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“Zacchaeus”
by William Hole, c. 1880’s |
Readings for the Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time [2]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [3]
Readings and Commentary: [4]
Wisdom 11:22-12:2
Before the Lord the whole universe is as a grain from a balance
or a drop of morning dew come down upon the earth.
But you have mercy on all, because you can do all things;
and you overlook people's sins that they may repent.
For you love all things that are
and loathe nothing that you have made;
for what you hated, you would not have fashioned.
And how could a thing remain, unless you willed it;
or be preserved, had it not been called forth by you?
But you spare all things, because they are yours,
O Lord and lover of souls,
for your imperishable spirit is in all things!
Therefore you rebuke offenders little by little,
warn them and remind them of the sins they are committing,
that they may abandon their wickedness and believe in you, O Lord!
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Commentary on Wis 11:22-12:2
Wisdom (from the second diptych) tells us that God created all that is and has being, and because his creation is loved by him, all things and people are loved (see also Hosea 6:4-6; John 3:1-4:11). Origen used this passage to draw lessons about God's all-embracing love: "Because we are his children, the Lord encourages us to develop the same attitude, and teaches us to do good works for all mankind. For that is why He is called the 'savior of all people, especially of those who believe in him' (1 Timothy 4:10), and his Christ the 'expiation of ours sins, and the sins of the whole world' (1 John 2:2)" (Contra Celsum, 4, 28).”[5]
Implicit in that relationship, however, is the need for repentance by those who have sinned. In that repentance is salvation, for God corrects: “rebuke offenders little by little, warn them and remind them of the sins they are committing, that they may abandon their wickedness and believe in you, O Lord!”
CCC: Wis 11:23 269; Wis 11:24-26 301; Wis 11:24 373
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Psalm 145:1-2, 8-9, 10-11, 13, 14
R. (cf. 1) I will praise your name for ever, my king and my God.
I will extol you, O my God and King,
and I will bless your name forever and ever.
Every day will I bless you,
and I will praise your name forever and ever.
R. I will praise your name for ever, my king and my God.
The Lord is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and of great kindness.
The Lord is good to all
and compassionate toward all his works.
R. I will praise your name for ever, my king and my God.
Let all your works give you thanks, O Lord,
and let your faithful ones bless you.
Let them discourse of the glory of your kingdom
and speak of your might.
R. I will praise your name for ever, my king and my God.
The Lord is faithful in all his words
and holy in all his works.
The Lord lifts up all who are falling
and raises up all who are bowed down.
R. I will praise your name for ever, my king and my God.
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Commentary on Ps 145:1-2, 8-9, 10-11, 13, 14
This hymn of thanksgiving praises God for his mercy, and reflects the same relationship as that described in Wisdom 11:22-12:2 . God loves his creation and tries to conform all to his image. He punishes those who sin against him and gives support to the downtrodden.
CCC: Ps 145:9 295, 342
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2 Thessalonians 1:11-2:2
Brothers and sisters:
We always pray for you,
that our God may make you worthy of his calling
and powerfully bring to fulfillment every good purpose
and every effort of faith,
that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you,
and you in him,
in accord with the grace of our God and Lord Jesus Christ.
We ask you, brothers and sisters,
with regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ
and our assembling with him,
not to be shaken out of your minds suddenly, or to be alarmed
either by a "spirit," or by an oral statement,
or by a letter allegedly from us
to the effect that the day of the Lord is at hand.
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Commentary on 2 Thes 1:11-2:2
St. Paul concludes his introduction to his second letter by telling the Thessalonians that his prayer is that all may be worthy of the faith to which they were called. He tells them that their actions would bring glory to God, and Jesus, God's Only Begotten Son. He begins the second chapter warning them not to be taken in by a false letter, purportedly from him (St. Paul), which said the Lord had already returned and the end times were upon them.
Those who try to mislead the people of God by teachings contrary to Christian faith often use methods of the same sort. By twisting the meaning of Sacred Scripture (cf. Matthew 4:6) they not infrequently promote wrong teaching as if it were a revelation from the Holy Spirit. The Second Vatican Council has reminded us how to identify subjective interpretation of that kind: "The task of giving an authentic interpretation, whether in its written form or in the form of Tradition, has been entrusted to the living teaching office of the Church alone. Its authority is exercised in the name of Jesus Christ" (Dei Verbum, 10).[6]
CCC: 2 Thes 1:11 2636
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Luke 19:1-10
At that time, Jesus came to Jericho and intended to pass through the town.
Now a man there named Zacchaeus,
who was a chief tax collector and also a wealthy man,
was seeking to see who Jesus was;
but he could not see him because of the crowd,
for he was short in stature.
So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree in order to see Jesus,
who was about to pass that way.
When he reached the place, Jesus looked up and said,
"Zacchaeus, come down quickly,
for today I must stay at your house."
And he came down quickly and received him with joy.
When they all saw this, they began to grumble, saying,
"He has gone to stay at the house of a sinner."
But Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord,
"Behold, half of my possessions, Lord, I shall give to the poor,
and if I have extorted anything from anyone
I shall repay it four times over."
And Jesus said to him,
"Today salvation has come to this house
because this man too is a descendant of Abraham.
For the Son of Man has come to seek
and to save what was lost."
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Commentary on Lk 19:1-10
In this passage, we hear the story of Zacchaeus, the tax collector, and Jesus. While still on his final journey to Jerusalem, this encounter takes place in Jericho, on the western edge of Jordan Valley, about 6 miles north of the Dead Sea, northeast of Jerusalem. Jesus chooses Zacchaeus’ home for his resting place (an unpopular choice: “they began to grumble, saying, ‘He has gone to stay at the house of a sinner’”).
Jesus uses this occasion to give us a clear idea of why he came. When Zacchaeus tells him what he has done with his material possessions, Jesus proclaims: “the Son of Man has come to seek and to save what was lost.” The Lord's mission is salvation.
The story of Zacchaeus is another of the stories unique to the Gospel of St. Luke. The tax collector exemplifies the attitude the faithful should take. He detaches himself easily from his wealth. Zacchaeus' offers go beyond what Mosaic Law calls for (assuming some of his dealings were dishonest: Exodus 21:37; Numbers 5:5-7) to give half of his possessions to the poor, and to make amends four times over for any accounts he has wrongly settled. This action, the Lord tells those present, has earned him salvation.
CCC: Lk 19:1-10 2712; Lk 19:8 549, 2412; Lk 19:9 1443
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Reflection:
There is an axiom in the first reading from the book of Wisdom that must not be forgotten and bears on all the things that the Church teaches. In short, the key words are:
“For you love all things that are and loathe nothing that you have made; for what you hated, you would not have fashioned.”
This is especially important as we deal with issues reported in the media and supported by many in popular or secular culture. As members of the Catholic Church we are considered by many to be non-inclusive and, in some quarters, even bigoted because we refuse to change our stance on the Church’s long-held moral principles. Our first response to those who challenge our views must be to point first at this principle from the book of Wisdom. First, it must be understood that we are called to love all that God has created as he loves it. We are called to love people who differ from us, even our enemies, for they too are God’s creation. When people call us names because we do not support and cannot accept what we consider to be immoral behavior, we must tell them it is the actions of some we detest, not those who have sinned.
We next consider Zacchaeus the tax collector (publican [not Republican-humorous political comment suppressed]). Zacchaeus was trying to see Jesus, and we find irony here because Jesus, as it turns out, was also seeking him. Zacchaeus, once his encounter with the Lord had taken its effect, understood what God wanted from him. He understood what Scripture said and required, and he exceeded the demands of the Law in his restitution.
We contrast this story with what was going on with St. Paul as he wrote to the Thessalonians in the second reading. The apostle addresses a very real concern. A letter was apparently being sent around that St. Paul is supposed to have written. The letter says the end of life on earth is at hand (sound familiar?). We can imagine what kind of disruption this causes with the Christian community. We’ve seen what happens when modern-day self-proclaimed prophets do likewise. Most are viewed as fanatics or kooks, but some (David Koresh of Branch Davidian infamy, Jim Jones with Jonestown) can cause incredible harm.
What Paul speaks out about, and what Jesus evokes from Zacchaeus, is what could be called in a cliché kind of way, “God’s Truth.” The problem Paul faces is that others are claiming this same authority. They claim to speak with either their own version of truth or have commandeered the apostle’s authority, claiming he has said things about Jesus and his mission that he had not said.
We find the warning given to the Thessalonians germane: “not to be shaken out of your minds suddenly, or to be alarmed either by a ‘spirit,’ or by an oral statement.” There are many people who are trying to justify their actions using Sacred Scripture, twisting the meaning of it by either taking it out of context or by attempting pseudo-scholarly interpretations that change the meaning. Here’s just one example:
A friend of mine recently became quite upset because his denomination, the Presbyterian Church, was considering ordaining openly homosexual individuals as ministers and pastors. The arguments put forward for accepting this behavior by his minister, a Ph.D. in theology, cited Scripture (Genesis19:4-11; Judges19:1-30; Leviticus 18:1-30; Leviticus 20:1-27; 1 Corinthians 6:9-17; 1 Timothy 1:3-13; Jude 1-25; Romans 1:26-27), and said they really didn’t mean that homosexual behavior was necessarily immoral. The rationale was that there was no reason to exclude an openly homosexual person simply because the marriage covenant did not extend to same-sex partners. (From a civil contractual standpoint, this has now been changed by Obergefell v. Hodges and the Supreme Court.) He completely ignored the biblical teaching that identified sodomy (and by implication its female counterpart) as “unnatural [disordered] acts.”
There are numerous other examples of attempts to weaken the concept of “Christian morality” in the name of “inclusivity.” (The same friend tells me that a Protestant church in his rural hometown recently removed the cross from its steeple because they wanted to send the message that they were more inclusive.)
While some of the more liberal individuals within the Church might find these arguments compelling, the Church’s teaching authority on this subject and many others is firmly rooted in biblical and traditional moral theology. This has not been changed, as popular media are contending, by our current Pope, Francis. While he has placed our moral battles in perspective, prioritizing the need to proclaim the Gospel, he has not changed the consistent teaching on these moral truths. Our constant battle as Church is to make sure those teachings remain clear and that those who claim to be telling us what the Church believes or teaches are doing so with appropriate authority, not something usurped to promote their own agenda or interpretation of morality.
Zacchaeus found the truth in Christ. Jesus in turn passed the keys of truth to St. Peter, and he to his successors. Today we cling to that authoritative teaching body as a source and wellspring of truth as we strive to do God’s will.
Pax
[1] Catechism links are taken from the
Homiletic Directory, published by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, 29 June 2014.
[2] The picture used today is “Zacchaeus” by William Hole, c. 1880’s.
[3] S.S. Commemoratio[4] The readings are taken from the New American Bible, with the exception of the psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for English in Liturgy (ICEL). This republication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.
[5] The
Navarre Bible: “Letters of St. Paul,” Scepter Publishers, Princeton, NJ, © 2003, pp.534-35.
[6] Ibid 1 Thessalonians 2ff.
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