GOD FILLS OUR VOID! ~ CookingFood.Org

“SEEDS OF LIFE”

Sunday, 30^th October 2016.

Thirty First Week of Ordinary Time

Wisdom 11:22-12:2;

Psalm 144: 1-2, 8-11, 13-14;

2 Thessalonians 1:11-2:2;

Luke 19:1-10.

GOD FILLS OUR VOID!

St. Augustine said, “Our hearts are made for Thee, O Lord, and they are restless until they find their rest in Thee.” The French mathematician and scientist Blaise Pascal also wrote, “There is a God-shaped vacuum in our hearts which only God can fill.” They were convinced that without God, life was incomplete. The famous tennis player Boris Becker confirms this truth also. Becker attempted suicide due to a sense of hopelessness and emptiness. Although he was famous and successful, something was missing in his life. He said, “I had won Wimbledon twice before, once as the youngest player. I had all the material possessions I needed: money, cars, women, everything. He had everything, and yet he was so unhappy. Inside the heart of every person in the world there is a large empty hole that only God can fill. “The millionaire is usually a lonely man and the comedian is often more unhappy than his audience.” Says O. Sanders.

Today’s Gospel speaks of a tax collector Zacchaeus. He was also a rich man and had made a lot of money. However he was hated and despised by others, not only because he overtaxed the people, but also because he was helping the pagan Romans to exploit his own people. He was regarded as a public sinner, as a traitor and as someone unclean before God. One can see that, although he was financially well to do, the chief tax collector lived a life of loneliness, alienated from his own people and alienated from God and he lacked something in his life.

Zacchaeus heard lot of things about Jesus and was fascinated to find out about Him. But He was of short stature and would have been overshadowed by the crowd. He thought of a way to see Jesus without being noticed by anybody. He climbed a tree and hid himself to see Jesus. Jesus notices Zacchaeus on the tree and spoke: “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today” (Lk 19:5). Instead of judging Zacchaeus, Jesus shows his love for him. Jesus is the true shepherd who gathers his lost sheep together, he picks up the lost and puts them back to the flock.

It also means that Jesus loves those who we see as bad sinners, and is the one who can judge their motives and their inner hearts. This acceptance by Jesus often brought people to repentance and salvation and forgiveness. Even if people do wrong, we need to care for them, love them and see what that brings about in them. Again at the dinner Jesus did not preach to Zacchaeus that he must repent or go to hell. But Jesus’ non-judgmental and unconditional acceptance for the sinful Zacchaeus spoke more powerfully to his heart than the best sermon ever could. Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord in full view of everybody, “Look, half of my possessions, Lord, I will give to the poor; and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will pay back four times as much. By giving half of his wealth to the poor and using the other half to repay fourfold all those he had defrauded, Zacchaeus’ wealth would be all but gone. Who needs all that money when you have found a true meaningful life?

The first reading from the Book of Wisdom speaks of our insignificance when compared to the whole universe. We are like a grain or a drop of dew, but despite our insignificance in relation to everything, we are totally loved by God. God made all things and loves all things made. If God didn’t think about us, we wouldn’t exist, so we know he is thinking about us, and even if we sin against him, forget him, he never forgets us or stops forgiving us. God is the perfect parent – he finds ways to let us know we are doing wrong or forgetting him, but only so they come back to Him. He is the perfect parent, the Good shepherd.

St. Paul suggests to us to try our best to be worthy of that great love of God, looking forward to being joined with him. Like Zacchaeus, he calls us by our name and asks to be invited to our homes, to our lives. Zacchaeus’ response was that he would continue to give half of his possessions and repay those whom he has offended or defrauded. What is our response to Jesus and what is our promise to him today? Can we come down from our tree and welcome Jesus in our home?

There are also many Zacchaeus -men and women hiding on the tree under which we pass every day. They could be the poor, the abandoned, the sick, and the depressed people we encounter. Jesus challenges us to look up and invite them to a meal. In this last month of the Year of Mercy, Jesus reminds us of the Corporal Works of Mercy. We are called to take the first step to reach out and invite these people with unconditional and non-judgmental love. We will be surprised to see that we can spread the Good News of God’s love in a way that touches their hearts more than any amount of preaching can do.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, May I fill the emptiness of my heart with You. Amen