Homily for 31st Sunday, cycle C: What obstacles are keeping you from seeing Jesus?

The tree climbing in today’s Gospel reminds me about my neighbor’s son, Brian, from about 20 years ago.  Brian was born premature and was a lot smaller than other kids his age.  He didn’t play many sports because of his size, but the one thing he liked to do was climb the big pine tree in his front yard.  He didn’t just climb up a short way, but almost 50 feet to the top.  His dad would just look up at him and smile.  He knew of the struggles his son had early in life and letting him climb to the top tree was an accomplishment for Brian.  I was not too thrilled about it, because my daughter, Nicole, also liked to climb trees and would join Brian at the top.  I was ok with 10 feet up the tree, but not climbing to the top, which was due to my own fear of heights.   Nicole had no fear, so I would warn her not to go up so high.  Of course kids always listen to their parents… right?   I’d find Nicole, many times at the top of the tree with Brian.   Brian’s dad told me not to worry, and eventually I got over my fears.  I would just look up, smile, and pray that God kept them safe.   

Jesus must have looked up and smiled as well when he saw Zacchaeus high up in the tree.   The Gospel tells us that Zacchaeus was short and he wanted to see Jesus.  He needed to see over the taller people who were obstacles, so he climbed a tree to get a better look. Zacchaeus took action to overcome his problems because he just had to see Jesus.  Can you imagine a grown man climbing a tree? What a spectacle! The people in Jericho must have thought Zacchaeus was crazy.

They also thought he was a sinner because Zacchaeus was a chief tax collector and wealthy. Tax collectors worked collecting money for the Romans occupiers plus some extra for themselves.   As a chief tax collector Zacchaeus had agents working for him, which made him wealthy without doing much work. Wealth gained in this manner was considered being greedy.   Today’s view on wealth is quite different.  If you work hard and honestly and acquire wealth it’s ok this is the land of opportunity.  But, during Jesus’ time they understood there were only so many resources available. If you had abundance of anything you must have taken it away from someone else. This is why people thought Zacchaeus was a sinner.

So when Jesus called Zacchaeus to come down from the tree to go to his house it must have seemed scandalous. How could Jesus do this?   Jesus came to cure the sick, heal the lame, and comfort the widow, but not for a greedy sinner!    But, it’s exactly what Jesus planned to do.   Jesus tells us, “The Son of Man has come to seek and save what was lost”.   Jesus came to seek out and save the lost, whether they are rich or poor.  

In this situation though, Zacchaeus took the initiative by climbing over his obstacles to seek out Jesus.  In doing so Jesus saw him and came to his house right away. Zacchaeus is changed when he encounters Jesus.  He offers half his possessions to the poor and will restore anyone he’s extorted four times over. Jewish law only called to restore what taken from another plus another twenty percent. Zacchaeus had truly repented. Jesus recognizes this change telling him, “Salvation had indeed come to the house of Zacchaeus.”

Are we all a little bit like Zacchaeus?  Don’t we all have obstacles in our lives that keep us from seeing Jesus?  We are constantly under pressure from all directions for demands of our time and attention that keep us away from Jesus.    Maybe it’s the demands at work to make more money, the need to be constantly entertained, overpowering addictions, or even our own pride thinking we can take care of things ourselves.  Are we willing to go out of our way like Zacchaeus to seek out Jesus or do we just fit him in when it’s convenient?  

The Church provides us with ample opportunity to seek out Jesus so he can save us.  We are blessed to be able encounter him in the Eucharist every week and even more often if we choose.  Whether we receive the Eucharist at Mass or adore His presence, his grace strengthens us to overcome the obstacles in our lives.  We also have the healing sacraments of reconciliation and anointing of the sick that can help as well.   In prayer and reading Scripture, we can engage with him daily.   We just need to make plans to seek him out. 

I recently had a tremendous opportunity to witness 30 lost men who were seeking out Jesus at a Kairos retreat in the Plainfield Correctional facility.  These men have many obstacles in their lives to keep them away from Jesus: fear of violence, addictions to drugs, loss of freedom, and loneliness.  At the start of the retreat one of the men reluctantly said that he agreed to come since he had been to prison many times. He had tried many things in his life but he kept having the same problems. He wanted to see if Jesus might be the answer.  Amazingly by the end of the retreat this same man said it was hard to believe that he came all the way from Florida to be arrested and imprisoned in Indiana, so he could have the best experience of his life.   He sought out Jesus because he was lost and Jesus came to seek and save him.  I hope and pray he continues seeking him.

So what are the obstacles keeping us from seeking Jesus? Before it gets too busy with the holidays maybe it could be a good time to pray and ask God what obstacles we need to climb over to see Jesus.   If we take some quiet time and pray with humility like the tax collector, “God be merciful to me, for I am a sinner” and be persistent in prayer like the widow, then God will show us the way.   May God bless you.