{"id":4666,"date":"2013-11-03T17:07:00","date_gmt":"2013-11-03T17:07:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.catholicnewsagency.com\/news\/pope-praises-ridiculous-tax-collector-who-sought-jesus\/"},"modified":"2013-11-03T17:07:00","modified_gmt":"2013-11-03T17:07:00","slug":"pope-praises-ridiculous-tax-collector-who-sought-jesus","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2013\/11\/pope-praises-ridiculous-tax-collector-who-sought-jesus\/","title":{"rendered":"Pope praises ‘ridiculous’ tax collector who sought Jesus"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Vatican City, Nov 3, 2013 \/ 10:07 am (CNA\/EWTN News<\/a>).- In his Angelus message to the crowds in St. Peter\u2019s Square, Pope Francis praised the \u2018ridiculous\u2019 actions of Zaccheus, the short tax collector who climbed a tree in order to be able to see Jesus in the crowds.<\/p>\n

\t\u201cThis external gesture, a little ridiculous, nevertheless expresses the interior attitude of a man who seeks to bring himself above the crowd in order to have contact with Jesus,\u201d Pope Francis said Nov. 3.<\/p>\n

\tDespite the oddity of Zaccheus\u2019 action, it serves as a model for sinners who may feel far away from Jesus, he explained.<\/p>\n

\t\u201cBut let\u2019s look at Zaccheus today in the tree: he is ridiculous, but it is a gesture of salvation,\u201d the Pope said. \u201cAnd I say to you: if you have a burden on your conscience, if you have shame about many things that you have done, stop yourself a little, don\u2019t be afraid, think of the One who awaits you, because he never stopped remembering you, thinking of you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\u201cAnd this is your Father, it is God, it is Jesus who awaits you. Climb up, just as Zaccheus did; climb the tree of your desire to be forgiven. I assure you that you will not be disappointed. Jesus is merciful and never gets tired of forgiving.\u201d<\/p>\n

\tZaccheus was \u201cdespised\u201d by the people of Jericho because of his occupation as a tax collector, and yet after he climbs a tree to see Jesus, the Lord \u201ccalls him by name,\u201d noted Pope Francis.<\/p>\n

\t\u201cThis short man, rejected by everyone and far from Jesus, is like the lost in anonymity; but Jesus calls him, and this name, Zaccheus, in that language of that time, has a beautiful meaning full of allusions: \u2018Zaccheus\u2019 actually means \u2018God remembers.\u2019 That\u2019s beautiful: \u2018God remembers\u2019,\u201d he reflected.<\/p>\n

\tJesus then goes to the house of Zaccheus, \u201cdrawing the criticism of all the people of Jericho,\u201d because \u201ceven in that time, they gossiped a lot, eh?\u201d said Pope Francis, hinting at the danger of idle chatter, a recurring theme in his speeches.<\/p>\n

\t\u201cAnd the people were saying, \u2018but how? With all the good people that there are in the city, he goes to stay in the very house of the tax collector?\u2019\u201d recounted the pontiff.<\/p>\n

\t\u201cYes, because he was lost; and Jesus says, \u2018Today, for this house has come salvation, because even he is a son of Abraham.\u2019 In the house of Zaccheus, from that day, entered joy, entered peace, entered salvation, entered Jesus.\u201d<\/p>\n

\tZaccheus\u2019 social status did not deter Jesus from coming to his home. This story expresses that \u201cthere is not a profession or a social condition or a crime of any type that can erase from the memory and from the heart of God a single one of his children.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\u201cGod remembers, always, he forgets no one that he has created,\u201d added Pope Francis.<\/p>\n

\t\u201cHe is Father, always watchfully and lovingly waiting to see revived in the heart of his child the desire to return home. And when he recognizes this desire, even if simply hinted at, and many times almost unconscious, he is immediately next to him, and with his forgiveness makes the path of conversion and return lighter.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\u201cBrothers and sisters, let us also call upon the name of Jesus!\u201d urged the Pope. \u201cIn the depths of our hearts, listen to his voice that tells us, \u2018Today I must stop at your house; I want to stop at your house and in your heart,\u2019 that is, in your life.\u00a0 And let us welcome him with joy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\tPope Francis\u2019 speech was met with cheers and applause from the packed square.\u00a0\u00a0 Flags waved as the Pope concluded his Angelus greeting with various welcomes to Romans and pilgrims to the city.\u00a0 As is his custom, Pope Francis closed by wishing everyone a \u201cgood Sunday and a good lunch!\u201d<\/p>\n

\n<\/a>\n<\/div>\n

<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Vatican City, Nov 3, 2013 \/ 10:07 am (CNA\/EWTN News).- In his Angelus message to the crowds in St. Peter’s Square, Pope Francis praised the ‘ridiculous’ actions of Zaccheus, the short tax collector who climbed a tree in order to be ab…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1031,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4666","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-vatican"],"yoast_head":"\nPope praises 'ridiculous' tax collector who sought Jesus<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Vatican City, Nov 3, 2013 \/ 10:07 am (CNA\/EWTN News).- In his Angelus message to the crowds in St. Peter’s Square, Pope Francis praised the ‘ridiculous’ actions of Zaccheus, the short tax collector who climbed a tree in order to be ab...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, 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