We all remember the criminal case some years ago where the defendant claimed he was not at fault for his criminal behavior because he was high on sugar (or at least his high consumption of sugar was a symptom of severe depression). It was immediately dubbed the "twinkies" defense-- the evil he had done associated with what he ate, it was reportedly claimed. Not surprisingly, the defense didn't work. In today's Gospel (Mk 7: 14-23) Jesus tackles a related question-- does what we eat "defile" us. No, He says, what we eat does not make us "unclean" or evil. What "defiles" us-- what makes us people who do evil-- is what is in our hearts. We can't blame our behaviors on what we consume. OK, that seems pretty uncontroversial in the year 2020. But if what is in our hearts is the source of our behavior-- for better or worse-- how do we impact that? Is the content of our hearts completely beyond our control, so we really should not bear guilt for the evil we do, or do we have something to do with what resides there? The answer to that question has to be that we are responsible for what is in our hearts, right? Otherwise we're simply governed by forces that are beyond us, and have no choice in the matter. Human freedom becomes non-existent, and we have no ability to change. There's nothing we can do about whether or not we do evil-- what a horribly depressing way to view the world. Not only is such a conclusion depressing-- it is also the case that we know from our experience, and from studying human behavior-- that what we choose to put into our minds, our hearts, and our souls, makes a huge difference in how we behave. People who are accustomed to evil because they watch it on their computers, or associate with it in their lives, can more easily do evil. That's why the character of those with whom we associate ourselves matters so much. If we hang around people who lie and cheat and steal, we put those behaviors into our hearts, and sooner or later it will come out of us. As the expression goes, haters are going to hate, and people who hang around haters become haters too. No, it isn't the food we consume that matters in terms of our behaviors. But what does matter is the images and information and behaviors that we consume, if you will, by observing them. That's why it is so important to have national leaders who are people of honesty and integrity, as opposed to folks who have, shall we say, only a passing familiarity with the truth. Think about that the next time you are deciding what to watch or read, or for whom to vote.