33rd Sunday of Year C 2013

33^rd. Sunday (Year C)

(Malachi 3:19-20; 2 Thessalonians 3:7-12; Luke 21:5-19)

The prophet Malachi heard the Lord declare:

The day is coming, blazing like an oven, when all the proud and all evildoers will be stubble, and the day that is coming will set them on fire, leaving them neither root nor branch.  But for you who fear My name, there will arise the sun of justice with its healing rays.

Though terrible events be taking place all around them, the People of God will not be afraid, neither will they allow themselves to be disturbed in any way, because, ‘fearing the name of the Lord’ in spirit and in truth will lead them to fear naught else.

Malachi’s picture of a people thus set apart from all others agrees with St. Peter's description of the true disciples of Jesus:

You are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, (the Lord’s) own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvellous light. (1 Peter 2:9)

Catholics and Christians -- say the prophet Malachi and the Apostle Peter -- are indeed, as we hear in the canon of the Mass, ‘a chosen generation, a people set apart’.

In what respect are they set apart from others?  Surely, not because they are aloof from, or indifferent to, others, for charity is the essence of the great commandment that rules their way of life, while the Lord they worship and follow Himself gives the supreme teaching and example of fraternal love.  Nor are individual Christians to set themselves apart by flamboyance or exuberance; indeed, St. Paul told us that Christians ought to be quiet in their life-style:

We command and exhort (you) in the Lord Jesus Christ to work in a quiet fashion and eat (your) own bread. 

So we realize that Christians are to be "different" from others, above all, by their strength of character: fearing the name of the Lord, they will fear no other, naught else; always trying, in the power of the Spirit and by their moral discipline, to bear witness to the love of Christ in all circumstances and with, and before, all people.

If we now turn our attention to Jesus Himself we can see Him forming the character of His disciples along those lines:

As some spoke of the temple, how it was adorned with beautiful stones and donations, (Jesus) said, “These things which you see -- the days will come in which not one stone shall be left upon another that shall not be thrown down." 

Here He would seem to be weaning them from such false supports as national pride, or a vain-glorious enthusiasm which could be sparked off by external stimulants such as the magnificent Temple recently built by King Herod in Jerusalem; for He then went on to give them yet more serious counsel for storms that would soon engulf and threaten to destroy them personally:

Take heed that you not be deceived. For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am He,' and, 'The time has drawn near.'   Do not go after them!

‘Take heed not to be deceived’ even though many others be misled; ‘do not go after’ the crowd, to join in the inebriation and excitement of communal emotion.  There Jesus is clearly seeking to form in His disciples a characteristic attitude that will distinguish them in the future: never fearing to be left alone with the Lord, always choosing to walk with Him rather than chase after the crowd.   

That was not to be all, however, for Jesus went on to warn of yet greater trials:

When you hear of wars and commotions, do not be terrified; for these things must come to pass first, but the end will not come immediately.

Mature Christians must be able to stand resolute amidst widespread anxiety and contagious panic: having sufficient spiritual courage and moral discipline to wait for and confidently trust in the Lord though everything else -- be it the very heavens themselves -- might seem to be falling apart:

There will be great earthquakes in various places, and famines and pestilences; and there will be fearful sights and great signs from heaven. 

Fear is instilled above all by imminent and urgent threat to self: to one's life, one's reputation, one's family; and only the supernatural Christian fear of the Lord can overcome the effect that such natural and fundamental fears can easily trigger off.  Here we should appreciate, People of God, that Christian fear of the Lord is no ordinary gift from God, but such a sign of His blessing that, according to the prophet Isaiah ( 11:1-3), the Messiah Himself would take special delight in it:

There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots.  The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord.  His delight is in the fear of the Lord. 

Fear of the Lord, therefore, is indeed a supernatural gift from God which we ourselves are called upon to co-operate with and develop as part of our character; but, much more than that, it is a supreme sign of God’s love and favour, meant to be our special delight and ultimate defence against anything this world can throw up against us or the devil devise to ensnare us.

And that is just the final situation which Jesus puts before His disciples now:

They will seize and persecute you, they will hand you over to the synagogues and to prisons, and they will have you led before kings and governors because of My name.

Then, indeed, fear of the Lord and trust in His mercy and power must be seen to be the disciple’s great delight and sure shield.  Jesus insists they then look neither to men, nor rely on themselves; but, rather, turn to Him and: 

Settle it in your hearts not to meditate beforehand on what you will answer; for I will give you a mouth and wisdom which all your adversaries will not be able to contradict or resist. 

People of God, recognize what Jesus is looking for in His disciples, appreciate the sort of character He wishes us to have; and with these things in mind, recall the command Paul gave his Thessalonian converts when he was with them:

When we were with you, we used to give you this order: if anyone is not willing to work, then he is not to eat, either. 

Notice those words, “we used to give you”: this order – it was more than advice -- was not given, mentioned, just once or twice in passing, it was his usual and repeated teaching.   Moreover, we should not forget that Paul was the apostle who suffered most for Christ, one who was also supremely conformed to, one with, Christ in his mind and heart, as the following texts show:

From now on let no one trouble me, for I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus. (Galatians 6:17)

I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. (Galatians 2:20)

In our modern Church many have an idea of holiness that is not only sugar-coated but also largely conformed to worldly standards, set up for worldly acceptance.  True holiness, however, is not worldly, but Christian and personal, being God’s gift, by the Spirit, to the committed disciple of Jesus. Therefore we should appreciate that Paul’s teaching, though it does indeed reflect his own character and his personal appreciation of Christ, nevertheless, since Paul was specifically chosen and endowed by God for his role as teacher of the nations, and was, moreover -- as we have remarked -- supremely one with Christ, we should in no way presume to suspect, let alone criticise, the intentions which inspired his mind and heart to write those words:

If anyone is not willing to work, then he is not to eat, either. 

St. Paul was following the example and purpose of Jesus Himself by preparing and promoting in his converts, as best he could, that moral discipline and spiritual strength essential for disciples who would, inevitably, have to carry the Cross with their Lord for God's glory and mankind's salvation; and such strength is never acquired through indulgence, nor is mere encouragement or comforting exhortation usually sufficient to promote it.

It would seem that, in the original Christian community in Thessalonica, there were some who considered -- as many are inclined to think today -- that perhaps the Apostle was being too hard in this matter; and so, they had continued to indulge those Paul wished to cure.  Paul was disappointed to learn:

That some of you are (still) living in idleness, mere busybodies, not doing any work.

Had his original command been obeyed the matter might not have needed any further attention.  It did not turn out like that, however, because some of the community were spiritually weak and continued to indulge their own emotions and pander to those who were being led astray by idleness and curiosity.  Paul did not openly and directly reprove those mistakenly indulgent people -- after all it was weakness in them, not malice -- and so he just re-iterated what he had originally said but this time addressed it exclusively to those who were the greater sinners, those busybodies who were doing no work:

Such people we instruct and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to work quietly and to eat their own food.

Today we find similar weaknesses, similar desires for quick, sugar-coated, easily seen and popularly appreciated, holiness still preventing the wholesome teaching of the Scriptures and Mother Church from finding practical acceptance: how many parents, for example, today, ‘don’t like’ to correct, let alone discipline, their children; with the result that the children suffer many and more serious difficulties and dangers resulting from their emotional indiscipline and moral weakness.  Likewise, how often are present disciplines and Scripture’s warnings of eternal punishment in the Gospel watered down for public approval rather than proclaimed with apostolic integrity.  The result is that, even among Catholics, discipline is gradually downgraded, while sin -- even depravity at times -- is passively passed-over or regularly excused for ‘medical, psychological’ reasons, all because it doesn’t ‘seem nice’ to speak of, people don’t like to hear of, God punishing sin; punishing it, above all, with eternal punishment: 

         

If anyone sees his brother sinning, if the sin is not deadly, he should pray to God and he will give him life. This is only for those whose sin is not deadly. There is such a thing as deadly sin, about which I do not say that you should pray. All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that is not deadly.

If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed than with two hands to go into Gehenna, into the unquenchable fire.  ….  Where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched. (1 John 5:16–17; Mark 9:43, 48.)

In today’s world, Jesus’ final words in the Gospel reading have special significance for those called to be witnesses to Him.  They are not soft words to coax, for He wants all who are called and aspire to become His disciples in truth, to be strong enough, in Him, to glorify the Father by the Spirit; and to this end He chooses to help us with clear words that give inspiration and offer strength: 

You will even be handed over by parents and brothers, relatives and friends; and some of you will be put to death.   You will be hated by all for My name's sake, but not a hair on your head will be lost.  By your perseverance you will secure your lives.

                                       

32nd Sunday of the Year 2013

 32^nd. Sunday of Year (C)

(2^nd Maccabees 7:1-2, 9-14; 2^nd.Thessalonians 2:16 – 3:5; Luke 20:27-38)

Our readings today are very topical and timely because we hear so much about the family at this time; and with the government trying to help -- so they say -- the family, there is a danger that some people may be led to think that the secular power has also some moral authority over essential aspects of Christian marriage.  

We who are Catholics, however, whilst we are grateful for any real help given to support and strengthen the institution of Christian marriage, do not admit that governmental authority can in any way determine its nature as established by  God, or change the rules whereby the sacramental grace of Christian matrimony leads both to the sanctification and personal fulfilment of the spouses and the human and spiritual good of their children, whilst contributing in a unique measure towards the stability and growth of society as a whole.

The last Vatican Council teaches us that God Himself is the author of marriage when it declares:  The intimate community of life and love which constitutes the married state has been established by the Creator and endowed by Him with its own proper laws.

God is love, absolute and eternal, loving all that He has made; supremely, however, loving mankind created uniquely in His own image and likeness, and therefore created, above all, to love: God Himself supremely, and our neighbour as ourselves.

This love which God blesses is intended to help mankind:

            Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it.

Man and woman were created for each another, and Jesus shows that marriage signifies a fulfilling and unbreakable union of man and woman by recalling that the plan of the Creator had been in the beginning:

            that they (be) no longer two, but one flesh.

However, corruption, death, and disharmony entered into the world through human sin, and now everyone has experience of that evil: stirring within our very own hearts and minds, and active all around us, being perpetrated in secret or openly displayed, for power or for pleasure, but always and above all, for SELF.

And yet, the divinely willed order of creation persists in its essential integrity, even though notably disturbed.  And, to face up to, overcome, and heal those wounds of sin, man and woman need the help of God’s gift of sacramental grace, for without such help, they cannot suitably and fruitfully achieve that union of their lives for which God created them in the beginning.

All you who are thirsty, come to the water!  You who have no money, come, receive grain and eat; Come, without paying and without cost, drink wine and milk!   Come to me heedfully, listen, I will renew with you the everlasting covenant, the benefits assured to David.   (Isaiah 55:1-3)

Jesus had a great respect for the institution of marriage as we see from the fact that, on the threshold of His public ministry He performed His first miracle – at His mother’s request – during a wedding feast; and in the course of that ministry, He taught unequivocally the original significance of the marital union of man and woman as willed by their Creator from the beginning: 

            What God has joined together, let no man put asunder.

No matter what the trendy press may print, no matter what public figures may do, no matter how much off-course human-rights activists may agitate against it, Christian marriage is for man and woman only and exclusively, and it cannot be terminated or broken by any merely civil authority.  From these two principles we should begin to see something of the seriousness of marriage and the dignity both of the marriage bond itself, and of the man and woman who, trusting wholeheartedly in each other, enter together into that covenant before the Father in heaven, in the name of Jesus the Risen Lord, and in the power of the most Holy Spirit of love and truth; and that seriousness and dignity cannot be either impugned or decried by popular clamour since Our Blessed Lord Himself never tried to promote His teaching by accommodating it to the desires or expectations of people around Him:

Great crowds were traveling with Him, and He turned and addressed them, “If any one comes to Me without hating his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple.  Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.” (Luke 14:25–27)

Let us now, therefore, in the light of Jesus’ teaching in the Church, have a short glance at today’s readings.  Let us begin with the Gospel reading.  You can see how the stiff-necked people whose hearts were hard, and who had forced Moses to wrongly allow them to divorce, came to regard matrimony; for the attitude of the Sadducees with their story of the seven brothers who died and the one wife who survived them all, shows neither reverence for what is holy, nor awareness of what is spiritual.  For them marriage was carnal and functional, nothing more.

However, Jesus’ answer to the Sadducees gives us guidance with regard to another and more modern error.  Marriage is not an end in itself, nor is it eternal: it is, indeed, one of the supreme means God has established for the preservation and sanctification of human beings, created -- as we have said -- to love; and those who live their married love-life aright here on earth are thereby helped to become worthy, as Jesus said:

Of a place in the other world as children of the resurrection and sons of God.

However, an overly worldly and sentimental view of married love can – occasionally and most sadly -- lead the partners to expect too much from their marriage; and, consequently, demanding too much of each other, they can become unforgiving in their mutual relations.

Finally today, let us have a short look at the first reading, for here is an example and a teaching which is certainly much needed today.   What a wonderful woman is shown us in that reading: she did indeed live the role marriage had brought her, that of a mother!  She taught her sons, and she disciplined her sons, by the love she had for them; let me just recall for you how she disciplined, by love, her youngest son:

As the youngest brother was still alive, the king appealed to him, not with mere words, but with promises on oath, to make him rich and happy if he would abandon his ancestral customs. When the youth paid no attention to him at all, the king appealed to the mother, urging her to advise her boy to save his life.  In derision of the cruel tyrant, she leaned over close to her son and said in their native language: “Son, have pity on me, who carried you in my womb for nine months, nursed you for three years, brought you up, educated and supported you to your present age. I beg you, child, to look at the heavens and the earth and see all that is in them; then you will know that God did not make them out of existing things; and in the same way the human race came into existence.   Do not be afraid of this executioner, but be worthy of your brothers and accept death, so that in the time of mercy I may receive you again with them.”  She had scarcely finished speaking when the youth said: “What are you waiting for? I will not obey the king’s command. I obey the command of the law given to our forefathers through Moses.  At that, the king became enraged and treated him even worse than the others, since he bitterly resented the boy’s contempt. Thus he too died undefiled, putting all his trust in the Lord. The mother was last to die, after her sons. (2 Maccabees 7:24ss.)

Learning from that sublime example, you who are mothers should recognize that you have, from God, a most special key to your children’s hearts, and that you and your husband have also God-given authority over and for your children.  Use those gifts with confidence and prayer: do not let your children do what they want but guide them, discipline them, with love; and, realizing that your children are gifts from God, bring them up as children of God who have been entrusted to you.  Do not let them, supposedly, guide themselves; do not leave them to turn to and follow the example of their most vocal peers who know nothing of the possible restraints of faith or morals, or of those most decisive companions and leaders who have no awareness of any qualms of conscience.  Parents and children are meant to thank God eternally for each other; however, above all perhaps, mother and child should be eternally grateful for those early years of infancy and childhood when they are so uniquely close and instinctively responsive to each other.   Mothers, don’t disappoint the goodness of God Who  gave you your child; don’t fail the child so sensitive to your influence and subject to -- needy of -- your supporting love; do not lose the glory which can unite you with Mary, the most beautiful mother of us all.

What have we got here today?  A priest, one who is celibate, talking about marriage?  Yes, indeed!!  Note, however, that I do not speak about, or on the basis of, sexual experience; but only about the Catholic proclamation of God’s creative and redeeming truth, the ultimate right understanding of, and supremely solid basis for, all human living and loving.  Of this, may I add, I have been made humanly appreciative, thanks to my personal indebtedness to a wonderful mother.

31st Sunday Year C 2013

31^st. Sunday Year (C)

(Wisdom 11:22 – 12:2; 2 Thessalonians 1:11 – 2:2; Luke 19:1-10)

St. Luke has been picking out for us incidents from Jesus' journey towards Jerusalem where He was to be crucified.  He has told us of the ten lepers cleansed by Jesus; of the Pharisee and the Publican, praying side by side (!) in the Temple; of the Rich Young Man who wanted to be perfect; and now he tells us of Zacchaeus endeavouring to catch a glimpse of Jesus passing through Jericho.

Notice that there is something unexpected, from the Jewish point of view, in all of these accounts: first of all, of the ten lepers healed only one -- a Samaritan -- returned to Jesus giving thanks to God; the prayer of the despised publican in the Temple was more acceptable to God than that of the publicly esteemed and respected Pharisee.   St. Luke obviously wants to insist that no one is so far fallen that Jesus cannot raise them: why, he even ends his gospel on the same note, being the only evangelist to tell us of the good thief who, having asked Jesus on the Cross to remember him in His Kingdom, received that unique promise:

Today you will be with Me in Paradise.

No one is too far gone, no one is excluded; and so no one should give up or despair.  On the other hand, absolutely no one can presume anything.  The nine Jewish lepers, the Pharisee praying in the Temple, the Rich Young Ruler whom Jesus loved, all of these compared badly with others who might have been considered non-starters: a hated Samaritan who was truly grateful and responsive to God in Jesus; a despised publican who could pray more humbly than a publicly respected Pharisee; and now Zacchaeus, gladly doing what the rich young man -- who thought he had been seeking eternal life from his youth -- sorrowfully could not do, namely, give up his money.   Absolutely no one can ever be sure of salvation; none, not even one apparently last or least, is out of Jesus’ saving reach; all of us have to seek for ever greater proximity to Jesus throughout the whole of our life.    With that in mind let us now take a closer look at our Gospel reading.

Jesus was not intending to stop, let alone stay, in Jericho; as He walked purposefully along He was being followed by a crowd of people hoping to see a miracle or something notable, not particularly wanting to hear Jesus' teaching.  

Zaccheus, (however) who was small in stature, had climbed up into a sycamore tree to see (Jesus) (as He passed) that way.

This man, Zaccheus, was a prominent citizen: no ordinary tax collector, but rather a Tax Commissioner with much responsibility and authority in what was an important centre for the Romans, since Jericho was a frontier city through which passed vital roads much used by camel trains carrying exotic wares over desert expanses from Syria and further East on their way westwards towards Rome, and which also facilitated a large local trade in costly balsams.  This very considerable civic official, however, exposed himself to both ridicule and contempt by his vain struggles to glimpse Jesus through the crowd, and subsequently, running ahead of the crowd in order to clamber up a tree so as to be able to see Him clearly.

Picture the hustling, struggling, figure of Zacchaeus: he wasn't hanging around in the crowd hoping vaguely for something to happen; he was deeply interested in the Person of Jesus and was making every effort to catch a glimpse of Him. This aspect of effort and haste is reflected by Jesus' words to Zachaeus:

‘Zaccheus, make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house.’   So he made haste and came down and received Him joyfully. 

Can't you see the picture of a true disciple, the model for a true Christian, being traced before our eyes?   Zacchaeus, striving, hurrying to see Jesus; and then hastening again to receive Him ever so gladly into his house; and finally, in total spontaneity, giving up all that might hinder his companionship with Jesus:

Look, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor, and if I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold.

Surely St. Paul words in our second reading today can be applied to Zachaeus:

May our God count you worthy of this calling, that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in Him. 

However, to arrive at the full meaning of this Gospel passage for us today we must just look at the words Jesus chose when first addressing Zacchaeus:

Zaccheus, make haste, come down, for today I must stay at your house. 

I want to draw your attention to those two words I must.  Jesus "must" stay at Zacchaeus' house.  What does that mean?  Jesus does not say "I will" nor does He say "I would like"; instead He puts it in such a way as to imply that it was not simply His choice but something pre-ordained for Him by His Father.

Listen to the other two occasions in St. Luke's Gospel, and one in that of St. John (10:16), where Jesus uses the phrase, "I must":

At daybreak, Jesus left and went to a deserted place. The crowds went looking for him, and when they came to him, they tried to prevent him from leaving them.  But he said to them, “To the other towns also I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God, because for this purpose I have been sent.”  And he was preaching in the synagogues of Judea. 

At that time some Pharisees came to him and said, “Go away, leave this area because Herod wants to kill you.”  He replied, “Go and tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and I perform healings today and tomorrow, and on the third day I accomplish my purpose.  Yet I must continue on my way today, tomorrow, and the following day, for it is impossible that a prophet should die outside of Jerusalem.’ (Luke 4:42-5:1)   (Luke 13:31-33)

I have other sheep who do not belong to this fold.  These also I must lead.

 

It was pre-ordained that Jesus should preach first of all in the synagogues of Judea, because He had been sent to the lost sheep of Israel; after that had been done it was pre-ordained that He should bring other sheep in, not of the fold of Israel, because that was required for the fullness of redemption that He had been sent to achieve.  Finally it was pre-ordained that His work had to be completed in Jerusalem where He would be nailed on the Cross bearing an inscription -- written in Hebrew, Latin, and Greek – that would proclaim Him, Jesus of Nazareth, the Messiah to and for the whole world.

Now, how could Jesus' staying at the house of Zacchaeus be of such importance that it too could be said to be pre-ordained?

To find our answer let us now look at the word "house" used by Jesus when speaking to Zacchaeus.  Obviously it was another way of saying: "Zacchaeus, I must stay with you", because Jesus when leaving said:

            Today salvation has come to this house

Salvation had indeed come to Zacchaeus, not to the building which was his house.  In that way "house" can -- in certain circumstances -- mean the person, his mind, heart and soul.  We find this confirmed in a parable told by Jesus:

When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he says, "I will return to my house from which I came.'  (Luke. 11:24)

In the OT God dwelt among His Chosen People and His presence was shown by the pillar of cloud which hovered first of all over the tent of meeting in the desert and then filled Solomon's Temple in Jerusalem.   In the New Testament times, however, God not only dwells, makes His home, among His People, He also dwells within His People, in their minds and hearts, in their souls, by His Spirit.  Now Moses had said to the Lord, when Israel was experiencing difficulties in the desert:

If Your presence does not go with us, do not lead us up from here.  Is it not by Your going with us, that we … may be distinguished from all the other people who are upon the face of the earth?      (Exodus 33:15-16)

God's presence with them was—Moses said -- the distinguishing feature of Israel: not the literal keeping of the Law, not circumcision, not Sabbath observance; for, necessary though these observances were, ultimately it was God's presence among them which distinguished Israel from the pagan nations around them.

Now, it is the same today in Mother Church, because it is God's presence -- by His Spirit -- which alone preserves, protects, guides and sanctifies Mother Church today; and that presence of God's Gift-through-Jesus-of-His-Spirit, must not only dwell among His People in the tabernacles of Mother Church, but also, and supremely, abide within her children.

This meeting of Jesus with Zacchaeus is so essential because Zacchaeus is being shown as the figure of the disciple of Jesus, and the "house of Zacchaeus" means much more than a building, it means his heart, his soul, his mind, as we find again in these words of Jesus: 

When you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. (Matthew 6:6)

There, the mind and heart of a man at prayer, the secret depths of his soul, are pictured as an inner room of his house.

So Jesus must stay at the house of Zacchaeus, because He must enter and abide in the soul, the mind and heart, of His true disciples.  He must do this because it is essential for His work of salvation: salvation is not to be gained by law-keeping alone, even though those laws be religious laws.  Salvation can only be gained by becoming, in Jesus and by the Spirit, a true child of God: worshipping the Father, knowing, loving and trusting Him, with one’s whole mind, heart, soul, and strength.   Zacchaeus was personally chosen to show the power of Jesus and of God's grace, because Zacchaeus had practically everything against his becoming a disciple: he was a lapsed Jew, spiritually lost and absorbed in a world where he was powerful, influential, and very rich.  Everyone would have said that he was completely chained by worldly desires and expectations.  Jesus changed that by His call:

Zaccheus, make haste, come down, for today I must stay at your house.  

But, People of God, notice why Zacchaeus is being portrayed as a model disciple.  First of all, because Jesus' supreme power is to be seen: forming a spiritual failure, one addicted to worldly success, into a true disciple.  Secondly, because Zacchaeus, for his part, co-operated with the grace and calling of Jesus.  He first of all struggled in the crowd to see Jesus, and then left the crowd behind and made himself look ridiculous by running ahead in his fine official clothes and climbing a tree in order to glimpse Jesus passing by.  He then, to the disgust of the Jews and no doubt the amazement of his influential friends, gladly welcomed Jesus into his house and whole-heartedly gave his riches away in order to respond to Jesus.

People of God, can you see yourself in Zacchaeus searching for Jesus, striving to see Him, responding wholeheartedly to Him?  I hope that you truly can, because the great failing in Mother Church as we know her today, is that many Catholics, even some apparently devout ones, want to live in a way that Moses, even in OT times, knew to be impossible for us, and unacceptable before God.  Salvation is not a reward for politically correct words and publicly approved deeds; merely statistical fulfilment of our obligations with regard to Mass attendance and reception of the Sacraments are equally fruitless; only the presence of the Spirit of Jesus guiding our minds, ruling our hearts, and consecrating our lives can save us.  Jesus’ Spirit of love and of truth must be able to move and guide us constantly – even though well-nigh imperceptibly – along the way of Jesus throughout our lives: appreciating His truth more deeply, loving His Person -- yes, and His Church -- ever more warmly and sincerely; and, with unwearying patience and humility, listening to hear and waiting to obey His call though it come at an hour we might not expect.  Even in Mother Church we cannot be content to remain in the crowd, doing what others seem to be doing and nothing more.  Each of us is personally called to follow the example of Zacchaeus: searching to see Jesus more clearly, to welcome Him into our hearts more joyfully, and to be ever more willing and glad to get rid of all that would hinder us from responding to His plans for us.  It is so easy and comfortable to remain in the crowd and to rely, as did the Jews, on the old formalities: doing what we have always done, thinking as we have always thought, whilst satisfyingly enjoying what is going on in the world around us.  That I say is comfortable, but it is also very harmful.  Therefore, today, Mother Church invites us to hear Jesus calling us as He did Zacchaeus:

Make haste and come down, (come out of the crowd), for today I must stay at your house.