"Two people went up to the Temple area to pray"
Luke 18: 9-14
There was an older woman who went to meet her new doctor. The doctor asked her the usual questions
about her health. “Do you smoke,” he
asked her. “No, doctor, never. It’s a filthy habit, your clothes smell, I
would never engage in smoking.” Then the
doctor asked, “What about drinking. Do
you consume alcohol much?” The woman stated, “Never doctor. I wouldn’t want to be seen intoxicated. Only in Church do I consume a bit of wine but
otherwise never.” “I see,” the doctor replied.
“What about some sort of regular exercise such as walking?” The woman said, “Of course, I’m able to walk
several miles each week and I even visit my sick friends.” Well,” the doctor stated, “That sounds very
good; quite perfect actually. Do you have any further questions of me?” The woman asked, “One thing, doctor, I do get
these occasional headaches. I’m not sure of the cause.” The doctor stated, “Well that’s an easy
one. Your halo is on too tight.”
We sometimes tend to think of ourselves in such glowing terms. We look at ourselves and minimize the truth
we see. Might be about our weight or a
statement I’ve made that some thought offensive. Maybe an opinion I have that
really is prejudiced. What about gossip on others? That is, unless we admire the Pharisee in this Sunday’s
Gospel - nothing to correct in him - the prayer of “Mr. Perfect.” Yet, the
point of the scene is that his halo was on a too tight as well!
For the last several Sunday’s Jesus has given us a kind of mini- catechism on prayer in the Gospels we’ve heard. He teaches us to pray with faith, even as small as a mustard seed (Lk 17: 5-10). That we must pray with gratitude in our heart, like the one leper who returned to Jesus (Lk 17: 11-19). That we must be persistent in our prayer like the widow who pesters the heartless judge (Lk 18: 1-8) and today we hear that we must pray with humility before God, like the repentant tax collector in (Lk 18: 9-14).
The lesson of today’s story from Jesus is obvious. Don’t be proud in our prayer before God but
humble as we pray. We are called to admit the truth about our lives, about the
choices we’ve made, about the words we’ve said, or some action I committed, or
the constant habit that I feel I always have to be right and so I tend to
question or disagree with everyone who doesn’t see things my way. To know our
limitations and our gifts and to admit where I fall short is fundamental to our
prayer before God.
The parable presents a common trait of the Gospel writers as nearly
in all cases, would present the Pharisees in a negative light. They seem to be the constant bane of Jesus in
his relationship with them. Yet, in fact
they were likely closer to Jesus’ own teaching than distant from it. Our Lord
did not criticize the basic content of their teaching as such but only how
misguided it was and how they themselves did not live up to what they taught,
yet presented themselves in a way that would appear otherwise in their display
of hypocrisy.
So, the scene is powerful in its right context. When Jesus states, “the two men went up to the Temple to pray,” he refers to what the
folks of his time would understand. This
was no private visit to a Church; the two of them alone, one in front and the other
in the back.
The Temple was a busy, noisy, crowded space so those who prayed
did so in full view and earshot of others.
One would not pray silently but out loud so others could hear. The Pharisee is boasting of his perfection
and certainly some could hear well what he was claiming. As Jesus states he, “spoke this prayer to himself.” He may have thought he was addressing God but
in truth God was not impressed by his boasting.
Apparently enough of them became so enamored with their own
position and obvious external signs of Jewish purity, that they misplaced the
heart of the law they lived. The
population generally looked to them for both example and leadership. They
dressed with certain dignity and cleanliness; they carried with them, attached
to their outer garments, symbols of the Jewish faith – maybe we could say a
kind of religious habit.
Yet, in the laws of diet and cleanliness, Sabbath regulations,
and other burdensome legalities, and the near slavish following of it, they
exaggerated the importance of such man made laws to the detriment of the sacred
law of love, humility, and charity which God asked of his people in the
original Covenant. The Pharisees suffered
from too much emphasis on external appearance which created a kind of spiritual
blindness to the deep relationship of love that God was seeking. So we hear of
their self-aggrandizement, their superior righteous attitude, and
self-righteous judgment of others.
As he boats his “Prayer” before God, while adjusting his halo
properly, he claims that all his righteous success was of his own making. Yet, we know that in humility we admit that
all good in our life is gift from God above. Virtue is God’s business as we
respond with an open heart to his grace within us.
By contrast an equally unpopular figure appears; a tax
collector. Generally despised by the
population for their greedy way of collecting taxes and the Roman occupiers
they represented. Now, unlike the
Pharisee, here’s one guy who couldn’t possibly recognize his sin. Yet, to all who heard this story for the
first time, he became, like the Good Samaritan, the one who got it right! As he
spoke in his way, “Lord, have mercy on me,” others may have heard. He names no one else; he doesn’t even call
out his specific sin, but recognizes that the choices he has made and the
direction of his life is not of God.
His prayer was simple, deeply sincere, humble and
truthful. His only desire, as he “stood
off at a distance” from the Pharisee who stood and proudly proclaimed his
goodness, the tax collector “would not even raise his eyes to heaven.” He prayed from his heart: “O God be merciful to me a sinner.” It wasn’t what he had done right, but how he
prayed that mattered.
To be justified means to be in right relationship with God; to
be in proper Covenant order and goodness before God. True humility is the key here it seems. Like
the tax collector we are taught how to pray with honesty and humility. “God,
this is who I am, with all my faults, sins, and blemishes. I haven’t been what you call me to be so I
ask in all humility for your mercy, that I can start again.”
The tax collector didn’t grovel or think of himself as
worthless. Yet, he was realistic and
honest about his own sinfulness and accepted responsibility for his less than
virtuous behavior. This is true
conversion and a prayer that is heard and answered by God.
So this leaves us with rich lessons on prayer: pray with faith, no matter how small. Pray with
gratitude in your heart for blessings received, begun primarily through the
death and resurrection of Christ. Pray
with persistence and don’t give up. Pray
with humility and realism before the loving God of mercy and redemption.
Faith, Gratitude, Persistence, and Humility. Every Eucharistic celebration contains these
qualities in our participation. May God
give us eyes and hearts to see this.
O God be merciful to us.
Almighty ever-living God,
increase our faith, hope and charity,
and make us love what you command,
so that we may merit what you promise.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ,
your Son, who lives and reigns
with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God for ever and ever.
(Collect of Mass)
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