“Look, half of my possessions I will give to the poor; and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will pay back four times as much.”
It is our hope and prayer that these lines will be the high point of Janet Napoles’ appearance at the Senate investigation this coming Thursday.
How timely, indeed, that this Sunday’s Gospel is about Zaccheus, one of the most famous conversion stories in the Bible.
There are two prerequisites for the grace of conversion in this story. One, the desire to encounter Christ. Two, allowing Christ to enter our home.
There is a saying in Filipino: “Kapag gusto maraming paraan. Kapag ayaw maraming dahilan.” (People who are willing [to do things] find ways; the unwilling have many excuses.) Zaccheus most certainly displayed willingness to do things. His lack of height did not prevent him from seeing Christ in person. He overcomes this handicap by climbing a tree.
The willingness, or desire, and the effort are not left unnoticed. Christ recognizes these and rewards Zaccheus with the privilege of gracing his home. Zaccheus hurries down and joyfully welcomes Christ to his home.
Transformation
The challenges do not end there. The people who despise Zaccheus—he’s a tax collector for the Romans—criticize Christ. At the same time they condemn Zaccheus as not worthy of such an encounter.
Rather than be put down, it becomes a moment of transformation for Zaccheus. He does an act of reparation, giving back and giving more—proof of his conversion.
In the movie “Seabiscuit” horse trainer Tom Smith tells future horse owner and boss Charles Howard, “You don’t throw a whole life away just because he’s banged up a little”— referring to an injured horse he had saved from being shot and had nursed back to health.
Perhaps this is the third pre-requisite of conversion—another chance to redeem oneself, infused with understanding, acceptance, care and love.
Key moment
One of the key moments in my ministry as a priest happened over 10 years ago. I had become close to Rico Yan through a project for the youth in February 2001; we worked on iy for a whole year.
When he went through a personal crisis the following year, he confided in me and asked to be mentored. I will always remember what he told me: “I feel very comfortable talking to you because I know you will not judge me.”
It made me resolve to be present and to listen to people without judging them, even to see hope and the good in them.
This is the grace of Zaccheus’ encounter with Christ—the God of multiple chances who is always present for us and does not judge us. It led to Zaccheus’ transformation and conversion.
Inner self
In previous reflections, we looked at the meaning of conversion using the Filipino term “pagbabalik-loob,” a turning back into our inner self—that self which is essentially good and just waiting for another chance to be recognized.
This is the story of Zaccheus—leading people back into their inner good self, leading them home, to the heart where they encounter Christ who will always be present, lovingly, never in a judgmental way.
