The Lost
Thirty-First Sunday in Ordinary Time (C)
Read this Gospel passage aloud to the family
Luke 19:1-10 –At that time Jesus came to Jericho and intended to pass through the town. Now a man there named Zacchaeus, who was a chief tax collector and also a wealthy man, was seeking to see who Jesus was; but he could not see him because of the crowd, for he was short in stature. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree in order to see Jesus, who was about to pass that way. When he reached the place, Jesus looked up and said, "Zacchaeus, come down quickly, for today I must stay at your house." And he came down quickly and received him with joy. When they saw this, they began to grumble, saying, "He has gone to stay at the house of a sinner." But Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, "Behold, half of my possessions, Lord, I shall give to the poor, and if I have extorted anything from anyone I shall repay it four times over." And Jesus said to him, "Today salvation has come to this house because this man too is a descendant of Abraham. For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save what was lost."
(Parent) Reread this part a few times aloud
“For the Son of Man came to seek and save what was lost.”
(Parent) Read this meditation aloud to the family
Jesus is saying something very important about His mission. Why does He say He has come? “To seek and save what was lost.” What is Jesus searching for that is lost? The answer is us. We are lost. We are made to be blessed and happy, and we can be so only by living in God. But we so often choose to seek happiness apart from God. Instead, we seek it in sin. And sin has made us, and the whole human race, unhappy. It has separated us from God.
The mission of Jesus is to seek and save what was lost. This is why the Gospels show Him spending so much time with sinners. He is bringing us sinners from death into His Life, restoring us to the blessedness we were made for. Jesus came for each of us because we need Him. Let us be very thankful for the unspeakable love of Christ.
As a family, pray a portion of the Rosary together (very short if children are young) reflecting on the Scripture passage above.(Optional: allow a brief time for discussion or questions from children concerning their thoughts and prayer.)
Reminder for Parents: Pier is just meant to be a jumping off point. The real goal is that you pray & eventually use the fruits of your personal prayer as the content of your family’s prayer. Duc in altum.
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