The Pharisee spoke this prayer to himself,
‘O God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of humanity —
greedy, dishonest, adulterous – or even like this tax collector.’
But the tax collector beat his breast and prayed,
‘O God, be merciful to me a sinner.’ Luke 18:9-14
30th SUNDAY Ordinary Time Cycle C
Sometimes we question God’s justice why in life some bad people get more luck than the good ones. This is portrayed in the following story about the good bishop and his simple driver. Both had died in the car accident due to the reckless impudence of the driver. Nevertheless, both arrived in heaven. And in the first assembly of the saints everyone gathered in the big celestial auditorium. The bishop was assigned a seat up in the far balcony. Looking around however, he was surprised to see his driver seated in the front row within the easy reach of the Blessed Trinity. The bishop asked the angel who had ushered him to explain why he was seated so far while his driver was seated so near. The angel replied: “My dear bishop your long and boring homilies lulled the congregation to sleep in the mass making them unable to pray. Meanwhile your driver due to his reckless driving kept his passengers wide awake, all the time praying during the entire trip.” That was reason plausible enough albeit not quite obvious to the ordinary person.
God’s justice is like that. Most of the time God acts for a reason that is not evident to human understanding. Why does a druglord get to repent and become a eucharistic minister? Why does a serial killer gets baptized in prison and washed away of his heinous sins?
The gospel today is one evidence of God’s unique kind of justice with an intriguing end. It concludes that the Publican who usurped money from his countrymen went home justified while the Pharisee who never failed to contribute temple tax did not. The explanation for the final justification is also not obvious.
But upon closer examination we realize that the Pharisee did not pray to God at all but only talked to himself exalting oneself for paying dues regularly. The Pharisee was not praying to God but praising himself. While the Publican, although he did not even look at God, nonetheless prayed to Him sincerely asking forgiveness for all his sins. The Pharisee furthermore oppressed the Publican as greedy, dishonest and adulterous. He was clearly an oppressor of the Publican who was humbled so often and just beat his breast and prayed.
This gets clearer in Sirach. In the first reading we hear that God plays no favorites. However He listens closely to the oppressed and the lowly – like the Publican – and especially those who serve God willingly – not like the Pharisee who served himself more than God. Sir 35:12-14, 16-18
The response of the Responsorial Psalm resonates the same idea. The Lord hears the cry of the poor. Ps 34:2-3, 17-18, 19, 23
The serial killer who was called by God to conversion while in prison was killed by a fellow prison, who also claimed that the same God gave him a mission to punish the serial killer. Is it not strange that one would kill on behalf of God? It is terrible at times that man could misinterpret the justice of God. For it is true what St Paul has asked who has known the mind of God or has been His counselor.
Thus it is explained why God favored the Publican over the Pharisee.
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