Let no one, then, pass judgment on you in matters of food and drink or with regard to a festival or new moon or sabbath. 17 These are shadows of things to come; the reality belongs to Christ. 18 Let no one disqualify you, delighting in self-abasement and worship of angels, taking his stand on visions, inflated without reason by his fleshly mind, 19 and not holding closely to the head, from whom the whole body, supported and held together by its ligaments and bonds, achieves the growth that comes from God. 20 If you died with Christ to the elemental powers of the world, why do you submit to regulations as if you were still living in the world? 21 “Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!” 22 These are all things destined to perish with use; they accord with human precepts and teachings. 23 While they have a semblance of wisdom in rigor of devotion and self-abasement [and] severity to the body, they are of no value against gratification of the flesh.
In this passage, Paul writes to caution the Colossians against adopting practices and philosophies that detract from their faith in Christ. He warns them against being judged for failing to observe dietary laws and religious festivals derived from Jewish tradition (cf. Lev. 11; Deut. 14:3-21). Paul’s reference to a “festival or new moon or sabbath,” was an allusion to specific observances rooted in the Jewish religious calendar required under the Mosaic Law (Num. 28:9-29:6). Paul considers these observances a form of “ritualism” that fails to acknowledge the freedom believers now have in Christ (cf. Gal. 5:1). Since Christ fulfilled the Old Covenant, these observances are no longer a requirement but “shadows” pointing to the fullness revealed in Jesus, who embodies the covenant in its entirety (Heb. 10:1). In Christ, the old observances are not abolished but transformed, as they find their ultimate meaning and fulfillment in His person and redemptive work (cf. Mt. 5:17).
Paul warns the Colossians not to allow anyone to deprive them of their spiritual inheritance in Christ. He criticizes extreme ascetic practices, like fasting or other forms of self-denial, observed in an attempt to achieve spiritual purity by physical discipline. The “worship of angels” indicates that some individuals within the community might have adopted a form of veneration or even devotion directed toward angelic beings believing that angels can be heavenly mediators or protectors. Such practice detracted from Christ’s unique mediating role between God and humanity (cf. 1 Tim. 2:5). Paul also criticized those in the community who may have claimed special, visionary experiences that made them seem spiritually superior (2 Cor. 12:1-7). Christ is the “head” of the Church, the source from which all life and growth flows (cf. Eph. 4:15-16), and the Colossians who engage in practices of self-abasement and angel worship are not staying connected to the head, Christ.
Believers who are in union with Christ’s death are freed from the principles that pertain to the pre-Christian way of life. The three prohibitions, “Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch,” apply to various foods and practices that some within the Colossian church promoted as spiritually beneficial or necessary for holiness, reflecting teachings and heresies that were emerging in the early Christian Church. Paul criticizes these transient teachings as “human precepts,” which lack divine authority. They may have the appearance of “wisdom,” and a certain asceticism, but they are ineffective against the deeper issue of “gratification of the flesh,” the deeper, internal drives and desires associated with human sinfulness.
Almighty God, help us to trust fully in Your Son, knowing that in His sacrifice, we have all we need for holiness and peace. Teach us to live in the freedom of His sacrifice, and to keep our hearts centered on Him alone. This we pray through the same Christ our Lord. Amen!
References
- McSorley, Joseph. An Outline History of the Church by Centuries (From St. Peter to Pius XII). 2nd ed., B. Herder Book Co., 1944.
- Orchard, Bernard, et al. A Catholic Commentary on Holy Scripture. Feb. 1953.
- Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
- Faculty of the University of Navarre. The Navarre Bible: New Testament Expanded Edition. Four Courts / Scepter, 2008.
- Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Prentice Hall, 1990.
- Charpentier, Etienne. How to Read the Old Testament. Translated by John Bowden, 1981.
- Komonchak, Joseph, et al., editors. The New Dictionary of Theology.
- McKenzie, John. Dictionary of the Bible. Collier Books, 1965.
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