We are not Jews. Yesterday, a doctor who wants to get one of our vacant academic jobs came to give a lecture. He was an enthusiast, he was Israeli, and he was very liberal. Ethnically Jewish, religiously Buddhist to liberal and despised the ultra orthodox.

But he has swapped one tradition for another. In his seeking of virtue and secular Zionism, he seeks not to signal virtue but to be virtuous. This is following, though he may not acknowledge it, the traditions of reform Judaism that melds the idea of liberty with saving creation. It is the enlightenment leaving but pale paths to righteousness.

This was not the situation for Jesus. He was dealing with those who wrote the traditions that now make up orthodox Judaism.

And the rejected him, for he went behind the traditions, and showed where they were unrighteous.

Then Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem and said, “Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands when they eat.” He answered them, “And why do you break the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition? For God commanded, ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ‘Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die.’ But you say, ‘If anyone tells his father or his mother, “What you would have gained from me is given to God,” he need not honor his father.’ So for the sake of your tradition you have made void the word of God. You hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, when he said:

“‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me;
in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’”

And he called the people to him and said to them, “Hear and understand: it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.” Then the disciples came and said to him, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this saying?” He answered, “Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be rooted up. Let them alone; they are blind guides. And if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.” But Peter said to him, “Explain the parable to us.” And he said, “Are you also still without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach and is expelled? But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person. But to eat with unwashed hands does not defile anyone.”

(Matthew 15:1-20 ESV)

Formerly, when you did not know God, you were enslaved to those that by nature are not gods. But now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and worthless elementary principles of the world, whose slaves you want to be once more? You observe days and months and seasons and years! I am afraid I may have labored over you in vain.

(Galatians 4:8-11 ESV)

This bloke may get a job. He passed one of the true tests of experience in psychiatry: he now watches bad movies by choice. We get too much pain in our job, so we either watch and read gentle things such as Jane Austen or go over the top with whatever Marvel has released this month that Daddy Warpig likes.

But… the seeking of virtue is not virtue signaling. Our festivals, be they religious or secular send a message. We are part of the tribe, we are good people, we are respected by our neighbours.

They generally do little. It is not wearing a white ribbon that reduces violence, or switching things off for earth hour that decreases power consumption, but changing one’s life so that better things happen. Such as less violence to men, police included, and less particulate matter (smog) because we are using solar and nuclear power.

Signaling that we are righteous because we avoid pleasure is a subset of this: one that my tradition, the reformed, have a tendency to fall into as certainly as there is too much booze in a secular Christmas.

It is far better to do good. And not signal virtue.