If we had to issue report cards about being Christian, what markers do you think would be used to assess our efforts? How much importance would be placed on attendance at worship and frequency of prayer? What weight would be given for the extent to which we donate our time, talents, and treasures to the work of the Church? Would there be an evaluation of our ‘good works’? To what extent would marks be deducted for missteps, distractions, and foul language? How confident are we that we would receive a favourable report based on these or any other measures of faith? How might our sense of this evaluation influence our relationship to others? To what extent does society make assumptions about people based on their perceived moral and/or religious character? The Pharisee, standing by himself, was praying thus, “God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax-collector. I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.” The Pharisee in Jesus’ parable was clearly confident about how he would fare on a faith report card. Of course, the expectations and benchmarks are well established in the Torah. He knows the Law. He knows what is expected. He assumes that as long as he follows the rules as he understands them, he is right with God. In contrast, those who don’t follow the rules as he understands them, are sinners who deserve to be looked down upon and separated from the ‘best students’, those who are righteous. But the tax-collector, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven, but was beating his breast and saying, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner!” The tax-collector in this story, also seems aware of the score card. He, however, is not confident that he is doing well. In contrast, he believes he is failing at the tasks of faith and can only ask for mercy. Few would question the juxtaposition of these two individuals with respect to what it means to live their faith. How shocking it would have been, then, to hear Jesus say: I tell you, this man (that is, the tax collector), went down to his home justified rather than the other; (that is, the Pharisee) for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted.’ How is it possible that the one who is steeped in sin could find justification over the one who is perceived as being righteous? Does that mean all our efforts to be good Christians are ultimately irrelevant? Can anyone ask for mercy and find justification? On some level, these questions miss the point. Faith is embodied in every moment of every day. This particular moment, the moment in which both the Pharisee and the tax collector are engaged in prayer is an expression of their faith. To that end, Jesus is not criticizing the Pharisees persistence in fasting and tithing. Rather, the issue is how the Pharisee’s confidence in his embodiment of faith is used to lift himself up and cast others down. The Pharisee’s prayer becomes a tool for his own justification. In his words, he suggests that, through his actions, he deserves good things while others, because of their sins, don’t. In contrast, the tax collector accepts that he is not perfect and needs God’s mercy and love. Herein lies the truth of this text: we all need God’s mercy and love. No one is perfect and no one is beyond the love of God. Any efforts to lift up those who are perceived as doing well on a faith report card in contrast to those who are perceived as doing poorly distorts the possibilities of recognising God’s love for both, and God’s gifts for all. There is a reason Jesus hung around Pharisees and tax collectors, prostitutes and fisherfolk, women, men, and children. Jesus didn’t check people’s faith report card before healing, feeding, and teaching. Jesus met people where they were at, challenged those who abused righteousness for their own power and privilege, and offered hope to those who needed it the most because society had beaten them down. Jesus is God and yet humbled himself to walk among us as fully human. He humbled himself to wash the feet of those who would abandon, deny, and betray him. He humbled himself as he hung on a cross. His life, death, and resurrection revealed how humility can create spaces for love to break-through in ways that are more than we can ask or imagine. We don’t need a faith report card to live this humility, to live this love. All we need is an openness to meet people as Jesus did, trusting that God’s mercy and love truly are for everyone. With this hope, and longing, let us pray as we sing together: Impartial, Compassionate God of All Lives