Readings & Reflections: Tuesday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time & St. Agnes of Assisi, November 19,2019

The desire on the part of Zacchaeus come about as the fruit of one thing only; the presence of Jesus Christ in his life. When Jesus appears, Zacchaeus’ life changes and he begins to look at reality in a whole new way. He declares “that above all he would be loyal to the holy laws given by God.”

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Opening Prayer

“Lord, come and stay with me. Fill my home with your presence and fill my heart with your praise. Help me to show kindness and mercy to all, even those who cause me harm.” Amen.

Reading 1
2 Mc 6:18-31

Eleazar, one of the foremost scribes,
a man of advanced age and noble appearance,
was being forced to open his mouth to eat pork.
But preferring a glorious death to a life of defilement,
he spat out the meat,
and went forward of his own accord to the instrument of torture,
as people ought to do who have the courage to reject the food
which it is unlawful to taste even for love of life.
Those in charge of that unlawful ritual meal took the man aside privately,
because of their long acquaintance with him,
and urged him to bring meat of his own providing,
such as he could legitimately eat,
and to pretend to be eating some of the meat of the sacrifice
prescribed by the king;
in this way he would escape the death penalty,
and be treated kindly because of their old friendship with him.
But Eleazar made up his mind in a noble manner,
worthy of his years, the dignity of his advanced age,
the merited distinction of his gray hair,
and of the admirable life he had lived from childhood;
and so he declared that above all
he would be loyal to the holy laws given by God.

He told them to send him at once
to the abode of the dead, explaining:
“At our age it would be unbecoming to make such a pretense;
many young people would think the ninety-year-old Eleazar
had gone over to an alien religion.
Should I thus pretend for the sake of a brief moment of life,
they would be led astray by me,
while I would bring shame and dishonor on my old age.
Even if, for the time being, I avoid the punishment of men,
I shall never, whether alive or dead,
escape the hands of the Almighty.
Therefore, by manfully giving up my life now,
I will prove myself worthy of my old age,
and I will leave to the young a noble example
of how to die willingly and generously
for the revered and holy laws.”

Eleazar spoke thus,
and went immediately to the instrument of torture.
Those who shortly before had been kindly disposed,
now became hostile toward him because what he had said
seemed to them utter madness.
When he was about to die under the blows,

he groaned and said:
“The Lord in his holy knowledge knows full well that,
although I could have escaped death,
I am not only enduring terrible pain in my body from this scourging,
but also suffering it with joy in my soul
because of my devotion to him.”
This is how he died,
leaving in his death a model of courage
and an unforgettable example of virtue
not only for the young but for the whole nation.

The word of the Lord.

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 3:2-3, 4-5, 6-7

R. (6b) The Lord upholds me.
O LORD, how many are my adversaries!
Many rise up against me!
Many are saying of me,
“There is no salvation for him in God.”
R. The Lord upholds me.
But you, O LORD, are my shield;
my glory, you lift up my head!
When I call out to the LORD,
he answers me from his holy mountain.
R. The Lord upholds me.
When I lie down in sleep,
I wake again, for the LORD sustains me.
I fear not the myriads of people
arrayed against me on every side.
R. The Lord upholds me.

Gospel
Lk 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 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.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

Reflection 1 – The call of Zacchaeus

Today, Jesus sets His focus on Zacchaeus, a tax collector who was tagged by his fellowmen as a dreadful sinner.  He was considered a traitor to the Jewish nation as he acted as a mercenary for the Roman government.

Zacchaeus collected taxes from his fellow countrymen and subsequently paid them to the Roman government. In the process, they believed that he enriched himself in his position and exchanged them for the wealth that his position afforded him. They looked down on him because of his livelihood and his low stature. Zacchaeus was therefore not special and not exactly a model for all of us to follow.

However, there was one thing he did which I believe is worth looking into. Maybe, after having heard about Jesus, His teachings and the miracles He has done among the multitudes who sought Him, Zacchaeus likewise felt the urge to do just as what the rest were doing. He realized he had to seek Jesus, see Him and maybe catch His attention. Considering the way he was treated and discriminated by his fellow Jews it could have been a task just to get past them, much more be noticed by Jesus. But Zacchaeus in his sincere desire to know more about Jesus and with some hope in his heart that He will forgiven for his misdeeds, went out of his way so that Jesus will see him.  He made sure he was very creative in order to attain his objective as He climbed a sycamore tree which was along Jesus’ route, in order to see him. He did what he believed was necessary not only to see Jesus but be noticed by Him.

In our own spiritual journey, how many times have we been quite creative so that we will be where our Lord is, so that we will be along the path He wants us to take, so that we may be truly in communion with Him?   Have we done what is necessary so that we are able to welcome Jesus in our own homes… in our own hearts? Or have we avoided Him and always insisted that it is not yet our time to be with the Lord?

If we make sure that Jesus is welcome in our hearts, I know that there will be nothing that will stop Him from entering our lives. No amount of criticism or discouragement will ever stop Jesus from coming to us. Jesus goes out of His way for sincere and humble people who go out of their way to meet with Him, be with Him and who desire to unite their lives with Him.

Doing the right thing is one of the best things that can happen in our midst. Failing to do the right thing, makes us hide in the darkness of our sins, makes us hide in the sycamore tree. Like Zacchaeus, God sees us and He knows if we have a deep desire to be noticed by Him… to be with Him. As a matter of fact, He has given us a standing invitation to be with Him. Like Zacchaeus , now is our time to climb down from that tree and stand our ground. Here I am, Lord.

Jesus welcomes every man to His fold especially people who acknowledge their sinfulness before Him and those who decide to turn around and do what is good and acceptable to Him and the Father.

Rejoice for we have a faithful God Who came for sinners and not for the self righteous,  a God Who does not limit Himself to the good and godly but to those who are lost and away from His fold!

Direction

Draw closer to the Lord by the serious study of His Word.

Prayer

Heavenly Father amidst my pride and my self righteousness, help me find ways to draw closer to You. In Jesus, I pray. Amen.

Reflection 2 – Zacchaeus received Jesus joyfully

What would you do if Jesus knocked on your door and said, “I must stay at your home today”? Would you be excited or embarrassed? Jesus often “dropped-in” at unexpected times and he often visited the “uninvited” – the poor, the lame, and even public sinners like Zacchaeus, the tax collector! Tax collectors were despised and treated as outcasts, no doubt because they over-charged people and accumulated great wealth at the expense of others.

Zacchaeus was a chief tax collector and was much hated by all the people. Why would Jesus single him out for the honor of staying at his home? Zacchaeus needed God’s merciful love and forgiveness. In his encounter with Jesus he found more than he imagined possible. He shows the depth of his repentance by deciding to give half of his goods to the poor and to use the other half for making restitution for fraud. Zacchaeus’ testimony included more than words. His change of heart resulted in a change of life, a change that the whole community could experience as genuine.

Faith welcomes Christ in our heart and home
Saint Augustine of Hippo (354-430 AD) urges us to climb the sycamore tree like Zacchaeus that we might see Jesus and embrace his cross for our lives:

Zacchaeus climbed away from the crowd and saw Jesus without the crowd getting in his way. The crowd laughs at the lowly, to people walking the way of humility, who leave the wrongs they suffer in God’s hands and do not insist on getting back at their enemies. The crowd laughs at the lowly and says, ‘You helpless, miserable clod, you cannot even stick up for yourself and get back what is your own.’ The crowd gets in the way and prevents Jesus from being seen. The crowd boasts and crows when it is able to get back what it owns. It blocks the sight of the one who said as he hung on the cross, ‘Father, forgive them, because they do not know what they are doing… He ignored the crowd that was getting in his way. He instead climbed a sycamore tree, a tree of ‘silly fruit.’ As the apostle says, ‘We preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block indeed to the Jews, [now notice the sycamore] but folly to the Gentiles.’ Finally, the wise people of this world laugh at us about the cross of Christ and say, ‘“What sort of minds do you people have, who worship a crucified God?’ What sort of minds do we have? They are certainly not your kind of mind. ‘The wisdom of this world is folly with God.’ No, we do not have your kind of mind. You call our minds foolish. Say what you like, but for our part, let us climb the sycamore tree and see Jesus. The reason you cannot see Jesus is that you are ashamed to climb the sycamore tree.

Let Zacchaeus grasp the sycamore tree, and let the humble person climb the cross. That is little enough, merely to climb it. We must not be ashamed of the cross of Christ, but we must fix it on our foreheads, where the seat of shame is. Above where all our blushes show is the place we must firmly fix that for which we should never blush. As for you, I rather think you make fun of the sycamore, and yet that is what has enabled me to see Jesus. You make fun of the sycamore, because you are just a person, but ‘the foolishness of God is wiser than men.'[Sermon 174.3.]

The Lord Jesus is always ready to make his home with each one of us. Do you make room for him in your heart and in every area of your life?

“Lord Jesus, come and stay with me. Fill my life with your peace, my home with your presence, and my heart with your praise. Help me to show kindness, mercy, and goodness to all, even to those who cause me ill-will or harm.” – Read the source: http://dailyscripture.servantsoftheword.org/readings/2018/nov20.htm

Reflection 3 – Campaign Of Reconciliation

The Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost. —Luke 19:10

In Craig Nelson’s book The First Heroes, we read about the Doolittle Raiders who launched the first major counterattack on the Pacific front during World War II. Not all of the “raiders” returned from their bombing mission. Jacob DeShazer was among those who were captured and held in POW camps under difficult and painful circumstances.

DeShazer later returned to Japan after the war, but not to seek revenge. He had received Jesus as his Savior and had come back to Japanese soil carrying the message of Christ. A former warrior who was once on a campaign of war was now on a campaign of reconciliation.

DeShazer’s mission to Japan mirrors the heart of the Savior, who Himself came on a mission of love and reconciliation. Luke reminds us that when Christ came into the world, it was not merely to be a moral example or a compelling teacher. He came “to seek and to save” the lost (19:10). His love for us found its expression in the cross, and His rescue of us found its realization when He emerged triumphantly from the tomb in resurrected life.

In Christ we find forgiveness, and that forgiveness changes our life and our eternity—all because Jesus came on a campaign of reconciliation.  — Bill Crowder

While Jesus hung on Calvary’s cross,
The devil and his demons smiled;
Disciples grieved and mourned the loss,
But God and man were reconciled.  —Sper

We can go to others because Jesus came to us (Source: Our Daily Bread, RBC Ministries).

Reflection 4 – Rabbit-Hole Christians

Jesus . . . said to him, “Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house.” —Luke 19:5

Rabbits are timid creatures that pop out of their holes every morning, try to avoid everything (except other rabbits), eat their food, and jump back into their holes in the evening. “Whew! We made it through another day,” they’d say if they could talk.

Rabbit-hole Christians are a lot like that. They eat lunch with other Christians at work and relate almost exclusively with fellow-believers in their church. They avoid socializing with unbelievers and wouldn’t think of accepting an invitation to one of their parties. No wonder unbelievers equate being a Christian with a kind of aloof self-righteousness.

No one could say that about Jesus. He actually invited Himself to the home of Zacchaeus, a notorious tax collector. His congeniality among disreputable people earned Him the title of “a friend of tax collectors and sinners” (Matthew 11:19). He reached out to such people because He knew He couldn’t help them without becoming their friend. Jesus never said anything He shouldn’t have said, nor did He laugh at off-color stories. He won people’s respect by caring for them.

Jesus has equipped us with the Holy Spirit and assured us that He’ll be with us so we can follow His example. Let’s guard against being rabbit-hole Christians.
— Herbert Vander Lugt

Help us, O Lord, to live our lives
So people clearly see
Reflections of Your caring heart,
Your love and purity. —Sper

Jesus leaves us in the world to be a witness to the world (Source: Our Daily Bread, RBC Ministries).

Reflection 5 – I Stand at the Door and Knock

Yesterday, we read the first letter of the Book of Revelation, written to the Church in Ephesus; today we read the fifth and seventh letters. I propose  first looking at all seven letters in order to understand God’s prophetic message written to each one of us.

The letter to the Church in Ephesus praised Christians for their patient endurance, put them on guard against the false teachings of the heretical Nicolaitans, and called them to return to their first love. The Nicolaitans were followers of the heretic Nicolas, one of the seven deacons chosen in the Acts of the Apostles (6:5). The Nicolaitans are mentioned again in the Letter to the Church in Pergamum and are compared to the followers of Balaam and Balak (see Numbers 25). In brief, the heretics promoted a casual attitude towards idolatry and sexual immorality. The Christians of Ephesus must reject these false teaching and to those who overcome and are victorious over sin and evil, Christ will give them fruit from the tree of life.

The second letter to the Church in Smyrna recognizes that the tribulation and poverty the Christians already endure, but also tells them that they will be tested even more. They are not to fear what they are about to suffer, but rather be faithful unto death and, in this way, receive the crown of life. This is the way of Christ: patient endurance, works of love and fidelity during tribulation lead to eternal life.

The third letter to the Church in Pergamum continues the theme of repentance and holding fast to Jesus Christ. Pergamum was a city where worship of the Roman emperor thrived. This pagan religion made it the seat of Satan’s throne (2:13). To those who conquer, Jesus gives the gift of hidden manna. Jesus is warning them not to be like the generation of Israelites who fell into sin just before they entered into the Promised Land. “These Christians are at the threshold of the ‘new heavens and the new earth’, which John is about to see come down from heaven. Christ is urging them to hold fast to their faith in order to ‘conquer’, so that, unlike the Israelites, they may enter the true Promised Land without falling into sin” (M. Barber, Coming Soon, Emmaus Road, 64).

Like the churches in Ephesus and Pergamum, the Church in Thyatira also must reject idolatry and immorality. These sins, which reject God, are compared to adultery, for Jesus is the bridegroom and the Church is his bride. The Jezebel of Revelation calls to mind Jezebel, the wife of Ahab, the king of Israel, who opposed the prophet Elijah, slaughtered the innocent and was infamous for her harlotry and idolatry (2 Kings 9:22) (see Ignatius Catholic Study Bible: New Testament, 496). Christ invites his followers to share in his reign over the world and share in his victory over death (symbolized by the morning star).

Today we read the fifth letter, written to the Church in Sardis. Very few Christians in Sardis have not fallen into sin and so, even though many give the appearance of being alive, they are actually dead. Jesus urges them to repent, for he returns like a thief in the night. If our garments are soiled by sin, we can wash them in the blood of the Lamb and, in this way, our names will be written in the Book of Life.

The letter to the Church in Philadelphia presents Jesus as the one who holds the key of David. Jesus has given this authority to Peter, who holds the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Soon, John will see in his vision the open door in heaven, the new Jerusalem. Those who hold fast to what they have received from Jesus, will be like a pillar in the new Temple of God and dwell in his house forever.

The last of the seven letters was written to the Christians in Laodicea. The city was “located between Hierapolis and Colossae. Colossae was situated at the foot of the mountains and received cold, refreshing drinking water. Hierapolis, on the other hand, was the source of hot, mineral pools, which were used for healing baths. The water in Laodicea was neither hot nor cold. Christ apparently uses this geographical data as an illustration of the spiritual state of the Church in Laodicea” (M. Barber, Coming Soon, 74). The Christians can leave their lukewarm state by opening the door to Jesus and sharing a meal with him. Once again, there is a reference to the Eucharist.

Jesus stands at our door and knocks. He seeks out and saves what was lost. We see this in the Gospel, when Jesus knocks, so to speak, at Zacchaeus’ door. Zacchaeus hurries down from the tree, opens the door and receives Jesus with joy into his house. He repents from his sin and welcomes God’s salvation.

Today, we are presented in this Eucharist with the fruit of the tree of life, the Hidden Manna, the Lamb of God. We will respond with the words of the centurion: “Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the words and my soul shall be healed”. Yes, we are not worthy that Jesus should stay at our house or dwell under our roof, but this is what he desires. He wants us to abide in him so that he can abide in us and grant us a share in his eternal life. He wants to give us the fruit of the tree of life, place the crown of life on our heads, feed us with the hidden manna on our New Exodus, give us a share in his kingly power, write our names in the Book of Life, make us a pillar in the New Temple of God, and have us sit beside him on God’s throne. Read the source:  http://www.zenit.org/en/articles/daily-homily-i-stand-at-the-door-and-knock

Reflection 6 – How enthusiastic are you?