When clay becomes a pot, it must first have a center. Faith and religious practice have lost their center in this Sunday’s readings. Quoting Isaiah, Jesus calls into question “This people [that] honors me with their lips but [whose] hearts are far from me” (Mark 7:6). Some in the religious community have begun focusing on surface matters (the washing of hands, what one eats, the traditions of the elders) and have forgotten the core. What really matters is how one’s faith is expressed in mercy. In the second reading, James wonders about those who are simply hearers of the word and not doers. Today’s scriptures beg the question: How often do our lives lose their center? The center of our faith is Jesus — we find him in word and water, bread and wine, ourselves and our neighbor. Jesus, who embodies forgiveness and mercy, is the heart. Undoubtedly, at times our lives will lose their center and become misshapen. Yet, again and again, the Potter reshapes the clay, focusing on the heart of the matter.