October 24, 2010
Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Luke 18:9-14
Gospel Summary
Luke introduces the parable about a Pharisee and a tax collector
with the statement that it is addressed "to those who were convinced of
their own righteousness and despised everyone else." Two men go up to
the temple to pray. The Pharisee, standing in a prominent place, thanks
God that he is not like the rest of humanity-or even like the tax
collector he had noticed. He also reminds God that he fasts twice a
week, and pays tithes on his whole income. The tax collector, standing
at a distance, beats his breast and prays, "O God, be merciful to me a
sinner." Jesus then remarks that the tax collector who humbled himself
before God went home justified, not the Pharisee who had exalted
himself.
Life Implications
Jesus chose to make the Pharisee a principal character of his
parable because Pharisees were the most highly respected religious group
in the community. Pharisees were intensely committed to the religious
traditions of the people. They refused any collaboration with the
occupying Roman military power. They kept the commandments, voluntarily
fasted beyond the obligatory annual day of fasting, and even cut down on
their standard of living to support the needs of the temple.
Jesus chose a tax collector as the opposite principal character
because tax collectors were generally held in contempt by the people.
They were not only collaborators with the hated Roman oppressors, but by
collecting funds to support a corrupt imperial system, made it
impossible for many people to fulfill their financial obligations to the
temple. These petty government officials were adept at defrauding
people by various strong-arm methods, and were regarded as no better
than robbers.
The Pharisee of the parable had every good reason to thank God
for the worthiness of his own life, and to despise the tax collector as
one who was a threat not only to the temple, but to everything that was
worthwhile and holy. When Jesus at the conclusion of his parable
remarked that the tax collector went home justified, not the Pharisee,
it must have seemed like a shockingly unfair conclusion. He had taken
the risk of pressing the parable to the edge of unfairness in order to
teach something essential about the way we stand with God.
Jesus in his parable obviously is not advocating collaboration
with an oppressive military power, cheating people, moral relativism, or
much less, forbidding evaluation of evil behavior or false teaching.
The Pharisee is condemned because he assumed God's role in judging the
spiritual worth of a fellow human being. He exalted himself above the
rest of humanity, and despised another through the comparisons he
fashioned in his prayer.
It is incidental whether the Pharisee or the tax collector is
the one who exalts himself to in the sight of God. In today's culture,
Jesus would probably have someone like the tax collector exalt himself
and despise others in his prayer: "God, I thank you that I am not like
the rest of humanity-do-gooders and church-going Pharisees. I may be
greedy, dishonest, and adulterous, but I am grateful not to be a
hypocrite like them." The desire to exalt oneself can always find a
reason-even one's humility.
Today at our Eucharist we ask to be freed from illusions that we
have fashioned about ourselves, and pray for the grace of sharing in
Christ's humility. Through his authentic humility, we will be able to
stand before God in our own unique truth, and thus make it possible to
receive divine mercy and go home justified.
Campion P. Gavaler, OSB
|
|
|
