From The Bishop

The Collect for the Thirty-First Sunday in Ordinary time states, “Almighty and merciful God, by whose gift your faithful offer you right and praiseworthy service, grant, we pray, that we may hasten without stumbling to receive the things you have promised.” When we consider the Readings for this Sunday, we see that the last part of this prayer seems to describe quite beautifully what is happening in the Gospel (Lk. 19:1-10). Zacchaeus, who quickly descends from a sycamore tree, runs with haste to Jesus and receives salvation. Why did he climb a tree? We are told that, “He was trying to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was short in stature.” When he saw the Lord, he joyfully responded to His invitation, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today.” St. Augustine states, “You have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless, until they can find rest in you.” All people have written on their hearts the desire, like Zacchaeus, to “see Jesus”. The problem is that they just do not realize this reality. They are spiritually “short in stature” and do not see. They often “stumble” as they hasten to follow many things that will not lead them to Jesus and their salvation. There can be many “crowds” that prevent us from seeing. What we need is the sycamore tree. The Church, that helps us to see Jesus, is that “tree”. Through her sacramental life, teaching, preaching, and the holiness of her members, the Church helps us to see and know the Lord and respond to His invitation, “hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today.” As the branches of that great tree, let us offer support to all those who need to see the Lord.