Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Let me begin this homily where the gospel reading begins: “Tax collectors and sinners were drawing near to listen to Jesus but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain….” Because we have three parables that immediately get our attention, we tend to often ignore the setting for these parables. I myself have often glanced over the context. As I read just this line again and again, my eyes began to fill up. God, who is all holy and all good walked the face of the earth in the person of Jesus. Against all our natural instinct about who would be in Jesus’ inner circle Luke tells us the tax collectors and sinners were drawn to Jesus.
In fact, all the three parables that follow the introduction go against our natural instinct. For example, Jesus asks to question, “What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert and go after the lost one?” Not one sane person would do that. My instinct is to save the ninety-nine because wisdom tells me that that ninety-good people are better than one sinful, lazy, disobedient, rebellious and self-centered person! I read “What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert and go after the lost one?” as a rhetorical question. The real answer to Jesus’ question is, “No one.” “No One! EXCEPT GOD!!!” That is why the gospel this section begins with the words, “Tax collectors and sinners were drawing near to listen to Jesus….” They were not being drawn to the Pharisees and scribes. The scribes and Pharisees are like us. They, like us, would rather take care of the ninety-nine good ones rather than the one sinful person. But God…, God is unlike us.
Three things to think about.
- God’s Love is a Scandal. I want to go back to the beginning of the gospel reading. The Pharisees and scribes began to complain saying, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” They are pointing to a scandal. In the parable of the prodigal son, the older son got angry that the sinful son had been welcomed back by his father. For him the attitude of the father is as scandalous as the attitude of Jesus for the Pharisees. Every scandal has a price! Would God be willing to pay the price? If God does not pay the price then the one lost sheep would die. If God pays the prices it would cost the brutal death of his Son Jesus. What was God going to do? Today’s first reading offers us some insight. God’s wrath flared up against the people of Israel because they had made for themselves a molten calf and erected an altar to it. This was a scandal. Moses pleads with God to have mercy in spite of their gravest violation of God’s law. God’s mercy prevailed that day. God’s mercy prevailed one more time. Because tax collectors and sinner drew near to Jesus, the one who was without sin is led outside the city, nailed to a cross, hung upon it and brutally murdered. And even from the cross God’s mercy does not stop flowing. Just like Moses pleaded with God that God forgive the people of Israel, Jesus pleaded with his God, “Father, forgive them.” Once again, mercy prevailed that day. Sin is a sandal but God’s mercy is a greater scandal.
- The church must proclaim the scandalous love of God. At our retreat last Sunday, Dr. Portier from the University of Dayton spoke about how Pope Francis perceives the mission of the Church. On the flight back from Rio de Janiero, an Italian reporter asked a question on divorced and remarried Catholics and the sacraments. He noted that many times during the trip to Brazil Pope Francis had spoken about mercy. “In regard to access to access to the sacraments of divorced persons who have remarried, is there a possibility that something will change in the discipline of the church?” Pope Francis gave him a long and involved response, but it began with this simple declaration: “Mercy is greater than the case you pose. I believe this is the time of mercy.” Following the example of the Lord who does not “tire of forgiving,” the church as “Mother must go on this path of mercy and find mercy for all.” He urged that the church follow the example of the Prodigal Son’s father. “When there is someone … not just wait for them: go to find them! This is mercy.” So here is my appeal from the pulpit – is there anyone here or is there someone you know who thinks that the Church does not want them? Is there anybody out there, who because of their sexual orientation, because of a broken marriage, because they have had an abortion, because of their addictions or because they are undocumented workers, feel abandoned by God? Let me say this to you! Let no human being stop you from drawing close to the scandalous love and mercy of God. As Pope Francis says, “Following the example of the Lord who does not “tire of forgiving,” the church as “Mother must go on this path of mercy and find mercy for all.” And I am first in line to be this face of the Church.
- Today’s second reading compels us to think about holiness. Paul constantly strived for holiness and he encouraged his communities to constantly strive for holiness. However, in the process he never forgot who he was. He remembers his former life and says, “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. Of these I am the foremost.” If we can learn one thing from Paul it is this – that whatever holiness we have is not because of our own merit but rather because of the abundant love and mercy of God. And, we will need God’s love and mercy for the rest of our life and beyond. Many times we in the church are tempted to be like the older son in the parable. We want the church to be a place only for holy people. Holiness is a sublime virtue. Jesus came to make us holy. But if our holiness simultaneously becomes a stumbling block for others then we become an obstacle for God’s mercy. On the other hand, this is the true test of holiness – sinners will be drawn to us like they were drawn to Jesus. Like Jesus we must never be afraid to get our hands dirty. Let us remembers the church’s ministry is reconciliation but conversion is God’s work.
As we come around this altar we recognize that we are sinners. But let us also recognize that God love and mercy is greater than our sin. This Eucharist is a celebration of that love and mercy of God.
- Fr. Satish