At the time of Jesus, the tax collectors were regarded as quislings of the society. The reason is that they collaborated with roman occupation forces by collecting the taxes for them. Henceforth, the tax collectors weren’t welcomed in their society, even they were considered as sinners by the genuine Jews. We may say that the Jews at that time didn’t want to stay with the sinners as their neighbors.

We live in a modern society where economic and social stratification affect our neighborhood relationship. “Lost and profit” is a rule of our modern economic world that sometimes governs our mode of relationship. Someone is welcomed as long as he gives profit to the society he wants to integrate. We talk about, for example, selective citizenship for the migrant workers. That’s the problem that arises in today’s gospel. The Jews excluded the tax collectors because they didn’t give any profit to the people.

Jesus comes and shows concern of this apparent failure of his society. He questions the way his society behaves towards the strangers. He does it first of all by getting in touch with the true reality of person. He comes to the spot. In order to grasp that truth, he just looks up Zacchaeus at the Sycamore tree. He looks at the tax collector as he is without getting caught up in the judgments of the people around him. He just says:”Zacchaeus, hurry down, I mean to stay at your house” (Lk 19:1-10) Jesus shows us that the first act of loving is not charity, but seeing and looking at someone as he is. It means that we look at someone without taking any idea, any social constructions toward the person. We are invited to see and welcome others in their uniqueness, not as we hope to be.

His words,” I want to stay at your house” reveals us, who he is, an incarnate God who dwells with us in our history of happiness and sufferings. The same words are addressed to us. Every time we celebrate the Eucharist, Jesus comes and says “I want to stay at your house” whatever we are. The Eucharist therefore demands each of us to welcome others as the center of attention; to see not the words, the ideas of the person taken frequently from our surroundings, but see as God sees in his merciful and patient love. Seeing others as they are is a first path to learn God’s loving care.