Narada, the Indian sage, was a devotee of God, and thought that no one loved God more than he.
His self-righteousness began to lead him towards pride and arrogance.
The Lord read his heart and said, “Narada, go to this town on the banks of the Ganges for a devotee of mine dwells there. Living with him will do you good.”
Narada went and found a farmer who rose early in the morning, and prayed, but the farmer pronounced the name of God only once, then lifted his plough and went out to his fields where he worked the whole day. Just before he fell asleep at night he pronounced the name of God once again.
Narada thought, “How can this farmer be a devotee of God? He only prayed twice a day, and then got himself immersed in his worldly occupation.”
When Narada voiced his opinion to God, then the Lord said to him, “Fill a bowl to the brim with milk and walk all round the city. Then come back without spilling a single drop.”
Narada did as he was told, and returned back. Then the Lord asked him, “How many times did you remember me in the course of your walk around the city?” Not once,” replied Narada.
“How could I when you commanded me to watch that bowl of milk?”
The Lord said, “That bowl so absorbed your attention that you forgot me altogether. But look at that farmer who, though burdened with the cares of supporting a family, remembers me twice a day.”
The moral of the story: A halo has to fall only a few inches to become a noose.”
Let’s see what the tax collector did right and the Pharisee wrong—
1. The tax collector had compunction of heart. A contrite and humble heart-
Striking his breast is a sign of compunction of heart like we do in the Penitential Rite. Some of us may have been away from Sunday Mass for a few weeks, or months, or years. Maybe we need to talk to Him about our absence. For others, perhaps for most of us, that might mean our absence from practicing the faith in our daily lives. Sometimes we want to join the Tax Collector and sit in the back and say, “Lord, have mercy on me a sinner.”
The Catholic faith is not concerned with guilt. It is concerned with mercy and the truth in love. We all need the mercy of God. The Pharisee prayed, 'O God, be merciful to me a sinner.' E.g. A priest said that he received a wristband with these letters: LJC SoG HMoM aS. LJC - Lord Jesus Christ; SoG - Son of God; HMoM - Have Mercy on Me; aS - a Sinner. A perfect prayer: Lord Jesus Christ, Have Mercy on Me, a Sinner. It’s called the Jesus Prayer and it’s very ancient. [How many here know that Jesus has already shown mercy on you?!]
In contrast, the Pharisee is virtually praying to himself, because his “prayer” is neither a petition nor a praise of God. It’s selfish self-talk, i.e.
‘O God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of humanity -
greedy, dishonest, adulterous – or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week, and I pay tithes on my whole income.’
It’s been said that about 80% of our daily communication is self-talk. In contrast, an example of good prayerful self-talk comes from King David, who said, “Bless the Lord, my soul... and forget none of his benefits, and who forgives all your iniquities...”
The Pharisee also took the tax collector’s “moral inventory,” which breaks a primary rule not to do someone else’s examination of conscience. Parents have to use discernment when assessing any sinful behavior in their kids so they just focus on the issue at hand. Since the Pharisee compared himself to the poor tax collector by saying, “I am not like one of these,” the Pharisee lost his credibility in the eyes of Jesus. He could have said, 'But for the grace of God, there go I.' In other words, we are saved not because of our own merit but because of God's mercy.
Next, this Pharisee mentions fasting twice during the week. This Pharisee was boasting, in other words, of an asceticism beyond the norm.
The Pharisee had a spirituality of achievement, performance, worthiness. It presents Christianity like, “We have the perfect medicine for what ails you: It’s called grace and mercy. But the only requirement for receiving it is never to need it!”
Both moral achievement and repentance are found linked throughout Jewish and Christian tradition. To take on the yoke of the kingdom of is to commit to following the commandments of God, but one has also to be aware that no one is without sin (1 Kings 8:46; Proverbs 20:9). The two need to be kept in balance, just as God’s attribute of justice and the attribute of mercy and compassion are found alongside each other.
A closing illustration:
A certain president happened to visit a prison and thus talked with each of the inmates. There were endless tales of innocence, of misunderstood motives, and of exploitation. Finally, the president stopped at the cell of a convict who remained silent. " well," remarked president, " I really suppose you are an innocent victim too?" " No Sir, I' am not," replied the inmate. " I am guilty and deserve my punishment." Turning to the warden the president said, "Here, release this rascal before he corrupts all these fine, innocent people here!" The biblical saying proves true, " God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble." ( 1Pet 5:5).
Amen.
