Tag: Zacchaeus

“Today salvation has come to this house.” | Tuesday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time

From the responsorial psalm: “He who walks blamelessly and does justice; who thinks the truth in his heart and slanders not with his tongue. I will seat the victor beside me on my throne.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 19:1-10)

But Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “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.” And Jesus said to him, “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.”

Before witnesses who grumble against Zacchaeus, calling him a sinner, Jesus invites Zacchaeus to come down from the sycamore. Because he was short, he couldn’t see Jesus because of the crowd, yet the desire to see him pass by was so strong that he climbed a tree to catch sight of him. Jesus sees this desire and invites him down, saying, “Zacchaeus, come down quickly, for today I must stay at your house.” We hear the same voice of the Lord in the first reading from the Book of Revelation: “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, then I will enter his house and dine with him, and he with me.” In both accounts, Jesus comes to visit the repentant soul “to seek and to save what was lost.”

God, help me hear throughout the day the knock of Jesus at my door. What he said to Zacchaeus and in the Book of Revelation, he says to me: “come down quickly, for today I must stay at your house.” Help me see the opportunities you set before me so that I follow the invitation to hear your voice and open the door. Lord, grant me peace in knowing that as I face the burdens and challenges of the day, it is not about how well I perform but in seeking like, Zacchaeus, to see who Jesus is. Stay with me, Lord; come under my roof. Jesus, I trust in you!

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

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“Today salvation has come to this house.” | Memorial of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 19:1-10)

But Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “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.” And Jesus said to him, “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.”

While passing through Jericho, Jesus meets Zacchaeus, a wealthy tax collector. Because of his short stature, Zacchaeus was unable to see Jesus, so he climbed a sycamore to be able to see him pass by. Stopping at the tree, Jesus looks up and says to him, “Zacchaeus, come down quickly, for today I must stay at your house.” While some people grumbled when they saw that Jesus meant to stay at the house of a sinner, Zacchaeus welcomed Jesus and determined to share half of his possessions with the poor. In response, Jesus proclaims the age-old love God has for his chosen people, that he has come to seek and to save what was lost. Nothing escapes God’s notice; to those who seek God, they find the eyes of the Lord upon them. In God’s mercy, nothing is lost.

God, you sent your Son to save what was lost. In his own words, Jesus fulfills perfectly your will for him to redeem and save all that was lost through original sin. “Today salvation has come to this house,” Jesus says. Although the house of the soul, the body, is a temporary dwelling, Jesus came to save both for the resurrection to eternal life. Zacchaeus confesses his sins before Jesus and shows contrition in repaying four times over what he has extorted. Lord, as Zacchaeus sought to see Jesus despite obstacles, help me see beyond mine the poor around me in whatever form you present them to me. Help me see your Son in giving witness to his saving love. In that devotion, nothing is lost.

From the Gospel acclamation: “God loved us, and sent his Son as expiation for our sins.” Sustain me, Lord, and uphold me in your mercy. Pray for us, O holy Mother of God. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Tuesday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time

And Jesus said to [Zacchaeus], “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.”

The Gospel reading from today, which we heard recently during the Sunday Mass, tells the story of Jesus’ encounter with the wealthy chief tax collector Zacchaeus. As Jesus announces to Zacchaeus that today he will stay at his house, some people in the crowd surrounding Jesus grumble about him spending time in the house of a sinner. But after coming down to receive Jesus with joy, the passage says that “Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, ‘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.’” How does this resonate with my own life? Have there been times when I see someone rejoicing in their relationship with the Lord, yet I respond with harsh judgment?

God, help me understand this Gospel reading in respect to my own life. The first reading says what might be said of Zacchaeus or anyone of relative wealth and social status: “For you say, ‘I am rich and affluent and have no need of anything,’ and yet do not realize that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.” Even as Zacchaeus heard the grumbling of the people, he was overjoyed at standing before Jesus face to face. What Jesus says to Zacchaeus as he repents in person in the past, Jesus says to all of us who repent and return to him: “Today salvation has come to this house. . . . For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save what was lost.” Thank you, Lord, for the Eucharist, which brings your Son (body and blood, soul and divinity) to us today and every day in the Masses celebrated throughout the world.

I am yours, God; help me remain in you today and every day. I can proclaim this with boldness only because I depend on your grace to remain in your word. Come today, Lord, to stay at my house when I hear your voice. You say, “If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, then I will enter his house and dine with him, and he with me.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

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