XXXI Sunday of OT:[C]: Wis 11:22--12:2; 2 Thes 1:11--2:2. Lk 19:1- 10

XXXI Sunday of OT:[C]: Wis 11:22--12:2; 2 Thes 1:11--2:2. Lk 19:1- 10

Jesus didn’t intend to stay there. He was passing through Jericho. But something happened that made Him change His plans. Compassion Mercy and Love happened. The little man that everyone hated, Zacchaeus, the head tax collector, had climbed a tree along the road that Jesus was walking down. He was merely curious. He wanted to see this Jesus. But then Jesus stopped under the tree and said, “Zacchaeus, come down quickly because today I must stay at your house.”  The man with the crowds around Him hanging on His every word, saw the man that everyone avoided, everyone hated, changed His plan to pass through Jericho, and said, “I must stay at your house.”  Shocking.  So also was Zacchaeus’ reaction. He promised to give half his possessions to the poor and payback four times over all he had extorted. Jesus cared about Him. Zacchaeus would not let the moment pass. And salvation came to little Zacchaeus’ house. 

Anecdote: Boris Becker was the world’s number one tennis star. At the height of his tennis career, he had won Wimbledon twice, once as the youngest player. He was rich and could afford all the material comfort and luxury he wanted. Yet he was an unhappy man. In spite of all his achievements, his life was so empty and meaningless that he contemplated suicide. “I had no inner peace,” he said. Becker is not alone in this feeling of emptiness. Many successful people who have ignored the inner life have felt that way. According to J. Oswald Sanders in his book Facing Loneliness, “The millionaire is usually a lonely man and the comedian is often more unhappy than his audience.” Jack Higgens, author of such successful novels as The Eagle Has Landed, was asked what he would like to have known as a boy. His answer: “That when you get to the top, there’s nothing there.”

We are all worried about acquiring possessions, richness, money, affections and high positions in the society. Accumulations of these worldly things cannot satisfy our inner self.  We need a curiosity to see Jesus and then experience the presence of God.  Even being in the presence, we are not able to experience the Divine for we are so much grabbed with the worldly things.  God can heal you. Just show an interest to see Him.

I think we all have had times that our sins have separated us from the people following the Lord, but our determination to be in His Presence has led us to a place we can view Him. So we go to Church in our sinfulness, just to get away from ourselves for a few moments. And then something happens. We decide that we want to be with the Lord forever. And we seek forgiveness, and are rewarded with peace. Or perhaps we come to Church only to keep someone else happy, a spouse, or parents, or children. We don’t intend to take our presence in Church all that seriously, but then we feel the call of Jesus to let Him stay with us, in our house, and everything changes.

Joke: 1)A pastor was asked by one of the presidential candidates,

"Name something my government can do to help your church if I am elected president." The pastor replied, "Quit making one-dollar bills." 

Life messages: 1) We need to accept the Divine invitation for repentance.  We are all sinners to a greater or lesser degree.  Jesus is inviting each one of us to total conversion today.  Let us remember that Jesus loves us in spite of our ugly thoughts, broken promises, sullied ideals, lack of prayer and Faith, resentments and lusts.  Hence, let us admit our sinfulness and accept God’s call to repentance, conversion and renewal of life.

2) we must avoid, and ignore distractions and detractors to our success. These come in the form of complains from those around us as the crowd did to Zacchaeus: “They all complained when they saw what was happening. ‘He has gone to stay at a sinner’s house…”Sympathizers and gossips must play their roles in our lives but we must not cave in because of their negative comments, complaints, and castigations. Instead, we must stand our ground as Zacchaeus did, remain poised and unperturbed in our quest to achieve the life changing divine encounter we are looking for.

3) Sometimes we are with Zacchaeus in the tree, and sometimes we are in the crowd following Jesus. But always Jesus is there for us, calling us away from sin, and calling us to join him in rejoicing over each person who has come into His Family. We pray today for the courage to accept His Presence into our lives, and in the lives of others.

Thirty First Sunday in Ordinary Time

Message: The Lord is full of mercy and compassion, slow to anger and of great kindness.  He has come to search out and save what was lost.  Let us be more concerned with doing the Lord’s work than with idle speculation about when he will come again.

Saints and Events in this Week:  4-Fourth-Monday-Saint Charles Borromeo, bishop; 9-Ninth-Saturday-The Dedication of the Lateran Basilica