My Monologuejs with Zacchaeus (Lk 19)
Dear Zacchaeus,I want you to know I like you a lot as we have a couple of things in common!
To begin with, I am thrilled to let you know that I am as tall as you! I mean, almost!
I don't know if there is any male adult in the whole of Bible who is as tall as you, right?
Sure, there might have been at least a few, I just don't know!
I wish there were many more like you in the Bible!
It would have provided us with a much bigger Support Group, Isn't so?
It makes me proud that I am able to stand "shoulder to shoulder" with a VIP like yourself!
Great!
Thank you, Mr. Zacchaeus!
By the way, dear Friend, as a growing up boy in your adolescent years, have you ever felt disappointed or depressed because of your hight?
Did your cousins and classmates make fun of you, bully you?
I have been through all that!
You bet!
So I can understand, to some extend, if you had been through similar situations!
As a growing up adolescent boy, I had desperately wanted to be taller and tried all sorts of things like putting myself through all kinds of rigorous physical exercise, etc.! but of no avail!
Then I did try some of those quick fix tricks like footwears with thicker soles.
It didn't help either as it wasn't that practical!All along, my grandfather used to tell me that as a child I had an attack of a mild sort of polio which adversely affected my physical growth.
I was not able to walk properly even at the age of Four!
He used to keep reminding me, "Forget about the height or the lack of it! you better be glad and be grateful at least you are able to walk....!"
So as to comfort me and encourage me, he also kept telling me, "precious gifts, like diamonds, usually, come in small packets!!!"
Oh, boy, that, sure, was a great boost indeed!
It did help me much to lift my drooping spirit!
Gradually, but steadily, I began to accept the reality!
Dear friend, Zacchaeus, today I am proud of my height! especially with the company of people like yourself!OK, that's all, for the lighter vein!
Dear friend, just as any young man of your age, you too must have wished and wanted to make lots of money, if possible some quick bucks, Right?
You must have been very efficient as well as effective and your Roman Rulers must have been impressed with your capabilities, Isn't it?
It, sure, did help you climb up the ladder of power and position and became the Chief Tax Collector! IMy Monologous with Zacchaeus (Lk 19)
Dear Zacchaeus, I want you to know I like you a lot as we have a couple of things in common!
To begin with, I am thrilled to let you know that I am as tall as you! I mean, almost!
I don't know if there is any male adult in the whole of Bible who is as tall as you, right? Sure, there might have been at least a few, I just don't know! I wish there were many more like you in the Bible! It would have provided us with a much bigger Support Group, Isn't so?
It makes me proud that I am able to stand "shoulder to shoulder" with a VIP like yourself!
Great!
Thank you, Mr. Zacchaeus!
By the way, dear Friend, as a growing up boy in your adolescent years, have you ever felt disappointed or depressed because of your hight? Did your cousins and classmates make fun of you, bully you?
I have been through all that!
You bet!
So I can understand, to some extend, if you had been through similar situations!
As a growing up adolescent boy, I had desperately wanted to be taller and tried all sorts of things like putting myself through all kinds of rigorous physical exercise, etc.!
but of no avail!
Then I did try some of those quick fix tricks like footwears with thicker soles. It didn't help either as it wasn't that practical!
All along, my grandfather used to tell me that as a child I had an attack of a mild sort of polio which adversely affected my physical growth. I was not able to walk properly even at the age of Four!
He used to keep reminding me,
"Forget about the height or the lack of it! you better be glad and be grateful at least you are able to walk....!"
So as to comfort me and encourage me, he also kept telling me,
"precious gifts, like diamonds, usually, come in small packets!!!"
Oh, boy, that, sure, was a great boost indeed!
It did help me much to lift my drooping spirit! Gradually, but steadily, I began to accept the reality!
Dear friend, Zacchaeus, today I am proud of my height! especially with the company of people like yourself!
OK, that's all, for the lighter vein!
Dear friend, just as any young man of your age, you too must have wished and wanted to make lots of money, if possible some quick bucks, Right?
You must have been very efficient as well as effective and your Roman Rulers must have been impressed with your capabilities, Isn't it?
It, sure, did help you climb up the ladder of power and position and became the Chief Tax Collector!
In course of time, through your own hard work and ingenious ways, you became very rich, Didn't you?
The richer you became, the people around you harboured more and more hateful and spiteful feelings towards you because the tax collectors, usually, made themselves rich by gouging on their fellow Jews, Right?
Sure, they might not have expressed it directly as they were wary of you! They knew very well you were protected by the powerful and ruthless Roman Army!
Certainly, you must have instilled fear and hate in the common people whom you fleeced and forced to cough up more money!
But doubtful, if you could ever inspire them to be respectful and loving towards you, Could you?
Your ill-gotten wealth did not bring in much love, acceptance, and recognition which you longed for, as we all do, Don't we?
A kind of void and loneliness began to creep into your mind and heart, Right?
Dear Friend Zacchaeus, amassing wealth through the unjust extortion resulted in alienating yourself from your fellow Jews. This in turn triggered a sort of meaninglessness in your life, Isn't so?
Slowly, yet increasingly, your initial insatiable craving for money and wealth began to be on the wane.
As all these internal turmoil was going on within yourself, you came to know of the presence of Jesus in town. I guess, you had heard of him earlier, Haven't you?
A curious wish was born in you, just to have a glance of him, Right?
Your initial wish gathered strength and grew into a burning desire and turned itself into an earnest urge which compelled you to climb up the Sycamore Tree, just to have a closer look at Jesus, the Messiah.
Dear Friend, Zacchaeus, looking at my life, to a great extent, I am able to identify myself with your dire determination to get rich and to be accepted in your community.
In my thirties and forties, I was determined, like you, to achieve the top-notch lot in my graduate and research studies as well as in Teaching and Parish ministries. Wherever I found myself, at home or abroad, hell or high water, I kept on trying to capture the attention and the admiration of people around. I was determined to do it even the expense of others. I was rather successful in gaining the attention, the admiration, and the love I sought after.
It made me chuckle!
Gradually, something similar to what you went through, a sense of glut began to gather within myself! Occasionally a thought or two would cross my mind as it happened to you and would take me to my Sycamore Tree, to climb and have a peak of you!
In a sense, I have climbed many of my "Sycamore Trees" umpteen times. I guess, I have done it at times as a seminarian, as an energetic young priest and even as a senior priest especially right after an Annual Retreat or so. Whenever I had climbed the Sycamore Trees of my life on various occasions and in different locations, without fail, the Lord has stopped by and had called me out and has got himself invited into my life!
So far so good, right, my Friend Zacchaeus?
Full Stop!
Unfortunately, my Friend, here ends the similarity between the two of us!
Remember, me mentioning at the start that we have a couple of things in common?
That's It!
But unlike you, my Friend Zacchaeus, I am afraid, I haven't subjected myself to any radical change as I lapse and relapse to keep on living more less the same sort of lifestyle as before!
I keep telling the Lord and to myself of my so- called determination to change!
But without much a substantial change!
I am afraid and ashamed to admit:
I could only talk the talk but not walk the walk!
You, my Friend, did change outright and openly.
You did the talk and you did the walk!
But not me, I did not change out right..
You, my Friend, did completely break from your past lifestyle of sin and corruption, Right?
But not me, I didn't make a clean break from my sinful past.
You, my Friend, did quit your job which kept on perpetrating injustice and exploitation of your own fellow Jews.
But not me, I was content with making some cosmetic changes of my wayward ways.
That's all!
I have yet to reform radically and to change many areas of my erring life.
I feel it's high time to make that radical change even as I am into the final phase of my life!
You were very genuine in repenting and generous in making restitution.
But not me, I keep doing it in a half -hearted manner.
So, my Friend Zacchaeus, though we do share something things in common, I am afraid, we do differ in many ways, Don't we?
But I want to keep working on having a radical change as you had.
I do look up to you as a role model of radical change!
Do keep on inspiring me!
Now, once again, back to the bottom of the Sycamore Tree.
How did you feel like when you were, so to say, caught unawares by the Lord?
Did you feel:
embarrassed?
shocked?
surprised?
awesome?
confused?
overjoyed?
a mishmash of all the above?
Did you expect from Jesus a dressing down for extorting of the poor?
Did you fear to be booed and jeered at by the unsympathetic crowd?
But none of such things happened, Right?
Instead, you must have been surprised and overwhelmed with joy when he told he is coming to your home, Didn't you?
His outright unconditional acceptance of you did melt away your avarice and arrogance and did mould you into a new man of repentance and renewal.
Unbelievable indeed!
You were ready and willing to make recompense much more than the legal requirement.
Your unbridled greed to amass wealth was replaced by your unreserved willingness to make restitution.
Oh, my Friend, Zacchaeus, your repentance was not limited to pious prayers and rituals. You remind me that real repentance is not limited to 'head and heart' alone, but it has to end up in genuine action leading to a change of attitudes and behaviours. You showed it with your decision to shed all the ill-gotten wealth.
My Friend Zacchaeus, you did switch your loyalty once for all, from Mammon to the Messiah!
You turned yourself into a true turncoat,
Didn't you?
Now, I am curious to know:
What happened to you after the Happiest Day in your life?
Did you decide to follow Jesus and become one of his disciples as some of the traditions would indicate?
Were you chosen to fill in the void created by Judas Iscariot?
Were you given the name Matthias?
As they say, did you became the Bishop of Caesarea?
Whatever might be the case, one thing is certain: My Friend Zacchaeus,
You became a 'New Creation', Right?
Dear Friend, Zacchaeus, your
'heart of stone' was replaced by a 'heart of flesh'
Now I want to spend some time with you:
in silence.......!
Please, I would love to listen to you!
Narrate to me your new vision of life!
Dear Jesus, My Lord and My God,
How caring and concerned you were as you stopped by the Sycamore Tree!
You, truly, sought after a Lost Sheep, Didn't you? You never ever broached the subject of his unjust and cruel profession of systematic extortion of the ordinary folks.On the other hand,
You concentrated on Zacchaeus, the person who was branded and bracketed as one among the 'tax collectors and sinners.'
You gave him attention and acceptance.
You never preached him to repent, Did you?
You never threatened with Divine Punishment!
You never asked for reparation and restitution!
You gave him unrequited love and won him over!
You forgave him!
You announced, "salvation has come this house!"
You rehabilitated him as a "son of Abraham!"
You gave Zacchaeus Unconditional Love!
He gave you back Unconditional Apology and Unreserved Restitution!
You did seek and save Zacchaeus, the Lost Sheep
Jesus, my Lord and my God, you have, on your own, come into my life and offered me the same Unrequited Love over and over!
But I haven't yet responded you as Zacchaeus did Yet you keep offering me the very same Unconditional Love and keep waiting for my Unconditional Surrender!
Innumerable are the times you have come and sought me and saved me!
Yet I kept on going astray!
And you kept on coming after!
As the "Hound of Heaven."
My Lord and my God,
You are the Good Shepherd!
My Lord and my God,
I want to spend some time in your presence in silence!
Let the thought: you are seeking me to save me....
Let this thought sink in me and I be soaked in it...
"Speak Lord, your servant is listening. ."
Amen
JoAchen
Tuesday, October 21st, 2014
PS.
These Reflections are neither pure scientific exegetical interpretations nor highly theological explanations. They are my devotional meditations mainly meant for my personal renewal and spiritual growth and thereby helping me to come closer to my God and to my fellow humans.
Dear Reader, as I keep holding you in my daily prayers, I request you to do the same for me.
Thank you!
n course of time, through your own hard work and ingenious ways, you became very rich, Didn't you? The richer you became, the people around you harboured more and more hateful and spiteful feelings towards you because the tax collectors, usually, made themselves rich by gouging on their fellow Jews, Right? Sure, they might not have expressed it directly as they were wary of you! They knew very well you were protected by the powerful and ruthless Roman Army! Certainly, you must have instilled fear and hate in the common people whom you fleeced and forced to cough up more money! But doubtful, if you could ever inspire them to be respectful and loving towards you, Could you? Your ill-gotten wealth did not bring in much love, acceptance, and recognition which you longed for, as we all do, Don't we? A kind of void and loneliness began to creep into your mind and heart, Right? Dear Friend Zacchaeus, amassing wealth through the unjust extortion resulted in alienating yourself from your fellow Jews. This in turn triggered a sort of meaninglessness in your life, Isn't so? Slowly, yet increasingly, your initial insatiable craving for money and wealth began to be on the wane. As all these internal turmoil was going on within yourself, you came to know of the presence of Jesus in town. I guess, you had heard of him earlier, Haven't you? A curious wish was born in you, just to have a glance of him, Right? Your initial wish gathered strength and grew into a burning desire and turned itself into an earnest urge which compelled you to climb up the Sycamore Tree, just to have a closer look at Jesus, the Messiah.Dear Friend, Zacchaeus, looking at my life, to a great extent, I am able to identify myself with your dire determination to get rich and to be accepted in your community.In my thirties and forties, I was determined, like you, to achieve the top-notch lot in my graduate and research studies as well as in Teaching and Parish ministries. Wherever I found myself, at home or abroad, hell or high water, I kept on trying to capture the attention and the admiration of people around. I was determined to do it even the expense of others. I was rather successful in gaining the attention, the admiration, and the love I sought after. It made me chuckle!Gradually, something similar to what you went through, a sense of glut began to gather within myself! Occasionally a thought or two would cross my mind as it happened to you and would take me to my Sycamore Tree, to climb and have a peak of you!In a sense, I have climbed many of my "Sycamore Trees" umpteen times. I guess, I have done it at times as a seminarian, as an energetic young priest and even as a senior priest especially right after an Annual Retreat or so. Whenever I had climbed the Sycamore Trees of my life on various occasions and in different locations, without fail, the Lord has stopped by and had called me out and has got himself invited into my life! So far so good, right, my Friend Zacchaeus?Full Stop!Unfortunately, my Friend, here ends the similarity between the two of us! Remember, me mentioning at the start that we have a couple of things in common? That's It!But unlike you, my Friend Zacchaeus, I am afraid, I haven't subjected myself to any radical change as I lapse and relapse to keep on living more less the same sort of lifestyle as before!I keep telling the Lord and to myself of my so- called determination to change!But without much a substantial change!I am afraid and ashamed to admit:I could only talk the talk but not walk the walk!You, my Friend, did change outright and openly. You did the talk and you did the walk!But not me, I did not change out right..You, my Friend, did completely break from your past lifestyle of sin and corruption, Right? But not me, I didn't make a clean break from my sinful past.You, my Friend, did quit your job which kept on perpetrating injustice and exploitation of your own fellow Jews.But not me, I was content with making some cosmetic changes of my wayward ways. That's all!I have yet to reform radically and to change many areas of my erring life.I feel it's high time to make that radical change even as I am into the final phase of my life!You were very genuine in repenting and generous in making restitution.But not me, I keep doing it in a half -hearted manner.So, my Friend Zacchaeus, though we do share something things in common, I am afraid, we do differ in many ways, Don't we? But I want to keep working on having a radical change as you had.I do look up to you as a role model of radical change!Do keep on inspiring me!
Now, once again, back to the bottom of the Sycamore Tree.How did you feel like when you were, so to say, caught unawares by the Lord?Did you feel:embarrassed? shocked?surprised?awesome? confused?overjoyed?a mishmash of all the above?Did you expect from Jesus a dressing down for extorting of the poor?Did you fear to be booed and jeered at by the unsympathetic crowd?But none of such things happened, Right?Instead, you must have been surprised and overwhelmed with joy when he told he is coming to your home, Didn't you? His outright unconditional acceptance of you did melt away your avarice and arrogance and did mould you into a new man of repentance and renewal. Unbelievable indeed! You were ready and willing to make recompense much more than the legal requirement. Your unbridled greed to amass wealth was replaced by your unreserved willingness to make restitution.Oh, my Friend, Zacchaeus, your repentance was not limited to pious prayers and rituals. You remind me that real repentance is not limited to 'head and heart' alone, but it has to end up in genuine action leading to a change of attitudes and behaviours. You showed it with your decision to shed all the ill-gotten wealth. My Friend Zacchaeus, you did switch your loyalty once for all, from Mammon to the Messiah! You turned yourself into a true turncoat, Didn't you?Now, I am curious to know: What happened to you after the Happiest Day in your life?Did you decide to follow Jesus and become one of his disciples as some of the traditions would indicate?Were you chosen to fill in the void created by Judas Iscariot? Were you given the name Matthias?As they say, did you became the Bishop of Caesarea?Whatever might be the case, one thing is certain: My Friend Zacchaeus, You became a 'New Creation', Right?Dear Friend, Zacchaeus, your 'heart of stone' was replaced by a 'heart of flesh'Now I want to spend some time with you: in silence.......!Please, I would love to listen to you! Narrate to me your new vision of life!
Dear Jesus, My Lord and My God, How caring and concerned you were as you stopped by the Sycamore Tree! You, truly, sought after a Lost Sheep, Didn't you? You never ever broached the subject of his unjust and cruel profession of systematic extortion of the ordinary folks.On the other hand,You concentrated on Zacchaeus, the person who was branded and bracketed as one among the 'tax collectors and sinners.' You gave him attention and acceptance. You never preached him to repent, Did you?You never threatened with Divine Punishment! You never asked for reparation and restitution!You gave him unrequited love and won him over!You forgave him!You announced, "salvation has come this house!"You rehabilitated him as a "son of Abraham!" You gave Zacchaeus Unconditional Love!He gave you back Unconditional Apology and Unreserved Restitution!You did seek and save Zacchaeus, the Lost SheepJesus, my Lord and my God, you have, on your own, come into my life and offered me the same Unrequited Love over and over!But I haven't yet responded you as Zacchaeus did Yet you keep offering me the very same Unconditional Love and keep waiting for my Unconditional Surrender! Innumerable are the times you have come and sought me and saved me!Yet I kept on going astray! And you kept on coming after!As the "Hound of Heaven."My Lord and my God, You are the Good Shepherd!My Lord and my God, I want to spend some time in your presence in silence!Let the thought: you are seeking me to save me....Let this thought sink in me and I be soaked in it..."Speak Lord, your servant is listening. ."AmenJoAchen Tuesday, October 21st, 2014
PS.These Reflections are neither pure scientific exegetical interpretations nor highly theological explanations. They are my devotional meditations mainly meant for my personal renewal and spiritual growth and thereby helping me to come closer to my God and to my fellow humans. Dear Reader, as I keep holding you in my daily prayers, I request you to do the same for me.Thank you!
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