Memorial of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary, Religious
(Revelation
1-6.14-22; Luke 19:1-10)
“The Hound
of Heaven” is a long Victorian poem telling of God. It pictures God as a bloodhound pursuing a
rabbit. God’s prey is the human
person. But He wishes no harm, only the
person’s true benefit. Often humans
imagine themselves on a quest to find God.
But it is really God who searches out humans. In today’s gospel Jesus gives us an example.
The passage
begins with Zacchaeus trying to see Jesus.
By this point in the gospel Jesus has the fame of a rock star. Crowds gather to see him as he makes his way
toward Jerusalem. Zacchaeus climbs a
tree to get a view of the famous prophet.
Then the story changes dramatically.
Jesus calls Zacchaeus down from the tree. All the while, he has been looking for
Zacchaeus.
It sounds odd
that God looks for us. We know that we
cannot hide from God. But this is not
the point. We run away from him perhaps
because what He promises is beyond what we think fair or even believable. God wants to share His complete and eternal happiness
with us. He sends Jesus to find us. Jesus will die to draw us to God. He will rise to give us a glimpse of the
happiness God has planned for us.
