MERCY AND SALVATION.
October 30, 2022.
Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time – C.
“‘He has gone to stay at a
sinner’s house’... ‘Today salvation has come to this house, because this man
too is a son of Abraham; for the Son of Man has come to seek out and save what
was lost.’”
A Latin proverb says: “The
knowledge of sin is the beginning of salvation.” And a Filipino proverb adds:
“Mercy resides in God; deeds are in men.”
The mercy of God is what opens us
to salvation. Without the Lord to forgive us, we all remain in our sins and so
doomed to damnation. God's mercy is always at work in us. It goes ahead and
seeks us where we are getting lost in our sins. The Holy Scriptures are filled
with signs and expressions of the mercy of God. From the book of Genesis to
that of Revelation passing through the Gospels, we see that it is God's mercy
at work that gives meaning to the human story. When sin has invaded humanity
and turned our eyes and hearts away from God, it is his mercy that brings us
back and shows us the right way we should live. The Holy Scriptures sing God’s
mercy and call humankind to conversion.
“Jesus calls to conversion. This
call is an essential part of the proclamation of the kingdom: "The time is
fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe in the
gospel." In the Church's preaching this call is addressed first to those
who do not yet know Christ and his Gospel. Also, Baptism is the principal place
for the first and fundamental conversion. It is by faith in the Gospel and by
Baptism that one renounces evil and gains salvation, that is, the forgiveness
of all sins and the gift of new life.” CCC 1427
The Wiseman in today's first
reading invites us to contemplate the mercy of God as an expression of his
love. He says God is merciful to all because he loves all that exists. His
mercy consists in overlooking men’s sins so that they can repent. If the Lord
should count our iniquities, no one will stand before him. But his mercy is
great. He does not look our down falling. He forgives and reconciles us to him.
The Gospel shows that mercy is at
work in Jesus. The episode of Zacchaeus welcoming the Lord into his house is
one proof of the Lord's mercy. We read that the Lord was passing by Jericho.
And a public sinner, a chief tax collector named Zacchaeus who was wishing to
see him but could not because of the crowd and short size ran ahead, climb a
tree, and waited for him. Seeing that effort of the man and his inner
disposition to repent (to see Jesus), the Lord not only made himself his guest
but forgave him, shutting the mouth of the complaining Pharisees: "He has
gone to stay at a sinner’s house."
Zacchaeus' greatest act of
repentance was a promise of reparation: "Look, sir, I am going to give
half my property to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody I will pay him back
four times the amount." God's mercy always moves the heart of sinners to
repair their offenses.
One aspect of the Sacrament of
reconciliation we do not so much pay attention to is that reparation. It is not
enough to accuse oneself of sins and ask for absolution. We must also repair
the offense made, either like Zacchaeus, restituting what we have taken as
material or going to apologize to the one we offended by our action. This side
of the Sacrament of Reconciliation asks for great humility. It is out of
humility one can turn to the offended and say, 'I'm sorry, forgive me. I did
you wrong let me pay you back...' or a thief going and giving back what he has
stolen.
Restitution should be promoted in
our relationship with God and with each other. Through that, forgiveness will
not pass only for a theoretical act, but something that impacts our lives. And
it is at that cost salvation will be effective for us.
If we want to be worthy of the
Lord's call and fulfill the desire for goodness, we should add restitution to
our contrition. For, if forgiveness requires sincere contrition, the
effectiveness of mercy passes also through restitution and promise of
reparation. That is what makes the journey of conversion singular and
beautiful. That is the way of salvation, an amendment from sin, an expression
of genuine faith. The Lord will come. We know not the day. He will pass by the
road of our lives. Like Zacchaeus, let us be eager to run ahead of him, climb
the tree of repentance and see him passing by.
And we could end with the Catechism saying: “Christ's call to conversion continues to resound in the lives of Christians. This second conversion is an uninterrupted task for the whole Church who, "clasping sinners to her bosom, (is) at once holy and always in need of purification, (and) follows constantly the path of penance and renewal." This endeavor of conversion is not just a human work. It is the movement of a "contrite heart," drawn and moved by grace to respond to the merciful love of God who loved us first.” St. Peter's conversion after he had denied his master three times bears witness to this. Jesus' look of infinite mercy drew tears of repentance from Peter and, after the Lord's resurrection, a threefold affirmation of love for him. The second conversion also has a communitarian dimension, as is clear in the Lord's call to a whole Church: "Repent!" St. Ambrose says of the two conversions that, in the Church, "there are water and tears: the water of Baptism and the tears of repentance".” CCC 1428-1429 May we open ourselves day after day to repentance and sincere conversion, and that is what will give meaning to the perfection of joy in heaven and our salvation.
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