Theme: Pride and humbleness
The Pharisee and the Publican
Jesus once told a story. It is called the Parable of the
Pharisee and the Publican and tells that two men went to
the temple to pray.
One of the men was a Pharisee. The
Pharisees were a part of the people that considered
themselves very religious, as they fulfilled everything
that their religion determined. They always performed
all the rituals and ceremonies, and because they did so,
they thought they were much better than other people.
The other man was a publican.
Publicans were people who collected taxes. They had to
take money from the people to deliver to the rulers.
They handled a lot of money, and many publicans were not
honest. They got rich, but not for fair work. Therefore,
publicans were seen by the rest of the people as people
deviated from the path of good and God.
In the story, the Pharisee arrived at
the temple and began to pray saying things that showed
how proud he was.
- I thank you, my God, because I do
the right things, I'm not a thief, nor unjust and I'm
not like that publican there!
The publican, on the other hand, also
wanted to talk to God through prayer, but standing at a
distance, he would not even raise his eyes. Head down,
beating his chest, he said:
- Oh my God, have mercy on me, that I
am a sinner!
At the end of the story Jesus says
that the publican's prayer was more heard by God than
the Pharisee's, because the first was done with
humbleness and the second was not. The Pharisee just
wanted to exalt himself, finding himself superior. But
before God, we are all equal, even those who, for now,
are making mistakes.
The publican, recognized that he had
done something wrong, asked for God's mercy and would
certainly be helped to repair his mistakes and readjust
with God's laws.
Jesus left us important teachings.
With this parable we can learn that pride is a serious
defect that we must fight, and that humbleness is a good
way to approach God.
Translation:
Larissa Martine - larissa_am@hotmail.com
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