First Reading (Isaiah 58,9b-14)
Reading of the Book of the Prophet Isaiah.
This is what the Lord says: “If you destroy your instruments of oppression, and leave your authoritarian habits and evil language; if you welcome the needy with an open heart and provide all help to the needy, your light will rise in the darkness and your dark life will be like noon. people will rebuild the ancient ruins; you will raise up the foundations of past generations: you will be called a rebuilder of ruins, a restorer of paths, in the lands to be populated. If you do not set foot outside your house on the Sabbath, nor do you do business on my holy day, if you consider the Sabbath your favorite day, the glorious day, sacred to the Lord, if you honor it, setting aside activities, business and conversations, then you will delight in the Lord; and enjoy the inheritance of Jacob your father.” The mouth of the Lord spoke.
– Word of the Lord.
– Thank God.
Gospel (Luke 5,27-32)
Proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke.
— Glory to you, Lord.
At that time, Jesus saw a tax collector named Levi sitting at the tax office. Jesus said to him, “Follow me.” Levi left everything, got up and followed him. Afterwards, Levi prepared a great banquet for Jesus at home. There were a large number of tax collectors and other people sitting at the table with them. The Pharisees and their teachers of the Law murmured and said to Jesus’ disciples, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” Jesus replied: “Those who are healthy do not need a doctor, but those who are sick do. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners to conversion.”
— Word of Salvation.
— Glory to you, Lord.
Reflecting the Word of God
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
Imagine a full table. Not just any table, but a table filled with delicious food, refreshing drinks, and surrounded by people of all types – some well-dressed, others in simple attire; some respected by society, others marginalized; some pious, others considered sinners. And in the center of that table is Jesus, smiling, talking, sharing not only food, but also life, hope and redemption. This is the scene that today’s Gospel presents to us – a feast that challenges our notions of who belongs to the family of God.
Our journey begins with the prophet Isaiah, who lived about 700 years before Christ. In his message, he addresses a people who were frustrated. “Why do we fast,” they asked, “and you do not see it? Why do we afflict our souls, and you do not consider it?” They were performing all the correct religious rituals, but they felt that God was not responding.
God’s response through Isaiah is revolutionary. He says, essentially, “You’re looking at religion the wrong way. It’s not about empty rituals or external practices. It’s about how you treat each other.”
Listen to the powerful words of Isaiah: “If you remove from your midst the chains, the stretching of the finger and the insulting speech; if you open your soul to the hungry and satisfy the afflicted soul, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your darkness will be like noonday.”
What a powerful image! True religion, says Isaiah, manifests itself in the liberation of the oppressed, the end of malicious accusation, the sharing of our resources with the hungry, the comfort of the afflicted. When we do this, something miraculous happens: light dawns in the darkness. Our own inner darkness is illuminated.
Isaiah continues with extraordinary promises for those who live this authentic religion: “The Lord will guide you continually, he will satisfy your soul in the dry places… you will be like a watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.”
What a contrast to the empty religiosity that focuses only on rules and rituals! God promises a life of spiritual abundance, of constant guidance, of satisfaction even in the dry places of life. He promises that we will become a source of life and renewal for others – “like a watered garden, like a fountain whose waters never fail.”
And then, in the Gospel, we see this message embodied perfectly in Jesus. The text begins simply: “Jesus saw a publican named Levi sitting at the tax collector.” Stop and imagine this scene. A publican was not just a tax collector; He was considered a traitor to his own people, collaborating with the Roman oppressors, often extorting his compatriots for personal enrichment.
Levi was sitting at his billing station, probably used to the looks of contempt, the words whispered behind his back, the social exclusion. And then Jesus passes by. But unlike everyone else, Jesus doesn’t look away. He doesn’t cross to the other side of the street. He sees Levi – truly sees him.
And then comes the call that changes everything: “Follow me.”
Just two words, but filled with an acceptance and purpose that Levi had probably never experienced. Jesus doesn’t say, “Change first, and then you can follow me.” He doesn’t say, “Prove yourself worthy.” He simply says, “Follow me.” The calling comes before the transformation.
Levi’s response is immediate and radical: “And he left everything and arose and followed him.” What a surprising moment! This man who had dedicated his life to accumulating wealth suddenly leaves everything to follow an itinerant master. Something in that invitation, in that look from Jesus, touched the core of his being.
But the story doesn’t end there. Levi, overflowing with gratitude for the unexpected acceptance, does something extraordinary: “And Levi made him a great feast in his house; and there was a multitude of tax collectors and others at the table with them.”
This is not an intimate dinner just for Jesus and his disciples. It’s a huge celebration, full of people like Levi – tax collectors and other “sinners”, all those whom religious society had marginalized and excluded.
And this is where the controversy erupts. The Pharisees and scribes, the guardians of religious purity, are horrified. They murmur to Jesus’ disciples, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?”
This is not an innocent question. In first-century Jewish culture, sharing a meal was an act of deep solidarity and acceptance. To sit at the table with someone was to declare, “You are my brother, my sister. You belong.”
The Pharisees are essentially asking, “How can their master declare that these sinners belong to God’s family? How can he extend divine acceptance to those who have violated God’s law?”
Jesus’ response is one of the most beautiful and comforting in the entire Gospel: “The healthy do not need a doctor, but the sick do. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.”
Jesus completely redefines his mission. He did not come to congratulate those who already consider themselves righteous or to reinforce the barriers that exist between “saints” and “sinners”. He came as a divine physician, actively seeking out those who recognize their need for healing.
This is the good news that resonates through the centuries to us today: Jesus does not wait for us to become perfect before calling us. He calls us in the midst of our imperfection, in the midst of our failures, in the midst of our sins. And it is by responding to this call that we begin our journey of transformation.
My brothers and sisters, what a challenge these readings present for us today! We are called to examine our own attitude toward the “Levis” in our community. Who are the people we consider unworthy, undesirable, irredeemable? Who are those from whom we keep our distance, perhaps not physically, but emotionally, spiritually?
And more profoundly still, we are challenged to recognize the “Levi” within ourselves – those parts of our lives that we consider unworthy of redemption, those secret sins, those flaws that we hide from others and perhaps even try to hide from God.
The good news is that Jesus sees both the “Levi” around us and the “Levi” within us, and his call remains the same: “Follow me.” Not after you clean yourself up, not when you finally beat that addiction, not when your past is no longer a burden – but now, just as you are.
And how do we respond to this call? We can learn from Levi. First, he left everything. There are things in our lives that we need to leave behind – not just obvious sins, but perhaps even good things that have become our idols, our securities outside of God.
Second, Levi followed Jesus. Following means imitating, learning, walking on the same path. It means allowing Jesus’ priorities, values, and behaviors to become ours.
And third, Levi celebrated and shared Jesus with others. He didn’t keep this new life to himself. He immediately invited his friends—people just as in need of acceptance as he was—to meet Jesus.
Returning to Isaiah, we see that when we live this way – when we leave behind our chains, when we stop pointing the finger of accusation, when we share our resources with those in need, when we bring the marginalized to the table – then “the Lord will guide you continually…you will be like a watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.”
The fasting that God desires, the true religion that he seeks, is not found primarily in rituals or rules, but in hearts transformed by the encounter with Jesus, hearts that become channels of the same inclusive and redeeming love they have experienced.
My dear brothers and sisters, today we are invited to join Levi’s feast. We are invited to recognize our need for the divine physician. We are invited to leave behind everything that holds us back and follow Jesus. And we are invited to open our own tables, our own lives, to those the world—and sometimes, sadly, the church—has excluded.
May we respond like Levi, leaving everything, following Jesus, and celebrating the incredible grace that knows no bounds. And may our lives become like “a watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail,” bringing the life and love of Christ to a thirsty world.
May the grace and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.
