31st Sunday Year C - Homily 1

Homily 1 - 2007

Today’s story of Zacchaeus is just the right story for us as we move towards the conclusion of our liturgical year. In so many ways, it suits our situation perfectly. There was Zacchaeus wanting to see Jesus.That’s us – as we gather today for Eucharist: “O dear Lord, three things I pray: to see thee more clearly; to love thee more dearly; to follow thee more nearly, day by day.”

More importantly, Jesus wants to be with us: I must stay at your house today. The wonderful freedom of Jesus: to be seen with us! to stay with us! Although most of the world does not label us as sinners – they do regard us at least as pretty irrelevant, perhaps a bit odd.

We are an interesting group… - and we’re here together; - and we do our best to feel at ease with everyone else, putting our judgments on hold, welcoming each other. Indeed, drawn together into the mystery of this Eucharist, we know that we are sharing with lots of other Christians throughout our nation and around the world. As the Spirit of Jesus moves us more deeply into Eucharist, we try to keep before our minds and hearts our solidarity with disciples everywhere - [all drawn into the same mystery, the same experience]; our solidarity, indeed, with more even than fellow disciples: with everyone in our world for whom Jesus shed his blood.

When we take our places around the Eucharistic table, within the context of our global village, we realise that we are not all that unlike Zacchaeus – senior tax collectors and wealthy people.  Together with many of our brothers and sisters around the world, we shall soon pray: Give us this day our daily bread - knowing that that prayer may not be answered for many of them because of the few who keep what they have for themselves and are unwilling to share, even their surplus.

In face of the gross inequality, poverty and hunger around our world, Western nations still virtuously proclaim that national interest reigns supreme, and that national interest will not be subordinated to the just needs of the world’s hungry.

In the course of another incident just before today’s Gospel story, Jesus had commented: How hard it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God. People questioned how Zacchaeus stood with God. Their attitude generally was that his position inevitably made him a sinner; and they complained that Jesus had gone to stay at a sinner’s house. Jesus did not deny Zacchaeus’s sinfulness, but he was overjoyed to be able to proclaim: Today salvation has come to this house.

How come salvation? Because something had happened to Zacchaeus – something that freed him from his previous addiction to wealth. He was able to assure Jesus: I give half my property to the poor; and if I have cheated anybody, I will pay him back four times the amount. Incredible freedom! What made the difference? What broke the hold of the former addiction? His recognition simply that Jesus respected him, that Jesus liked him. I must stay at your house today.

How hard it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God. yet, What is impossible for men is possible for God. I think we can relate to that. Whatever about many of our hard-nosed fellow citizens, who addictively prioritise self-interest, [or national interest (the same thing!)] above the possibility of sharing our bread with the hungry, and of relieving the hunger and oppression of so many around our world, we have known something of the wonderfully freeing experience of being precious to God, and of being respected by God.

For many of us, our regularly repeated prayer has begun to be answered: Lord, I am not worthy to receive you, but only say the word and I shall be healed. That word of Jesus that, once it has been genuinely heard, breaks every addiction, is simply: I do not call you servants, but friends… Today, salvation has come to this house. Let us keep going and allow ourselves to get drawn more deeply into this mystery that is Eucharist.