently advocating opening the priesthood to women. Many are also advocating making celibacy optional for priests. Also, historically, I believe baptism was not originally administered to infants. This evolved over time. After the Reformation, many of the Protestant denominations went back to baptizing adults.
All the best,
John
Hi John,
Thank you for your comment directed to Sparks (Fran) at such a late date but she will not be able to reply to you any more as she died already more than four years ago.
You can find a eulogy by Joshua on this blog under the title RIP Sparks (Fran), April 22nd, 2016.
I am sure she would have appreciated your comment though.
Anny
Hi Anny,
Do you think the fundamentalist knew of the esoteric meanings of this sacraments, kept it for themselves and hid it from the mass, up to the priest’s and bishops? If so does it means till date the individuals that partook the literal ordinations of the sacraments have not been able to ask questions to the extend of discovering the truth?
Hello Bernhardt,
I do not think that (if I got it right, it is only an intuition) the fundamentalist could have known about it because the priests etc. themselves could also not receive all seven ordinations as they could not get married. So in my view this celibacy must have originated in a time that they were not aware of the relation between the sacraments and the chakras.
However, the higher ranks certainly tried to hide things from the ordinary church people and maybe also from ordinary priests during the ages, in order to keep the power themselves. But I do not think that they knew anything about this link anymore.
Anny
Hi Anny & Bernhardt,
Just wanted to add that growing up in the Roman Catholic Church was without a doubt a very fear producing experience, when I was older and realized this, I rebelled, this is when my search for Truth began and still continues.
Another issue was money, if your parents gave a lot of $$, that child got special attention from the teachers, nuns and priests, my folks did not earn enough to contribute a lot, as tuition itself was a major cost at the time, my dad was a hard working sign man, but did not make a enough to hand it all over to the church, therefore, my seat was at the back of the class…they were overly concerned with generating income and had us out selling things all the time. we all learned well how to be good Catholic sales children. Where all the money went, who knows?
We received half of the sacraments as small children, how could we possibly understand, I am not bitter about that, as I have come to understand them due to my own personal research and Myss’s book really brought it to a home run for me. when I saw and studied the chart she provides it was a great AHA moment for me.
I can guess, as Anny has, that the priests were also kept in the dark, pawns, so to say, for the bigger money gobbling machine.
Presently, I have a very good feeling about the new Pope, he is an authentic human being and they all hate him, but he continues on in the Spirit of the Christ, a true lover of God, Jesus and the Word. Pope Francis will bring much good to a perverted Catholic religion. They’re like the Roman Catholic mafia, but they’ll all be out of there and soon!
The arms or branches of all/European religions were conceived from rebellious Catholics, they saw it and were not going to have any part of it, thus, as Robert, LOL has said quoting Harrison Ford, in the 42 movie, he’s an Episcopalian, I’m a Episcopalian, God is and we all are, He’ll turn the other cheek!! What a great analogy Robert!
All they do is argue at the Vatican, Pope Francis will have none of it, in fact he won’t even live there. There will be many changes with him, and good and true changes!
It’s about time, a loving human became Pope, instead of a controlled alien…
Love you guys, you both always bring such great thoughts to the table,
Sparks
Back again, am thinking about Constantine and the Inquisition?
Was the killing of innocents their source of power?
How could a simple man or woman commit to something they knew absolutely nothing about?
I believe many converted to save their lives and their families…
and I also feel there is a connection which was repeated when the unmentionable ordered the Jewish annulation/massacre.
When I was in 6th grade, they (the nuns) took us all to the basement and proceeded to show us a horrendous movie about it all, showing naked dead/gassed bodies in mass graves. There were about 80 or so kids there and guess who starts throwing up and almost going into seizure? Me…
Well, they escorted me right out of there to the nurse and one of the kindest of all the nuns stayed there with me to comfort me, I was crying for hours. Just me out of 80 kids! Why would they show a film like that to children.
Bernhardt, I will never forget the Jew inside of me…and as well probably the simple man or woman that was slaughtered during the Inquisition.
They are vampires, sucking the life out of innocents, while adding gold to their hidden vaults
I need to stop here, the truth is very unsettling, part of the reason no one wants to “see” or “hear”
as our vicious and cruel world turns.
Stay safe and protected by the Spirit!
Sparks
You cannot mix true Christianity with New Age, Buddhism or whatever false religion you espouse at
any given moment. You are false prophets and teachers. The bible warns against such.
J., what is true Christianity? And how do you know?
Jesus came to give us “true Christianity”. Taught his disciples (the 12). Disciples taught
around the known world the “true Christianity”. They are now considered apostles. The apostles
became the Catholic church. Peter was the first “Pope” and there is an apostolic tradition in the Catholic church dating back to Peter. Bible warns against false religions.
Hi j simon,
Your comment suggest that you are in agreement with the trespassing or massacre of innocents for any particular religious beliefs, even though the documentation is intensely powerful that that “true Christianity” was tampered with. Our discussions here are not to argue with any particular religious beliefs, in fact to each his own and whichever gives a soul comfort, we are engaged at a philosophical level of understanding, due to our own desire to seek knowledge that was purposely hidden, Which if you are too further understand the purpose of what is contained within Josh’s website, you may yourself learn something of value for your own nurturing and enlightenment.
We are not false prophets or teachers, we in fact are seekers of Truth…Truth which is hidden within Bible Scripture. Nothing New Age here, in fact, we are the ancients and have no fear of the Truth.
As Jesus has taught and stated many times during his journey here to help us evolve/love…”We are not to Judge” or “Condemn”.
Get out the Bible and re-read his very words concerning your brash and unkind statement.
May you discover the Christ within,
Sparks
Hi j simon, Yes i agree with Sparks, the only remedy for you to understand what we do here is for you to discover the Christ within as Paul said in Gal 4:19 “My little children, with whom I am again in travail until Christ be formed in you”! J Simon, until then you don’t belong to this group and we shall see you at the other side now that you are judging. The truth which we are seeking is not left in the streets for lazy people. Would you please answer Joshua’s question “what is true Christianity? And how do you know? until your answer comes we cant filter you and wont wast our time on you. Blessings.
J. Simon hasn’t identified the false prophets even though his Lord has told him who they are. He will know the truth in his own time…when he has ears to hear. Peace.
this was a VERY blessed reading. Thank you from the center of my heart! Joy,
You’re welcome, Joy. My pleasure.
My goodness…and your reply to the spirit in Joshua is commendable and precise. All do not wish to be enlightened for reasons we do not know or judge but I certainly don’t blame you for censoring such comments – this is no platform for welcoming invitation for flattering foolishness or belligerent ignorance.
Great response!
The Pharisees did not invoke the disdain of Christ for teaching Eastern religions or philosophies but for using the law to punish people after holding them to unattainable standards. By convincing them righteousness was the only path to heaven they effectively precluded them from finding heaven.
“Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.”
Matthew 7:15
“Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit.”
Matthew 7:17-18
When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, “Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith. I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
Matthew 8:10-12
Knowing their thoughts, Jesus said, “Why do you entertain evil thoughts in your hearts? Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the paralyzed man, “Get up, take your mat and go home.”
Matthew 9:4-6
“For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’ But wisdom is proved right by her deeds.”
Matthew 11:18-19
“If you had known what these words mean, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the innocent. For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”
Matthew 12:7-8
“‘These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
They worship me in vain;
their teachings are merely human rules.’”
Matthew 15:8-9
“Are you still so dull?” Jesus asked them. “Don’t you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body? But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart, and these defile them. For out of the heart come evil thoughts—murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. These are what defile a person; but eating with unwashed hands does not defile them.”
Matthew 15:16-20
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the door of the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to.”
Matthew 23:13
Interesting article but with all due respect, separating text from the full chapters does not provide full understanding of its meaning; they are not standalone. Communion is not even relevant to the meaning you have provided. God bless you