Proper 25. October 23, 2022

Luke 18:9-14

Rev. Neli ML

 

“Praised (be the Lord) that He did not make me a heathen, for all the heathens are as nothing before Him… praised be He, that He did not make me a woman, for woman is not under obligation to fulfill the law; praised by He that He did not make me ... an uneducated man, for the uneducated man is not cautious to avoid sins.”[i]

This was a prayer taught by Rabbi Judah (second century C.E.) to be said every day and portrays a Jewish mentality of exclusivity amid humanity. Notice that it excludes all those who are not Jews and all women from God’s favor.

 In today’s Gospel we read a similar prayer coming from a Pharisee, “God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector…” (18:11).

In the parable told by Jesus two persons, a pharisee and a tax collector, approach God in prayer. From the beginning, we are told that this parable is addressed to those who believed themselves to be righteous and regarded others with contempt, that is, the Pharisees.  The Pharisees constituted one of the most representative lay groups of Jewish piety and played a very important role in shaping Jewish spirituality after the exile. They were recognized for their strict teachings and observance of the Law and for their contempt for all those who did not comply. In the Gospels, Jesus criticized the Pharisees’ religiosity that locked people out of the Kingdom of God, and Jesus pointed out their hypocrisy because they tithed even the smallest things but neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice, mercy, and faith (Mt 23).

The Pharisee in the parable, trusting himself to be righteous, approaches God with arrogance. First, he thanks God for not being like other people who are thieves, rogues, adulterers…  and perhaps looking sideways, the Pharisee adds, “. . .or even like this tax collector.” Then, he presents an impressive resume of his compliance with the Law. By complying strictly with the Law, the Pharisee became he is his own god... and he no longer needs God. He does not give God the glory but exalts himself.

On the other hand, the tax collector, standing far off, does not even dare to look up to heaven. He approaches God with humility and contrition. He knows his own unworthiness and identifies with exactly what the Pharisee considered him to be, a sinner. Tax collectors were hated and considered sinners and traitors for collecting taxes for the Romans. Many were also dishonest and, by abusing of the system, they extorted their own people. Thus, beating his breast as a sign of contrition, he can only say, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner!”

Dear sisters and brothers, it is quite possible that had we lived in Jesus’s time, we would have considered the Pharisee a hero and referent of a pious person. Perhaps we would have also treated the tax collector with contempt, and had we been asked to make a judgment, it would have been in favor of the Pharisee.  Yet, the conclusion of the parable strikes our social and religious conventions because it was the tax collector who found God’s favor and returned home justified rather than the Pharisee. The tax collector asked for mercy and God granted it; the Pharisee asked for nothing… he only gloated over his good practices.

The key term in this conclusion is “justified” which means that a person is freed from his/her guilt and declared righteous. This justification comes from God not from the Law, that is, human works. The tax collector received God’s justification while the Pharisee trusted himself to be righteous.

Yesterday and today’s Pharisees are essentially the same. These are people who rely on their own religiosity and gloat over their religious practices. They believe they are always right and that they exclusively possess “the truth”, using it to judge and condemn others—they are saints while despising others.

Sisters and brothers, how do we approach God today? Do we need God or are we satisfied with our own righteousness? Do we condemn or despise others because they are different?

Today, Jesus teaches us that we do not need a religiosity to approach God. We need  spirituality where justice, mercy, and faith prevail. Jesus also teaches us that the Kingdom of God is open to all, especially to those who are hated, despised, and needy.

May our proclamation, as disciples of Jesus, be liberating and may it open the doors of the Kingdom of God for all! Amen.

 

 

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[i] Quoted by Bernard Brandon Scott in Hear then the Parable, p. 95, from Eta Linnemann in Jesus of the Parables (t. Ber. 7.18; p.59)