As For You, Child of God, Just Love

Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Self Portrait

The 10th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Today’s Readings: [Click here]

If you’re like me, you probably get emails all the time from organizations telling you which politician or corporation or other famous person or group has done or said something really, really horrible. You might be urged to write a letter or make a phone call or maybe even participate in a boycott to put suitable pressure on the villain of the week.

That’s the thought that occurred to me when I read this week’s gospel. Here were the Pharisees, whispering urgently into the ears of the disciples of Jesus: “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” (Mt 9:11). The unsaid next sentence being, of course: “Why don’t you talk to him and get him to stop doing that!”

To the Jews of Christ’s day, the tax collector, or gabbai as he was called in Hebrew, was a social and spiritual outcast. The gabbayim were lumped together with gentiles, sinners, murderers and thieves. Pharisees wouldn’t even allow the hem of their robe to touch one of them. And of course, not all the tax collectors were innocent victims. Most of them were untrustworthy and willing participants in an unjust economic system that exploited the Jewish people—their own people!

In case you’re wondering, let me tell you about some of the tax burdens that fell upon the Jews. Besides the regular taxes that everyone paid regardless of religion, there was a “protection” tax that had to be paid for every Jew over the age of 12. There was a special “coronation” tax that was collected whenever a new emperor, king or prince ascended his throne. And then, there was the so-called “Jewish body-tax” which Jewish travelers were forced to pay to the local authorities as they passed through a city. This was supposedly required to provide a military escort to protect them against robbers. When a Jew died, there was an “escort tax” to be paid on the way to the cemetery and yes, a special burial tax, too. An in some places, there were still other extraordinary taxes. For example, in one place, the Jews were taxed to supply all the parchment needed by the local tetrarch. In another city, their taxes bought pots and pans for the local official’s kitchen. So you can see why the Jewish tax collector was so despised by his own people… especially since he added to their burden by demanding more than just the tax, as a way to pay his own salary.

But amazingly, Jesus cared deeply for these clever thieves. He called Matthew to become one of his closest disciples. He invited himself to the home of Zacchaeus (Lk 19:5)—not just a Jewish tax collector, but the chief tax collector!

If you want to understand the love of God—and even better yet, model your life on it—it’s important to grasp the significance of Jesus’ deliberate outreach to tax collectors. When it comes to sinners, the church is definitely not saying, “Three strikes and you’re out!” Rather, Jesus’ lesson is this: when someone seems to you to be the worst kind of sinner—as traitorous and dishonest as a tax collector—then treat that person exactly the way Christ treated the tax collector… as the very person he was most eager to befriend. Leave it to others, if necessary, to find a way to bring him or her home. As Jesus says today: “Go and learn the meaning of the words, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ I did not come to call the righteous but sinners” (Mt 9:13).

I find it very significant that only Matthew records these words of Jesus, comparing sinners in the church to tax collectors. As a redeemed tax collector, he would have understood immediately that Jesus was teaching us to see the sinner as one of us: a lost sheep in need of God’s grace… one Jesus was willing to go out and search for and bring back home.

There was a well-known poet and artist of the mid-1800’s by the name of Dante Gabriel Rossetti. One day, an elderly man approached him and asked him to look at some sketches and drawings and tell him if they were any good, or if they at least showed potential talent. Rossetti looked them over carefully. After the first few, he knew they were worthless, showing not the least sign of artistic talent. But Rossetti was a kind man, and he told the elderly man as gently as possible that the pictures were without much value and showed little talent. He was sorry, but he couldn’t lie to the man.

The visitor was disappointed, but seemed to expect Rossetti’s judgment. He apologized for taking up his time, but would he just look at a few more drawings—these done by a young art student? Rossetti looked over the second batch of sketches and immediately became enthusiastic over the talent they revealed. “These,” he said, “oh, these are very good! This young artist has great talent. He should be given every help and encouragement in his career as an artist. He has a great future if he will work hard and stick to it.” Rossetti could see that the old fellow was deeply moved. “Who is this fine young artist?” he asked. “Your son?”

“No,” said the old man sadly. “It is me forty years ago. If only I had heard your praise then! For you see, I got discouraged and gave up—too soon.”

Jesus says, “I desire mercy, not sacrifice. I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.” As his disciples, it is up to us to be his loving presence in the world—encouraging people, welcoming them, lifting them up, loving them no matter how unlovable the rest of the world says they may be. Leave it to others to send letters and emails of vilification… to stage boycotts… to refuse communion… to reprove others for their words or beliefs or actions that you don’t like. As for you, child of God, just love. Follow in the steps of Jesus, and you won’t be far from the kingdom of God.