"You cannot be a leader, and ask other people to follow you, unless you know how to follow, too."

If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader. John Quincy Adams: (1767 – 1848: was an American statesman who served as a diplomat, United States Senator, member of the House of Representatives, and was the sixth President of the United States from 1825 to 1829.)

Gospel Text: (MT 15:1-2, 10-14)

Some Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem and said,

"Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders?

They do not wash their hands when they eat a meal."

He summoned the crowd and said to them, "Hear and understand.

It is not what enters one's mouth that defiles the man;

but what comes out of the mouth is what defiles one."

Then his disciples approached and said to him,

"Do you know that the Pharisees took offense

when they heard what you said?"

He said in reply, "Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted

will be uprooted.

Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind.

If a blind man leads a blind man,

both will fall into a pit."

Jesus is teaching us to be careful whom we follow.  If you choose a blind guide, you will both fall into the ditch He tells us in today’s Gospel from Mass. 

This proverb has a deadly serious warning. 

In this part of the world at this point in history, there are many ditches or pits and one has to be careful because there is the danger that as people walk along the road of life, they  might not see the pit, and fall in.  What our Lord is telling us is that when we follow the wrong guides, we put ourselves in danger.  Following the wrong teacher has disastrous consequences.  Following the wrong kind of teaching can lead to emotional distress, bad choices in life, ruined homes and marriages.  Following the wrong teaching can lead you to fall into the pit of hell itself.   

If our Lord were here among us right now, I wonder whom he would point to as the blind who are leading the blind?