"In Order to See Jesus" by Rev. Paul Berghout (@FatherPB)

"In Order to See Jesus" by Rev. Paul Berghout (@FatherPB)

Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time C

Piety

Before the LORD, the whole universe is as a grain from a balance or a drop of morning dew come down upon the earth.  Wisdom 11:22

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.  2 Thessalonians 1:11

So [Zacchaeus] 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. Luke 19:4-6

Study

Zacchaeus was a government contractor with the Roman Government in charge of all transported goods into Jericho, which gave him almost a license to extort money for big commissions. Luke 19:2 says he was a "chief toll collector" and that he was "wealthy," at his job at the toll booth. Was he missing purpose and direction in his life?

To illustrate, let’s consider a classic children's book. The Phantom Tollbooth (1961), tells the story of a young boy named Milo.  One dull, rainy afternoon, Milo receives the anonymous gift of a cardboard fold-and-cut tollbooth. Bored, Milo builds the tollbooth and "drives through" it with his toy car.

Magically, Milo disappears from his room and finds himself traveling along a strange road in a new land. Despite this miraculous relocation, as the way continues on and on in a straight line and Milo begins to grow bored again. He spaces out and begins to be utterly oblivious to his surroundings. He doesn't even notice as his car starts to go slower and slower and then finally coasts to a complete stop.

Rousing lightly from his stupor, Milo finally notices there are strange little creatures draped over the hood of his car, snoozing on his head and shoulders, and even snoring on his dashboard. When the boy demands to know what is going on, the sleepy creatures inform him that they are "Lethargians" and tell Milo that he and his vehicle are now firmly stuck in a place known as "The Doldrums."

The Doldrums is a place where there is no wind to fill up the sails, no strong currents to guide a vessel along.

Getting out of the "doldrums" takes a purposeful expenditure of energy, a muscle-powered desire to move forward.

Alcoholics Anonymous would say that, spiritually, people stuck in the first three steps of the 12-Steps, you won’t make much progress. For example, Waltz is an elegant dance, perfect for weddings. The primary step pattern uses three counts for timing 1,2,3,1,2,3.

If you’re stuck repeating steps 1, 2, and 3: You are doing “The program waltz.” The real spiritual recovery happens in the later steps, like Step 9, which is: “Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.”

That is what Zacchaeus did! He told the Lord:

“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."

Notice Zacchaeus let the Lord speak for him. It was Jesus who responded to the crowds for Zacchaeus. Jesus himself vindicates Zacchaeus' good name. "Salvation has come to this house because this man too is a descendant of Abraham," Jesus told everybody there.

Zacchaeus probably thought: “It isn’t necessary for [others] to like me to save my life, and I don’t need to like them for me to be saving their lives.”  However, Zacchaeus needs them to make his financial restitution. And the poor needed him because Zacchaeus said, “Behold, half my possessions, Lord, I shall give to the poor.”

Zacchaeus also stood his ground working in an occupation that critics said was devoid of any statutory basis.  Zacchaeus never quit his job as a tax collector; he did not have to. (19:8) 

Elsewhere, Luke tells us that “Tax collectors also came to be baptized and said to [John the Baptist], “Teacher, what shall we do?” (3:13) John said to them, “Collect no more than you are authorized to do.”

Action

As Catholic Christians, we still need to be continually converted. We will always require a radical reorientation of our lives to the purposes of God, by moving forward in our faith by a plan and purpose.

Examination of first-century burial remains in Galilee indicate that the average adult Jewish man was five feet five inches. Zacchaeus was probably just under five feet tall.  But he was the tallest one up there in that Sycamore Tree.

If it had not been for that other Tree at Calvary – Where would we be?

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