Gospel: November 18, 2025

33rd Week in Ordinary Time

Psalter: Week 1 (Green/White)

Dedication of the Churches of Peter and Paul

St. Rose Philippine Duchesne, virgin

Ps 3:2-3, 4-5, 6-7

The Lord upholds me.

1st Reading: 2 Maccabees 6:18-31*

Gospel: Luke 19:1-10

Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through it. A man named Zaccheus lived there. He was a tax collector and a wealthy man. He wanted to see what Jesus was like, but he was a short man and could not see him because of the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed up a sycamore tree. From there he would be able to see Jesus, who was going to pass that way.

When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zaccheus, come down quickly, for I must stay at your house today.” So Zaccheus climbed down and received him joyfully. All the people who saw it began to grumble, and said, “He has gone as a guest to the house of a sinner.”

But Zaccheus spoke to Jesus, “Half of what I own, Lord, I will give to the poor, and if I have cheated anyone, I will pay him back four times as much.” Looking at him Jesus said, “Salvation has come to this house today, for he is also a true son of Abraham. The Son of Man has come to seek and to save the lost.”

Reflection:

“Salvation has come to this house today.”

Today we read about two noble souls. The first, Eleazar, persevered virtue to the end, never rejecting his faith nor God. The second, Zaccheus, reaches a nobility of spirit through his encounter with Christ. After years of dishonesty and collaboration as a tax collector for the Roman occupation, Zaccheus has come to his senses. Deep down in his conscience, a sense of unease was stirring, and it was this that prompted him to look for Jesus. His soul was yearning for God and for forgiveness, like “a dry weary land without water” (Ps 63:2).

Zaccheus had to show determination to catch a glimpse of Christ. He had to fight through the crowd and climb a tree. All of this showed that his longing for reconciliation with God was real, and his determination was rewarded (cf. Deut 4:29-31). This is why Jesus declares that he must come stay at his house and that “salvation has come to this house today.” Zaccheus is welcoming God back into his life, and God Incarnate enters with jubilation. Zaccheus is ennobled by Christ, who restores the tax collector to righteousness and sets him on the path of generous love.