Suy Niệm
Tin Mừng Thứ Ba tuần 33 TN.
Qua bài Tin Mừng hôm nay, chúng ta hãy tự hỏi? Chúng ta sẽ phản ứng
ra sao hay là sẽ phải làm những gì nếu Chúa Giêsu gõ cửa nhà của chúng và nói, "Ta
phải lưu lại nhà ngươi hôm nay!" Chúng ta có thể vui mừng hay xấu hổ? Chúa
Giêsu thường đến thăm chúng trong những lúc thật bất ngờ " những lúc không
mời mà đến" người nghèo, người què, thậm chí tội lỗi công khai như Gia kêu
là người thu thuế! (Người Thu thuế lúc bấy
giờ thường
được
xem như hạng người phản bội, gian giảo nên bị đối xử như người ngoại bang không
có thành thật vì họ làm giàu trên xương máu của người khác).
Ông Gia kêu là một người thu
thuế trưởng và bị rất nhiều người thù ghét. Ông
cần tình yêu thương xót của Thiên Chúa và trong cuộc gặp gỡ với Chúa Giêsu, ông
ta đã tìm thấy lòng hương xót và tình yêu nơi Chúa Giêsu nhiều hơn những gì ông
có thể tưởng tượng. Ông đã cho thấy sự ăn năn thống hối thật tình của mình bằng
cách quyết định dâng cúng một nửa số gia tài của mình cho người nghèo và sử dụng
một nửa khác đền bù thiệt hại cho những ai mà ông ta có sự gian lận. Những việc
ông ta đã làm đẵ làm chứng còn nhiều hơn là những lời ông ta nói. Sự thay đổi tâm
hồn của ông ta dẫn đến một sự thay đổi của cuộc sống, một sự thay đổi mà cả cộng
đoàn có thể trải nghiệm chân thật.
Chúa luôn luôn sẵn sàng đến để
làm niơi trú ngụ của Ngài trong chúng ta, măc dù chúng ta có tội lỗi nhiều đi đến
đau năm, nếu chúng ta có lòng quyết tâm hối cải và biến đổi như Gia kêu, thì
chúng ta phải dành chỗ cho Ngài trong tâm hồn, trong trái tim và trong gia đình
của chúng ta, Và nhờ đó mà Ngài sẽ sống với và trong chúng ta mãi mãi.
Lạy Chúa, xin Chúa đến và ở lại
với chúng con, xin Chúa khỏa lấp nhà chúng con với sự hiện diện của Chúa và lấp
đầy tâm của chúng con với lời khen ngợi Chúa. Xin Chúa giúp chúng con biết thể
hiện lòng tốt và lòng thương xót đến với mọi người, ngay cả những người chúng
con không ưa thích và cà những người đã gây ra thiệt hại cho chúng con.
Reflection
(SG)
What would you do if Jesus knocked on your door and said, “I must
stay at your house today?” Would you be excited or embarrassed? Jesus
often “dropped-in” at unexpected times and he often visited the “uninvited” —
the poor, the lame, even public sinners like Zacchaeus, the tax collector! Tax
collectors were despised and treated as outcasts, no doubt because they
accumulated great wealth at the expense of others. Zacchaeus was a chief tax
collector and was much hated by all the people.
Zacchaeus needed God’s merciful love and in his encounter with
Jesus he found more than he imagined possible. He shows the depth of his
repentance by deciding to give half of his goods to the poor and to use the
other half for making restitution for fraud. Zacchaeus’ testimony included more
than words. His change of heart resulted in a change of life, a change that the
whole community could experience as genuine. The Lord is always ready to make
his home with us. We have to make room for him in our hearts and in our home,
so that he lives with us forever.
Lord, come and stay with me. Fill my home with your presence and
fill my heart with your praise. Help me to show kindness and mercy to all, even
those who cause me harm.
Tuesday
33rd Ordinary Time 2022
Opening Prayer: Lord Jesus, increase my faith and may your Kingdom come in
my heart and in the world.
Encountering Christ:
1. Suddenly: Today’s Gospel begins by telling us that
Zacchaeus suddenly appeared on Jesus’ radar: “Suddenly a man whose name was
Zacchaeus made his appearance.” While it may have seemed like it was sudden,
Jesus was prepared for this encounter. Perhaps he even anticipated this
encounter with great joy. Jesus told him, “Hurry down, for I am to stay at your
house today.” It was a sudden surprise for his Apostles and even for Zacchaeus,
but not for Jesus, who desired a familial and friendly encounter with an
apparent sinner, a tax collector. As in the case of Zacchaeus, Jesus can
surprise us suddenly. In his divine providence, he is always looking out for
opportunities to come to our house.
2. The Best Vantage Point: This passage leaves us room to imagine the
interior state of Zacchaeus. The evangelist tells us that “he ran ahead to
climb a sycamore tree to catch a glimpse of Jesus who was to pass that way.”
What caused this? What had he heard about Jesus beforehand? Perhaps he had been
anticipating Jesus’ arrival. Being a Jew, perhaps a spark of hope was ignited
in him, fueled by memories of his parents and grandparents’ faith in the coming
of a Messiah. Something interiorly moved him to seek the best vantage point. Just
a glimpse of Jesus would be enough for him. His handicap of being too short was
converted into an advantage that kindled devotion and he acted upon it. He was
perhaps better prepared to meet the Lord because of it.
3. The Encounter: When Zacchaeus was accused of being a
sinner, he defended himself. He shared with Jesus how he had tried to be a
righteous person. Jesus’ response was to profess that salvation had come to his
house. Jesus brings salvation. We must anticipate, desire, and open the door of
our house to him. What a great gift Zacchaeus had “suddenly” received. A
history of two thoursand years, since the time of Abraham, had prepared the way
for this encounter. Jesus professed to all who heard, “This man too is a son of
Abraham; for the son of man has come to seek out and save what was lost.” In
this encounter, a sinner was saved, a son of the chosen people, to be light for
others.
Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, thank you for the ways in which you come to my
rescue. You seek me out when I am lost. Enkindle in me the desire to anticipate
your coming and to open the way for you. Thank you for your mercy and
goodness.
Resolution: Lord, today by your grace I will reflect on the ways in which
divine providence has enkindled faith and hope in my life.
Tuesday
33rd Ordinary Time 2021
Opening Prayer: Good Jesus, I believe that you desire to spend this time
with me much more than I know. I also wish to be with you, to open my heart to
you, to receive your word, and to let you find and make your home in me. I trust
in you. I love you. Come Holy Spirit, help me to pray.
Encountering Christ:
·
A
Seeker: There seems to
be a contradiction in the first few lines of this passage. First, the
evangelist Luke told us that Jesus “intended to pass through the town.” Then,
“when Jesus reached the place,” he stopped. The reason his plans changed had a
name: Zacchaeus. This little man with a great heart had the power to “change”
Jesus’ course, to catch his eye. What was it in Zacchaeus’s heart that drew
Jesus to him? Or was it the other way around—what was it about Jesus of
Nazareth, a poor carpenter-turned-rabbi, a young but charismatic miracle
worker, that attracted wealthy and preoccupied Zacchaeus? This passage
expresses the timeless dynamic of the utter attraction of God to the soul who
seeks him. Zacchaeus was a seeker, and no obstacle, not even the hustling
crowds or his short stature, would keep him from that search.
·
Zacchaeus
Sought Jesus: Faith is kept alive
not only in spiritual dispositions. It takes flesh and grows through concrete
actions, daily choices. Zacchaeus sought Jesus in the midst of the crowd; he
persevered through the difficulties and sought to overcome them. He saw where
Jesus was going, ran ahead, and scurried up the tree, perching himself among
the branches both to see and, probably, to be seen. What could Zacchaeus’s
story have been had he never chosen and taken these actions? The Lord forever
invites, never forces his invitation. Zacchaeus’s proactivity opened his heart
to receive the Lord as he passed by.
·
Jesus
Sought Zacchaeus: None
of Zacchaeus’s efforts were lost on Jesus. What must have been in Jesus’ heart
as he set out on the road that day, knowing he would meet Zacchaeus? Did he see
him running ahead, finding just the right sycamore tree to hold him up and let
him see? How did he respond to Zacchaeus’s utter delight and surprise–almost
defiance before the incredulity of the crowds–insisting that his conversion was
real, that he was willing to amend his life and live his newfound faith with authenticity?
This is the faith that draws the heart of God to the sinner, to the child in
need—that was Zacchaeus and that is you and I.
Conversing with Christ: Jesus, you affirmed to Zacchaeus that you had come to seek
and to save the lost. You speak this truth to my heart, too: you never tire of
going out to seek me. I wish to seek you, too. Strengthen me by your grace to
take daily, concrete actions which will open my heart and help me to receive
your invitations. And may my faith, sincere though feeble, draw you to me, too.
I need you, Lord, and I need you to never tire of seeking me out.
Resolution: Lord,
today by your grace I will look for and take concrete actions that will
strengthen my faith and openness to you.
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