Last weekend, we encountered a tax collector in the temple, humbly seeking God’s mercy. He knew he was a sinful man so he stood in the back of the temple praying, “Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner.” Today, we encounter another tax collector, Zacchaeus, who climbed a tree to see Jesus.
In Jesus’ times, tax collectors were lumped together with prostitutes and other sinners. They were judged sinners because they collected taxes for the Roman oppressors. Some became rich without doing anything more than sitting behind a table imposing taxes on their fellow Jews, keeping a percentage of what was collected as their salary. Since the money was being collected for the emperor who considered himself a god, Jews judged this activity scandalous.
Zacchaeus must have been shocked when Jesus looked up and said, “Zacchaeus, come down quickly, for today I must stay at your house.” Having a meal with someone is a gesture of friendship, and some times, intimacy. Clearly, Jesus wanted to be part of Zacchaeus’ life. Many people grumbled when they heard this, saying, “He has gone to stay at the house of a sinner.” No self respecting Jew would think of being a guest in the home of such a sinner.
Zacchaeus repents then and there and tells Jesus, “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.” While we cannot buy our salvation, his change of heart was a sign of true repentance. Jesus responded, “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.”
Notice that Jesus’ goal wasn’t to scold Zacchaeus but to show him God’s love and forgiveness. In turn, he responded to the mercy that Jesus was extending to him. Jesus could have easily passed him by. After all, he intended to just pass through the town. But Jesus reached out to Zacchaeus to offer him salvation and that gesture touched this short man profoundly.
Against the vastness of all creation, or just thinking how lost we can be in a crowd, we might easily dismiss the notion that God notices us, much less our sins, but that is the point of this story. God does notice us, loving each and every one of us unconditionally, even though due to our human nature, we are sinners. Just as Jesus did with Zacchaeus, so he does with each of us; he extends his divine mercy. Do we take God’s mercy for granted and go on with our lives, continuing to sin, or do we really try to change our lives as Zacchaeus did? Saying, “I’m sorry,” is good, but only if we intend to respond with a change of heart.
A couple who had a problem with their marriage once came to see their pastor. The problem was that the husband kept misbehaving, spending money foolishly, not coming home when he said he would, not doing his part of the household chores, etc. After the wife had her say, the pastor asked him if he had anything to add or subtract. He said, “I always tell her I’m sorry.” She spoke up, “Yes, he does, but he is not serious about being sorry. He just says the words and then continues to do these things.”
As you can see, it is not enough to say that we are sorry and receive forgiveness. We have to also change our actions. When we go to confession and say the act of contrition, we express our intent to amend or change our lives. Sometimes, when I say to the Lord, “I’m trying,” I hear him saying, “Well, try harder.”
Some of us treat the sacrament of Penance like a shower. Get in, get washed, get out and don’t worry about getting dirty again. Pope Francis has said, there is no limit to God’s mercy but we are not apt to experience that mercy when we are not contrite, much less remorseful.
When Jesus entered his home, I imagine Zacchaeus said, “Things have got to change.” That’s the reaction we have when we realize that all the surpassing good we have been granted in Jesus Christ,” (to paraphrase St. Paul).
The story of Zacchaeus challenges us to respond to the Lord’s mercy by waging war against sin in our own lives. The line from Wisdom about God overlooking sin is misleading. To the contrary, God “sees” our sins. No matter what the sin may be, we cannot hide our sin from God. God sees us as being scarred by life and our sins yet God also sees us as a person made in the image of God and unconditionally loved. God wants to say to us, “Salvation has come to this house,” but first we have to confront our sinfulness, which we do ideally through the sacrament of penance.
This sacrament, unlike the others, has three names: confession, penance, and reconciliation. Alas, many avoid this sacrament for any number of reasons, seeing no need to confess their sins to a priest. Yes, we can tell God our sins, but only a priest can extend the words of absolution, thus granting pardon for the wrong we have done. On behalf of Jesus, he can say to the penitent, “Your sins are forgiven, go in peace,” meaning that we have been reconciled to God and the Church. Often the suggested penance is a spiritual prescription to foster the needed change of heart to avoid future temptations, so that Jesus can say, “Salvation has come to this repentant child of mine,” just as he did to Zacchaeus.