Homily

in the thirty-second Week

About Zacchaeus

For the Son of Man has come to seek and save the lost [1119].

Beloved brethren! These merciful words, which we have heard today in the Gospel, were spoken by the incarnate God about the sinner whom the righteous Judgment called lost, who was exacted by the power and grace of redemption, included and inscribed by it among the saved.

The sinner, Zacchaeus, was a publican and an elder of tax collectors. He had considerable wealth, as the Gospel mentions, hinting at the means by which wealth was acquired. Tax collectors were called tax collectors. Money is tempting! the glitter of gold and silver enchants the eyes of Adam's descendant, infected with sinfulness, and where money turns, abuse rarely, rarely does not creep in. For the most part, the tax collectors went into covetousness. When covetousness turns into passion, then it allows itself all the violence, all the oppression of its neighbor. To help the passion of covetousness comes the passion of deceit and hypocrisy. From their copulation comes a disposition to captiousness, which attaches itself to all trifles under the pretext of unfailing observance of the laws, invents guilt for the innocent, and strengthens by such behavior to give the appearance of justice to inhuman oppression and cruelty committed against neighbors. By virtue of their character, the publicans served as an object of terror for the people, an object of contempt for moral people. Zacchaeus was the elder of the publicans: his abuses were greater than those of his subordinates. It is not without reason that it is mentioned that he was rich! He was enriched by iniquities; his sin was covetousness; His spiritual affliction was greed and the lack of mercy and compassion for mankind arising from greed. Because of his grave sins, because of the criminal mood of his soul, Zacchaeus is called lost. It was not the frivolous, often erroneous human judgment that recognized him as lost: God spoke the decree about him. Zacchaeus became an inveterate sinner: in order to accumulate wealth through abuse, it takes a long time and constancy in the way of acting.

The reason for the sinful life of Zacchaeus lies in what the reason for the sinful life of many lies even now: in following the generally accepted custom of behavior and in ignorance or knowledge of the most superficial knowledge of the Law of God. Usually, publicans were carried away by the vice of covetousness, and Zacchaeus was also carried away by it. The majority of the population of Judea, contemporary with Christ, was occupied almost exclusively with their earthly position, striving for material development and earthly success. At that time, the Law of God was studied only by the letter; Divine services were conducted most to satisfy the ritual establishment; the virtues were performed superficially, coldly, more in order to influence public opinion. Zacchaeus was also content with this. He lived like everyone else lived. And now we often hear: "I live as everyone else lives." A vain excuse! deceptive consolation! Other things are proclaimed and bequeathed by the Word of God. Hearken, it says, to the narrow gate: for the broad gate and the broad way lead into destruction, and many are those who enter into it: for the narrow gate and the strait way lead into the life, and there are few of them who find it [1120]. The narrow gate is a thorough, thorough study of the Law of God both in the Scriptures and in life; The narrow path is an activity wholly directed according to the Gospel commandments.

While Zacchaeus led a life according to the custom of a world hostile to God and arranged for himself, according to the wisdom and expression of the world, a position secured, not devoid of significance and brilliance, and spiritually he was a lost sinner, already doomed to eternal languishing in the prisons of hell, at this time the Savior of the world was making His wanderings on earth, in the inheritance of the twelve tribes of Israel. Zacchaeus burned with a desire to see the Lord, proved the sincerity of his desire by his actions. His will was accepted by the Lord, who knows the heart, and the Lord was pleased to visit Zacchaeus in his house. The sinner was seized with joy when he saw the Lord come to him, and the sinner was disgusted with his sins, his heart was torn away from love for the fruit of a sinful life, for perishable riches. Standing before the Lord as a knower of the heart, Zacchaeus said: Behold, O Lord, I will give half of my possessions to the poor: and whosoever I have offended, I will restore with a quaternary [1121]. In this vow is contained the consciousness of sin, repentance and correction, combined with the greatest self-denial. Zacchaeus confesses his covetousness and decides to make amends for the oppression of his neighbors with abundant rewards; Zacchaeus confesses his greed and decides to purify and sanctify his property and his heart by abundant almsgiving. The repentance of Zacchaeus is immediately accepted by the Lord. About that sinner, who a few minutes before belonged to the number of the rejected and lost, the Lord declares: "Today is the salvation of this house, but this son Abraham is also" [1122]. Zacchaeus was a descendant of Abraham in the flesh; but by the judgment of God only through virtue is he adopted as sons of Abraham. By the word house we can understand the soul of Zacchaeus, into which salvation ascended after repentance, which cleansed this soul from sin; this word of the Lord could apply to the family of Zacchaeus, who, following the example of their head, with a self-denial similar to him, as often happens, entered into true knowledge of God and into a life pleasing to God.

All who saw that the Lord had visited the house of Zacchaeus murmured, recognizing that it was indecent and humiliating for the Lord to visit such a sinner as Zacchaeus was considered by public opinion. The mystery of redemption was and remains incomprehensible to carnal minds, which with equal power and convenience heals all human sins, both great and small, and draws sinners out of every pernicious abyss, no matter how deep the abyss may be. For such an amazing action, it requires from a person faith in the Redeemer and sincere repentance. Those who murmured because they did not understand; they did not understand because before their eyes the work of God was being done, incomprehensible to the human mind, which was not illumined by grace. Explaining the incomprehensible and revealing the immense power of redemption, the Lord said: "The Son of Man has come to seek and save him who is lost." God, having taken upon Himself mankind, not sought out and not called by men, Himself, in His ineffable goodness, came to seek and save the human race, which had perished because of alienation and separation from God, He came to seek and save every person who was dragged into perdition by sin, if only this person would not reject the God who seeks and desires to save him.

The Holy Gospel can be likened to a mirror. Each of us, if he wishes, will see in him the state of his soul and the omnipotent healing offered by the omnipotent physician, God. God the Son calls Himself the Son of Man, because He took on mankind, and dealt with people in no way different from them in appearance. This is a consequence of infinite, Divine love, ineffable Divine humility. The Son of Man, let us say according to human custom, had the right to forgive all sins of men; as having offered Himself, the all-perfect God, as an atoning sacrifice for mankind and having destroyed all the sins of men, both insignificant and multifaceted, by the immense, immeasurable significance of the redemptive price. The judgment of the Son of Man over men, as we see in the Gospel, is quite different from that of other men, who judge their neighbors from their own righteousness, rejected by God and damaged by sin. All sinners who received redemption through repentance and faith were justified by the Saviour, although men condemned them; on the contrary, all those who rejected redemption through the rejection of repentance and faith, He condemned, although men recognized them as righteous, worthy of both respect and rewards.

In the mirror of the Gospel today we saw a sinner carried away by the passion of covetousness, working on this passion with improper exactions and manifold offenses against his neighbors; they saw this sinner, condemned by men, justified by God for his faith and true repentance. A comforting, encouraging sight! And to this day the Saviour, according to His true promise, dwells among us; and to this day He heals souls wounded by sins; and until now His Divine decree has not passed by: "The Son of Man has come to seek and save him who is lost." Amen.

Homily

on Saturday of the thirty-second week