Posted on 03/20/2004 1:27:08 PM PST by roughrider
The self-righteous man, like the Pharisee, gains nothing. He merely reinforces his own opinions and is left alone inside his own thoughts. He tells God, "I give you thanks that I am not like the rest of men." He himself has said it; nobody is his brother.
The Publican, on the other hand, is a true man. He lives life at its depths and understands his own poverty. In front of the Almighty, he can only ask for mercy. The Publican teaches us that it is precisely mercy, not man's conduct, that characterizes his relationship with the Infinite.
There is a popular Brazilian song, Romaria, about a peasant who goes on a pilgrimmage. Like the Pharisee, he has his list of deeds: "I'm divorced, I gambled, I invested, then I left," but unlike the Pharisee, he has no hope of being justified because of them. His hope is that of the Publican, a relationship with another who is merciful. At the shrine of Our Lady, he makes his act of faith: "They told me to come here on this pilgrimmage in prayer to ask for peace in my misadventures. But since I don't know how to pray, I simply came to show my face."
It is when we face ourselves in the light of mercy that we go home justified.
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