October 27, 2019
30th Sunday Ordinary C
At the beginning of Mass, we pray/say: “Lord have mercy.†It is like the prayer of the tax collector in the parable of Jesus: “O God, be merciful to me a sinner.†The parable of the pharisee and the tax collector is very offensive to those listening to Jesus. Commentary is necessary. At the time of Jesus, Galilee and Judah are occupied by the Roman Army. “Pharisees†are courageously living their Jewish faith publicly. (Recall Poles living their Catholic faith publicly when the Soviet Union dominated Poland. Although ostensibly religious, it was politically defiant.) “Tax collectors†are collaborators supporting Roman rule by sending money to the Emperor while keeping hefty commissions/fees for themselves. Pharisees are admired. Tax collectors are despised. We can hear boos coming from the crowd as Jesus tells a story about God favoring the prayer of the tax collector!
Why is Jesus taking on and often in debate with Pharisees? It is not because they are living their faith publicly (Jewish customs, diet, 10 Commandments, worship, almsgiving) but because their outward show is not in harmony with the disposition of their heart. What is more, the pharisee in the parable, is judging and condemning the tax collector who is a fellow Jew. The prayer of the pharisee is a “press release†on how good he is! The tax collector stands off, not even raising his eyes to the heavens but confesses his sins. He exemplifies, “The prayer of the lowly pierces the clouds.†(Sirach)
There is a pharisee and a tax collector hidden in all of us. In our prayer, our conversation with God, we do let God know that we are striving and struggling to be faithful. We do humbly acknowledge our sins and beg God’s mercy. We can take comfort from a famous pharisee and public sinner – St. Paul! In his letter to Timothy (second reading), Paul is praising his own effort: “Beloved: I am already being poured out like a libation, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have competed well; I have finished the race; I have kept the faith. From now on the crown of righteous awaits me, which the Lord, the just judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me, but to all who have longed for his appearance.†This same Paul, in his letters, confesses that he was a great sinner and persecutor of those who followed Christ. Paul can say that “he is who he is now†only by the Grace of God! Righteousness is not a matter of our own effort but always God’s gift!
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29th Sunday Ordinary C
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31st Sunday Ordinary C
