Readings: Sirach 35, 12-18; Psalm 34, The Lord hears the Cry of the Poor; 2 Timothy 4, 6-8, 16-18; Luke 18 9-14.
Introduction to the Readings
A brief word about our first reading. We have heard from Sirach eight weeks ago on the twenty second Sunday of Ordinary Time. At that time I had told you that this book was written by Sirach, it is part of the Wisdom literature, and probably written around the year 180 BCE. The writing is also known at Ecclesiasticus, because early in the life of the church it was one of the most used of the Old Testament books. I love that contrast between the statement in the first two lines “The LORD is a God of justice, who knows no favorites” with what then follows, namely how God hears the cry of the poor, the widows, the orphans, the oppressed.
Our second reading is the final one from Paul’s Letters to Timothy. We have been reading from these two letters for the past six weeks. The letter is perhaps the last one written by Paul from prison in Rome before he is executed. The two letters to Timothy and the letter to Titus, form what is known as the Pastoral Letters. The style is very different from Paul’s other letters. He is writing to these two to encourage them as leaders in communities that Paul had set up. Remember, Timothy, who is mentioned in Luke’s Acts Chapter 16, was a companion to Paul. Our reading today is the conclusion of the second letter and sounds like Paul’s farewell.
Homily
Main Point – A simple parable, humility trumps pride, especially when we pray. I could stop there but won’t because there is a second layer to this simple parable. We need to understand the setting for the story. The two men going into the temple were not like two men going into church here any afternoon.
First of all, they were going into the Temple in Jerusalem. They were going into a “Prayer of Atonement” service held each afternoon in the Temple. The Pharisee would have naturally joined with the other Pharisees at the front and the tax collector would have hung around inside the door. In the eyes of the Law, or Torah, the Pharisee was a very good person, and what he declared went even beyond the Law.
Where he failed, was realizing that everything about his “holiness” was due to his own efforts and nothing came from God. The tax collector on the other hand was all too well aware of his shortcomings and acknowledges that he is totally dependant on God and His mercy.
Our catholic tradition has always given me the impression that if I was good, went to Mass every Sunday, obeyed the commandments, fasted at the appropriate time etc. then I was all set for heaven. It would seem that God had very little to do in it. And of course this was the whole crux that caused the Reformation.
One would think we could have learned from our mistakes. At that time Martin Luther was appalled at the practice of selling indulgences, as if folks could purchase their way into heaven. His position was: “Salvation by faith alone” and the church preferred to add that “good works” were also important.
But back to the two in the temple. There are several interesting little hints given which tell us a whole lot more. The Pharisee stands apart, he does not seem to belong to the gathered community. When the tax collector prays “have mercy on me a sinner” the word he uses in the original Greek is not the common word “eleison” which we use when we say Lord have mercy, or Kyrie Eleison, but a very different word connecting to the liturgy which he was part of that afternoon.
In other words the tax collector saw himself as part of a community, and absolutely in need of God’s forgiveness, the Pharisee saw only himself!! It was being part of a community and recognizing his total need for God, which allowed for him to go home justified.
The message: we must be aware that even though we are here each Sunday, this should not lead us down the same path of the Pharisee.
Picture 1: Mass with Tony
Picture 2: Tom, Lynda, & Nina packing up food for this Saturday at the Habitat House
Picture 3: Maggie with her dad & granddad, Tom & Bob
Picture 4: Sienna with her mom & dad, Erin & Payton