Word to the Wise
Saturday, March 17, 2007 - Saturday of the Third Week of Lent (St. Patrick's Day)
[Hosea 6:1-6 and Luke 18:9-14]Jesus addressed this parable to those who were convinced of their own righteousness and despised everyone else. "Two people went up to the temple area to pray; one was a Pharisee and the other was a tax collector....."
Even if we had never read or heard this parable before, the opening lines give a pretty good idea of the direction of the story! Nevertheless, the story is a powerful one. The power comes not only from the contrast between the Pharisee and the tax collector, but also from the realization that we may be one or the other various times in our lives! There are times when we will feel "righteous and exalted," and sit ourselves in a judgment seat about somebody else in the community. There are times when we will realize our sinfulness and humbly beg the pardon of God and one another. What is truly necessary is to remember which state of being Jesus recommends! Humility gets a bad press from some folks because they equate it with some kind of unhealthy self-abasement. What is truly dangerous is the situation in which a person does not feel the necessity for God's mercy. Such people have no need of God other than, like the Pharisee, to say, "Thanks for making me perfect!" Perhaps even more dangerous than that is the realization of imperfection and not caring! "I'm a sinner, but so what?" It is the tax collector's honesty and faith that justify him. He is a model for us all. AMEN