The Mystery of Christ
The Liturgy as Spiritual Experience

by Father Thomas Keating

Chapter 4 Part III

Ordinary Time

Outreach

    Jesus now entered Jericho. As he made his way through the town, there was a stir. A man named Zacchaeus, a high official among the tax collectors and rich as well, was curious to find out who Jesus was, but owing to the press of people, had no chance to do so, for he was small of stature. In order, therefore, to get a glimpse of Jesus, he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree because Jesus was expected to pass that way.
    When Jesus came to the spot, he looked up. "Zacchaeus," he said to him, "come down quickly. Today I must be your guest." Coming down quickly, he welcomed him joyfully. A murmur ran through the crowd of spectators. "He has turned in," they commented, "to accept the hospitality of a sinner." Then Zacchaeus drew himself up and addressed the Lord, "Upon my word, Lord, I give to the poor one-half of my possessions, and if I have obtained anything from anybody by extortion, I will refund four times as much."
    Then in his presence Jesus said, "Today salvation has visited this household because he, too, is the son of Abraham. After all, it is the mission of the son of man to seek and to save what is lost." 
[Luke 19:1-10] 
Gospel of 31st Sunday in Ordinary Time

    This Gospel about Zacchaeus is a practical example of two of the beatitudes. "How happy are they who hunger and thirst after holiness for they shall be fully satisfied" refers to life without the tyranny of the false-self system. It heralds graduation from the emotional programs of early childhood, whose force or cutting edge has been blunted by the discipline of contemplative prayer. The fruits of that discipline manifest themselves in the determination to practice what is characteristic of this level of human consciousness, which is to show love. Divine love is not mere feeling; it is the love that manifests itself by deeds.

    The primary sacrament of Christianity is Jesus himself. A sacrament is a visible sign of the invisible presence of grace; it communicates and transmits what it signifies. Jesus transmitted what he signified, divine love, by his teaching and example. He manifested how the divine nature functions. He revealed that the inner life of God is sheer gift: surrender that tends to throw itself away. The humility of God is to cease to be God. Within the Trinity there is the total emptying of the Father into the Son and the Son into the Father. What binds them together is the Spirit, the mutual love of the Father and the Son. Each member of the Trinity lives in the others rather than in itself. This is what is meant by "Tri-Unity": one divine nature possessed by three different Relationships. Relationship is the only distinction in God, but it is infinite. Thus, in the Trinity there is infinite Unity and infinite diversity because of the unique relationship of each member to the divine nature. Jesus manifests this unity insofar as it can be manifested in a human being.

    After Jesus, the greatest sacrament is another human being. We are made in the image and likeness of God. Moreover, those who have been taken up through faith and baptism into the Body of Christ are growing as a corporate personality into the fullness of Christ. Paul calls this the Mystery that has been hidden from the beginning of the world and which is now revealed in Jesus Christ. To hunger and thirst after justice is to manifest divine love under all circumstances. This is what human beings were created to do. It is our nature. Everything else is unnatural; any other disposition is abnormal.

    The next beatitude, "Blessed are they who show mercy; mercy shall be theirs," describes the result of moving beyond selfishness into the love that is totally self giving. It is the imitation of Christ and the fulfillment of the new commandment "to love one another as I have loved you." This means to love people not only in their hidden beauty as members of Christ, but in their concreteness and individuality; that is, in their personality traits, idiosyncrasies and opinions which we may find irritating or unbearable. Even in the face of persecution and injury, if one enjoys the inner freedom of this beatitude, one continues to show love.

    How do we show love in the concrete? How do we build up society when we have our own problems that scarcely leave us enough time or resources to take care of our own family, business, or spiritual life? As the consciousness of the inequalities in the world increases, the question of personal responsibility emerges with ever-increasing urgency. The nations of the West use up most of the world's resources while the rest of the world has barely enough to subsist on. As individuals, we may feel overwhelmed by the injustice in the world. We are painfully aware that the greed of human beings is the cause of starvation. We realize that if the global community was ordered properly and technology were shared equally, no one would go hungry even for a day. We ask what it means to show love when we do not know how to team up with others to alter governments, institutions and economies that take no interest in the equitable distribution of the earth's goods. Our frustration level rises as we feel unable to effect any change.

    The author of Caring for Society*  tells the story of a young couple managing a catering service. While taking part in a prison ministry, they heard about an inmate who was about to be released and needed a job. They talked it over and decided to offer him a job in their business. They were uneasy about how he would work out, but felt inspired to offer him this opportunity, so they hired him to deliver food to their clients. When it became known that he was an ex-convict, a number of the customers became uneasy also and decided to make use of another catering service. The couple began to lose money and eventually had to close down. Instead of firing their employee, they started another catering business and integrated him into it. Their new business became a bigger success than the former one. Showing mercy is actually the best investment one can make. Failures and losses may be God's way of getting us into a better situation.

    Zacchaeus was a representative of the despised profession of tax collectors, generally considered to be the worst of sinners. When Jesus came to Jericho, this little man climbed a sycamore tree to get a better view of him. Jesus looked up at Zacchaeus and said, "I want to stay at your house." Zacchaeus was delighted. He shinnied down the tree and welcomed Jesus into his home. Preparing a great feast, he invited all his disreputable friends and staged a party.

    After a few cups of wine, the little man, pleased to have Jesus in his house, pulled himself up to his full height and announced, "I give half of my possessions to the poor. If I have extorted money from anyone, I pay back four times over." Thus he freely admitted the unethical character of some of his financial success. Jesus' reply was, "Today, salvation has visited this household." Because Zacchaeus had welcomed Jesus into his house and not just watched him pass by, he had been changed. Salvation had entered his house through the gift of hospitality.

    This is exactly what the couple did in our story. They could have watched while other people tried to find a position for the ex-convict. They heard Jesus' request as he was passing by, "Will you invite me into your house?" And they invited him in.

    The inner movement to reach out to someone in need is the inspiration of the Spirit. To respond, one has to take the first step and show love in some small but practical, concrete way. If you hunger and thirst for holiness, the opportunities for practicing this beatitude will multiply.

    Jesus' encounter with Zacchaeus is a wisdom teaching meaning, "If you want to practice love, observe the opportunities that are right in front of your noses."
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Bookmarks

*  Robert L. Kinast, Caring for Society, Thomas More Press, Chicago, Il, 1985

More information can be obtained by reading the book The Mystery of Christ by Fr. Thomas Keating.  It is offered in our Book Store.