OVERLOOKING SINS - 10/30/22 (Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time)

Luke 19:1–4

He entered Jericho and was passing through. And there was a man named Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector, and rich. And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could not, on account of the crowd, because he was small of stature. So he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him, for he was to pass that way.

For the full readings, click here: 

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/103022.cfm

Blessed Sunday! Overlooking our sins can be understood in different ways if we look at two different perspectives, the perspective of man and the perspective of God. Zaccheaus was a tax collector who became a wealthy man. Tax collectors, during the time of Jesus, were not honest with the people because they were asking for more money than what was really needed, despite the fact that there were also many poor people. The fact that Zaccheaus was rich and that he was a chief tax collector meant that he was overlooking his sins. He was unable to see how sinful his actions were which made him continue doing what he was doing. This can also be the case for us. We can overlook our sins when we become unaware of them. How can we focus on our spiritual life and holiness if we are focused on worldly things and achievements? How can we help the poor if we are focused on our own riches? How can we avoid sins such as using the name of God in vain, like when we say ,"Oh My God" and many more, if we are unaware of how wrong it is to say such words due to the sacredness of God's name? 

The truth is that we cannot see these things on our own. We need inspiration and grace from God to have true knowledge of oneself. This is where it's important to look as to how God overlooks our sins. He does not do it in the same way we do. He's aware of all of our imperfections and weaknesses, even more than we are aware of ourselves. We can see the effects of our sins, but we cannot see our hearts and souls as God sees them. When God sees our sins, because of His mercy for us, He does not judge us immediately. He overlooks our sins in so far as He sees our potential to be better. Because of this, He is giving us new opportunities to repent of them and to do what is pleasing to God. Our Lord is giving us His strength, especially through prayers and sacraments, to change. This is what we see in the life of Zaccheaus. Jesus saw Zaccheaus ' effort and humility, and because of this, our Lord decided to come to his home. This represents God's mercy because He still dwells in the home of our hearts despite our sins. As our Lord tells us, He comes to save those who are spiritually sick and the lost. He came for us, sinners. When we commit sins, let's be aware of them, repent and not be discouraged because God is merciful. May we take this as an opportunity to renew our love for Him. By believing in Jesus and living out our faith in Him through good works, we have the hope of eternal life. 

Amen +

Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, be with us always until the hour of our death. Amen. +

 

May the Lord + bless us, protect us from all evil and bring us to everlasting life. Amen. +  

Reflection by: Dominic

Summary and Defense of Catholic Teachings:

https://www.catholic.com/tract/pillar-of-fire-pillar-of-truth

Ultimate Catholic Parents Guide:

https://youtube.com/watch?v=Ls6IcexZAls

Examination of Conscience and Guide to Sacrament of Confession:

https://mycatholic.life/catholic-prayers/examination-of-conscience/