Conversion de Zaqueo

ZACCHAEUS'S CONVERSION To Be or Not To Be a Tax Collector

(Luke 19:1-10)

Wyndy Corbin Reuschling

Introduction

Every summer I attended Vacation Bible School at the Mentor Baptist Church in Mentor, Kentucky. Each day, sitting in the small wooden pink chairs, we would learn a new song that would become part of the repertoire for the final program in front of adoring parents and grumbling siblings who were required to attend. One song still sticks with me. You may know it, motions and all:

Zacchaeus was a wee little man, and a wee little man was he. He climbed up in a sycamore tree for the Lord he wanted to see; And as the Savior passed that way, He looked up in the tree, And he said, "Zacchaeus you come down for I'm going to your house today. For I'm going to your house today."1

This ditty is based on the story of Zacchaeus in Luke 19:1-10 which was the lesson for the day reinforced by the song we just memorized. We were taught the basic lessons of this Bible story. In order to find Jesus, we must search high and low for Jesus. The Savior is looking for each of us as he passes by, and is waiting for us to respond. Zacchaeus was a tax collector, a sinner and bad person. No one, therefore, is too bad or too sinful for Jesus. Jesus loves all persons, including unlovable tax col-lectors. Salvation had come to Zacchaeus and could come to us if we, like Zacchaeus, searched and waited for Jesus, and responded by trusting him to forgive our sins just as he did for this tax collector. In doing so, we would be converted and, hence, saved.

I do not remember much being made about what it meant to be a tax collector. Locating tax collecting within the political structures and social practices of the first century was not on the minds of those who had volunteered for one week during

1. Anonymous, http://kidsongs.wordpress.com/2006/08/04/zacchaeus.

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the summer to corral and teach fifty antsy children, all the while ensuring the snacks were served on time and there were appropriate activities during the day to keep us enrapt and entertained. I also do not recall any reference to the ordo salutis, or order of salvation, in this story.2 The story line was a simple one: Zacchaeus met Jesus, Zacchaeus was converted, which meant he "became a Christian," and was saved from judgment for his sins. This is the first and only time we meet Zacchaeus since Luke is the only one to include this story in the Gospels. I can t help but wonder what ever happened to Zacchaeus. How was Zacchaeuss life different after this encounter with Jesus? Zacchaeus might have been saved as I was taught, but was he converted? Did he remain a tax collector? Could he have kept collecting taxes? Should he have remained a tax collector? It is these questions I want to explore in this paper perti-nent for our theological engagement with Scripture on the theme of conversion.3

A few caveats are in order before proceeding. First, I am a Christian social ethi-cist so I approach this topic with an interest in the moral dimensions of conversion, and, in the case of Zacchaeus, how conversion impacts and informs our vocational choices and ways of earning an income. My aim is to reflect on this text in light of two primary notions of conversion. The first is an understanding of conversion as a one-time decision, an event simply equated with "getting saved." The second views conversion as an on-going process of change, reorientation and moral formation.

2. The ordo salutis is an attempt to delineate the order of salvation, typically starting with and in-volving such terms as effectual calling, conviction of sin, regeneration or conversion, faith, justification, sanctification, and union with Christ. The order and emphasis may vary depending on historical and theological trajectories. See the following standard works in Protestant theology that include an ordo salutis: Donald G. Bloesch, Essentiah of Evangelical Theology (2 vols.; New York: HarperCollins, 1978); Miyon Chung, "Conversion and Sanctification," in The Cambridge Companion to Evangelical Theology, (ed. Timothy Larsen and Daniel J. Treier; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007); Millard J. Erickson, Christian Theology, (One volume edition; Grand Rapids: Baker, 1992); Justo L. Gonzlez and Zaida Maldonado Prez, An Introduction to Christian Theology (Nashville: Abingdon, 2002); Stanley J. Grenz, Theology for the Community of God (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1994); Shirley C. Guthrie, Christian Doctrine (Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 1994); and Daniel L. Migliore, Faith Seeking Understanding: An Introduction to Christian Theology (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2004).

3. The conversations on conversion at the 2009 Theological Interpretation of Scripture at North Park Theological Seminary were rich and invited more substantive thinking about conversion from many disciplines. It was a privilege to participate and I am especially grateful for the probing and thoughtful response to my paper offered by Elizabeth Musselman Palmer. I will note, as appropriate, how her questions helped me in thinking further about Zaccheaus's conversion. The questions which students posed have also prodded me to think about conversion in the very concrete dimensions of pastoral practices and church leadership.

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This "thicker"4 concept takes into consideration how an on-going process of conver-sion informs and changes how we live, the choices we make, and the work we do.

Second, I am keenly aware that the ability and opportunities to pursue my vo-cation as a teacher and scholar are made possible by the work of others. My job and salary are supported by student tuition, generous donors, and foundations that fund theological education and research. It is an odd and troubling thing, something that produces various degrees of angst for me, to critique and chastise our economic and employment systems and the means by which income is earned while accepting the fruit of others' labors that make my own possible. Therefore, I hope my proposals and conclusions reflect my own ambiguity and tentative judgments about the kinds of work people do simply to survive.5

Finally, I also recognize the complexity of labor, employment, economic sys-tems and practices in a global economy. It is difficult to have discussions "from nowhere." We are all located in an intricate web of economic and political relation-ships and structures that are interdependent and complex with multiple points of complicity which makes no participation almost, if not, impossible. I am not an economist, a human resource manager, a labor relations expert, a social policy guru, or even a biblical scholar. I am a theological ethicist with an interest in social ethical issues who works more with normative points of reference and social analysis as we engage with Scripture and theological claims pertinent for the Church as an "agent of the Kingdom of God,"6 so that we might discern and work out the creative and faithful living of Christian faith in complex moral contexts. I tend to work with the idea of "middle axioms"7 that acknowledge that I speak as a Christian theologian and ethicist, hopefully humbly, with a desire to think about moral norms inherent in Christian faith and practice and how they might be brought to bear on various

4. See Clifford Geertz, The Interpretation of Cultures (New York: Basic, 1973), 14. Geertz's concept of "thickness" necessitates multi-dimensional perspectives and descriptions for comfortably working with complex issues such as conversion. This Symposium made important contributions for gaining "thickness" in exploring conversion.

5. See chapter 2, "Five Faces of Oppression" in Iris Marion Young, Justice and the Politics of Difference (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1990). The five faces are exploitation, marginal-ization, powerlessness, cultural imperialism, and violence. I am especially indicted by Young's category of powerlessness in contrast to my vocational privileges of autonomy in managing and directing my own work, decision making, use of time, position of authority, and opportunities to engage in reflection and leisure as opposed to the powerless who have few or none of these benefits in employment.

6. Howard Snyder, The Community of the King, (2nd rev. ed.; Downers Grove, 111.: InterVarsity, 2004), 14

7. John C. Bennett, Christian Ethics and Social Policy (New York: C. Scribners' Sons, 1946).


issues in conversation with other disciplines and areas of expertise. I desire to offer ways in which, as Christians, we can reflect on and discern our vocational choices and their moral dimensions in light of our conversions and the continual living out of our Christian commitments.

I will start with a brief hermeneutical exploration of Zacchaeuss encounter with Jesus in the context of Lukes Gospel as a form of conversion in that Zacchaeus did something and made changes when he met Jesus. I will limit my exploration to the story of Zacchaeus while recognizing that Jesus had other encounters with tax collectors recorded in the Synoptic Gospels. Given the scope and purpose of this paper, my questions are focused on the particular story of a particular tax collector in light of the theme of conversion. I will also explore various notions of conversion and come back to the text with two primary questions. Could Zacchaeus have remained a tax collector or should Zacchaeus have remained a tax collector? I will conclude by offering linkages between conversion and ethics particularly as they relate to concrete practices in choosing and living out our vocations.

The Context and Text of Zacchaeuss Conversion: Luke 19:1-10

The story of Zacchaeus is recorded in the Gospel of Luke. It is widely held among scholars that the main themes and theological concerns of Lukes Gospel are the call to salvation and discipleship, the stewardship of money and resources, practices of justice and mercy as marks of true piety, and the inclusivity and extension of God's Kingdom to all through faith and repentance.8 The inclusive nature of the Kingdom of God in Lukes Gospel explains the perpetual invitation to the marginalized and the examples of faith offered by those unlikely to be acknowledged by religious elites as exemplars of piety and true religion such as tax collectors, women, Samaritans, prostitutes, beggars, social outcasts due to illness, and children (Luke 4:14-19; 5:12-16; 7:36-50; 10:25-37; 13:10-17; 14:15-24; 16:19-31; 21:1-4; 24:1-12). Becoming and being a disciple of Jesus Christ by responding to the call to salvation through repen-

8. See the following sources: Paul J. Achtemeir, Joel B. Green and Marianne Meye Thompson, eds., Introducing the New Testament: Its Literature and Theology (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2001); David A. deSilva, An Introduction to the New Testament: Contexts, Methods and Ministry Formation (Downers Grove, : InterVarsity, 2004); Joel B. Green, The Gospel of Luke (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1997); Halvor Moxnes, The Economy of the Kingdom: Social Conflict and Economic Relations in Lukes Gospel (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1988); Luke Timothy Johnson, The Writings of the New Testament: An Interpretation (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1986); Sharon H. Ringe, Luhe (Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 1995); and John T. Squires, "The Gospel According to Luke," in The Cambridge Companion to the Gospels (ed. Stephen C. Barton; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2006), 158-81.

Wyndy Corbin Reuschling Zacchaeuss Conversion 71

tance implied a conversion, a change to a different kind of a life and a responsibility to this new community of disciples. Unlike some modern conceptions of conversion which are personal and private, "between an individual and his or her God," Lukes portrayal of salvation and conversion is communal and "ecclesiologicalconcerned with the practices that define and the criteria for legitimating the community of Gods people, and centered on the invitation to participate in God's project"9 This new life was to be characterized by justice and right relations among persons in this new social order of Christ's disciples, which was to stand in marked contrast to the prevailing mores and social strata of the first century. As Joel Green notes, "it is not too much to say that the Lukan narrative is an invitation to embrace an alternative worldview and to live as if the reign of God had already revolutionized this age."10

This age that was revolutionized by this new community of disciples was first century Palestine which was pervasively influenced by the power of Greco-Roman culture. John Squires reminds us that in Lukes Gospel, "discipleship takes place within the realities of life in the Roman Empire."11 Palestine at this time was a colony, an outpost of Rome, and existed to bolster the material and political privileges of the Empire and to expand its reach. This provided a mixed blessing to the inhabitants of first century Palestine. Being a part of the Roman Empire secured certain benefits like possible citizenship, military protection, personal status, trade, transportation systems and access to roads, and overall political stability. Yet this did not come without a cost. As Luke Timothy Johnson notes, "the empire grew by conquest... and two significant aspects of life within it were shaped by that fact."12 The first as-pect, according to Johnson, was the growing social unrest caused by dissidents of Rome and the congregation of displaced persons in urban centers which drew the attention of the military to quell disturbances.13

The second significant aspect "was the constant pressure of taxation of the provinces"14 in order to feed people and to support the machinations and spread of the Roman Empire; taxes which Johnson notes were especially severe for subjected persons, thereby furthering their oppression and subjection. Tax collecting was a complex system that involved taxation in three areas: on land, on "heads" or persons

9. Green, The Gospel of Luke, 22. 10. Ibid., 11.

11. Squires, "The Gospel According to Luke," 160.

12. Johnson, The Writings of the New Testament: An Interpretation, 26. 13. Ibid.

14. Ibid.


in a household, and on goods, or the customs tax.15 It was a system largely detested by Roman subjects and viewed with suspicion, as were the agents, or tax farmers and collectors, who perpetuated the taxation system and "were despised for their collusion with Rome."16 It was particularly the practice of collecting the customs tax from economically vulnerable and traveling persons seeking to sell or acquire basic goods that was reviled. In this practice, the collecting of taxes was farmed out to the highest bidder, creating "tax farmers" whereby "Rome received its money in advance, and the tax collector made his living from commissions on tolls and customs."17 Not only were goods excised by Rome but additional amounts, often in large sums, were added to pay the commissions of tax collectors which created a form of "institutionalized robbery."18 Tax collectors collected more for themselves than what was required by Rome. This system thrived on dishonesty, exploitation, overcharging, and abuse of those being taxed which lined the pockets of these tax collectors. It is no wonder that tax collectors were universally reviled, were viewed as the worst of all sinners, and were often characterized as unclean by religious leaders as well as were those who associated with them, such as Jesus.

This brings us to the meeting between Jesus and Zacchaeus in Luke 19:1-10. Jesus was passing through Jericho on his way to Jerusalem when he met Zacchaeus. Starting at the end of Luke chapter nine and through to the end of chapter nineteen, we have a collection of parables, teachings, meetings, examples, and events where Jesus is stressing the imperatives and cost of discipleship to his listeners, perhaps in light of his impending trial and execution. Luke indicates that Zacchaeus was a "chief tax collector" and very wealthy (19:2), two dubious attributes for character-izing persons in Lukes Gospel. As a chief tax collector, Zacchaeus was responsible for supervising other tax collectors, which was further indication of his wealth and power. When Jesus entered Jericho, Zacchaeus went to great lengths to see who Jesus was and did so by climbing up a tree because the crowd obstructed his view, which Green surmises may have been intentional given the negative assessment of Zacchaeus.19 In a way that had become typical of Jesus, he spots Zacchaeus and invites himself to Zacchaeuss home much to the chagrin of "all the people" who sup-

15. Thomas E. Schmidt, "Taxes," in Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospeb (ed. Joel B. Green and Scot McKnight; Downers Grove, DL: Inter Varsity, 1992), 804-7.

16. Ibid., 806.

17. Ibid., 805.

18. Ibid., 806.

19. Green, The Gospel of Luke, 670.


posedly were there to see Jesus as well. It is no surprise by this time that Jesus spent time with tax collectors who appeared quite receptive to him and that it continued to raise the ire of those who observed Jesus' interaction and fellowship with such sinners like Zacchaeus (19:7). Zacchaeuss response was equally shocking: "Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount" (i9:8).20 This was a public declaration made in the presence of "all the people" and before Jesus. It is likely that many whom Zacchaeus had cheated were among "all the people," and we can only imagine their cynicism and disbelief when they heard this. Imagine their double shock when they heard Jesus' response to this tax collector, acknowledging Zacchaeus as a son of Abraham for this act of faith and justice. It was after this that Jesus pronounced, "Today salvation has come to this house" (19:9).

This story indicates that salvation had come to Zacchaeus like it had to so many in Jesus' ministry who seemed beyond the pale of God's grace, love, and forgiveness, and that Zacchaeus responded by announcing changes to his practices, much to the surprise of all those who knew this chief tax collector. According to Green, we ought to be cautious, however, in reading this narrative as a "story of conversion" since Luke "mentions nothing of Zacchaeuss need for repentance, act of repentance or faith, nor of Jesus' summons to repentance.. ."21 But what we know from the story is that something changed for Zacchaeus. He acknowledged Jesus as Lord (19:8) and sought to make things right by rectifying the economic wrongs he had done. In re-sponse, Jesus proclaimed salvation had come to Zacchaeus, signifying "Zacchaeuss vindication and restoration to the community of God's people . . . Zacchaeus thus joins the growing rolls of persons whose 'repentance' lies outside the narrative, who appear on the margins of the people of God, and yet who possess insight into and a commitment to the values of Jesus' mission that are exemplary."22

While Zacchaeuss repentance may lie outside the narrative, his acknowledge-ment of Jesus as Lord and the effect which this had on Zacchaeus may be construed, I think, as part of a conversion experience that resulted in new commitments, al-legiances, and practices that took Zacchaeus in new directions, even though the narrative does not contain the theological language or process we have become accustomed to in describing conversion. The story of Zacchaeus gives us clues about the effects which his encounter with Jesus produced, an important and often

20. Unless otherwise noted, all biblical quotations are from NIV.

21. Green, The Gospel of Luke, 672. 22. Ibid.


neglected aspect of conversion. Zacchaeus experienced a profound change in at-titude and behavior related to the practices and purposes of his occupation as a tax collector. Was this an external manifestation of an internal change that had already occurred as part of his anticipated meeting with Jesus? Was this an act of repentance, or an assuaging of a guilty conscience? Was this to appease the maddening crowd? Who could ever know the motives behind experiences like this? But what we do know is what we observe: Zacchaeuss behavior changed.23

Zacchaeus s wealth was likely obtained through the unjust practice of tax col-lecting so it is quite amazing that his first observable act was to give back money and possessions unjustly obtained. Sharon Ringe suggests Zacchaeus was following standard practices of almsgiving and restitution.

The distribution of half of his goods, although falling short of what was required of the rich man seeking eternal life (18:22), more than meets the standards of almsgiving that have been so important earlier in the Gospel (12:13-21 ; 16:19-31 ). Concerning the second part of his promise, Torah and custom provide that if anyone has defrauded another and offers to make amends, the one who has done wrong must make restitution of the original, plus an additional 20 percent (Lev. 6:5; Num. S'j).24

Perhaps Zacchaeus took to heart John the Baptist's earlier response to tax collec-tors who came to be baptized, telling them to stop collecting more taxes than they were required to collect (Luke 3:12-13 ). Others suggest that Luke is contrasting Zacchaeuss attitude and actions with those of the Rich Ruler in Luke 18:18-30 who refused to sell his possessions to follow Jesus, thereby shunning the costs of disciple-ship. Zacchaeus and the Rich Young Ruler offer contrasting role models of how we should view money and possessions, with Zacchaeus offering the positive type for the wealthy to emulate.25 David deSilva describes Zacchaeus as "the model convert," who does not sell all his possessions "but he does sell half of them and gives the proceeds as alms for the poor."26 In this way, Zacchaeus is offering us a prototype

23. In her response to my paper, Elizabeth Musselman Palmer asks the question: "Is there always a visible component of conversion?" I would like to think so because of the relationship between re-pentance and conversion which calls persons to a new way of life which necessarily involves changed behavior.

24. Ringe, Luke, 232.

25. Squires, "The Gospel According to Luke," 175.

26. David A. deSilva, "The Gospel According to Luke," in An Introduction to the New Testament: Contexts, Methods and Ministry Formation (Downers Grove, HI.: InterVarsity, 2004), 326.


of concrete practices for fulfilling obligations as converts of Jesus Christ when it comes to our attitudes towards, and use of, money. While many of us are not in the position to give up all of our resources we are obligated to steward them justly. As deSilva notes,

In a way Zacchaeus poses a much more potent challenge to the reader than the rich young man. While few if any could seU all their possessions and give to the poor, it would be possible, though difficult, for many to give away a large portion of their possessions and still provide for their neces-sities, making it aU the more real a challenge.27

Alan Mitchell suggests the story of Zacchaeus reflects a vindication of his job as a tax collector not a change of direction. According to Mitchell, Zacchaeus was simply confirming what he already was as a son of Abraham when he stated in v.8 that he would give half of his possessions to the poor and pay back anyone he had cheated. This "iteration" indicated that Zacchaeus was already following the prescriptions of the Torah in his attitudes and practices toward wealth and possessions.28 Zacchaeus's statement in v. 8, therefore, ought to be read as a defense or vindication affirmed by Jesus before the "murmuring crowd" as opposed to a resolution made by Zacchaeus to a new way life.29 Zacchaeus demonstrated his righteousness as son of Abraham by stating what he had done by giving half his possessions to the poor. He also offered to give back to anyone if he had cheated, implying the possibility that Zacchaeus had not cheated anybody in the collection of taxes. For Mitchell, Zacchaeus's statement in v. 8 was not a resolve to do good works from here on out since Zacchaeus was already doing good works of justice and hospitality as indicators that he was a true son of Abraham whom Jesus recognized as such when they met. In other words, Zacchaeus was already "converted" in that he was declared righteous by Jesus and was already doing what was required as a son of Abraham. "To that end Luke 19, 1-10 should be understood as a story about Zacchaeus, a rich toll collector, a Jew to whom Jesus came to bring salvation because he was a son of Abraham."30 This interpretation serves Luke's purposes according to Mitchell, one of which was

. . . to challenge the view that Christianity in his day should not be associ-ated with the rich, with toU coUectors, or with certain pious Jews simply

27. Ibid.

28. Alan C. Mitchell, "Zacchaeus Revisited: Luke 19, 8 as a Defense," Bblica 71 (1990): 153-76. 29 Ibid., 162.

30. Ibid, (emphasis mine).


because they were members of those groups. BasicaUy it is a matter of who can be saved, and Luke wanted to show that anyone who fulfiUs the mandate of the gospel can be saved, regardless of his or her status. In the case of Zacchaeus he seems to be answering the question whether a pious Jew, who is also a toU coHector, can have material possessions and the as-sociations his business requires, and stl be saved.31

Contrary to Mitchell's theory of vindication, Fernando Mndez-Moratalla believes that we do have a story of salvation and conversion in Luke 19H-10.32

According to Mndez-Moratalla, vindication theories, such as Mitchell's, enable Zacchaeus to remain a tax collector since Jesus' pronouncement of salvation to Zacchaeus's household was made while he was still collecting taxes.33 In the vindica-tion theory, Jesus offers no condemnation of Zacchaeus's job. Therefore Zacchaeus was not a sinner as a tax collector since Luke's purpose in vindicating Zacchaeus was to serve "the underlying purpose . . . to make acceptable in the Christian commu-nity the presence of those who, although having socially despised occupations, were faithful believers."34 For Mndez-Moratalla, this interpretive conclusion goes against the thrust of the passage and the overall purposes of Luke to portray the immediacy of salvation, a reversal of priorities and commitments, and evidential changes in atti-tudes toward wealth and possessions. The story of Zacchaeus does contain evidence of conversion which Mndez-Moratalla defines as starting with divine initiative and the desire to seek Jesus resulting in a life-changing encounter. This life-changing encounter had a direct correlation on how Zacchaeus obtained his wealth and what he resolved to do with it in the future. The giving back of unjustly gained wealth was an act of repentance for past actions which would have implications for any future actions related to the obtaining and use of wealth and possessions. It is only then, in an act of acceptance and fellowship, and after Zacchaeus's promise of change, Jesus announces salvation to Zacchaeus.35

I do take seriously Green's earlier caution that we ought not to read the story of Zacchaeus as an obvious story of conversion as Mndez-Moratalla does. I do not

31. Ibid., 163.

32. Fernando Mndez-Moratalla, The Paradigm of Conversion in Luke (London: T. & T. Clark, 2004).

33. The same kind of vindication could also be made of all tax coUectors since John the Baptist in Luke 3:12-13 did not instruct hearers to stop collecting taxes but to stop collecting more than required. By way of reminder, I am exploring a particular tax collector, Zacchaeus, and not tax collecting.

34. Mndez-Moratalla, The Paradigm of Conversion in Luke, 159. 35. Ibid., 160-78.


think we can find in or force on the story the ordo salutis or derive a standard for-mula for conversion. There is no overly familiar linear process that enables us to be clear about what conversion actually should be, functioning as some kind of test to measure the validity of a person's conversion. I recognize the sometimes hegemonic ways in which our obsession for orderly systems of theology control our reading of Scripture and force on texts paradigms that hide and tame Scripture's power and possibilities.36 However I do think we learn something about what it means to en-counter Jesus and how this encounter changes or converts us in very tangible ways as it did for Zacchaeus, contrary to Mitchell's reading of Zacchaeus's vindication as tax collector.

The story of Zacchaeus's encounter with Christ begs for an "analogical imagination"37 in our interpretation and reading whereby we pose new questions and wonder about the possibilities of these kinds of stories for our own lives; for our purposes in particular, how this story might challenge our accepted notions of what conversion is and how it might relate to where and how we spend the majority of our time (i.e. working) and the means for earning incomes. So, this is where the story of Zacchaeus takes me and the questions with which I am left. Whatever happened to Zacchaeus? How did this initial encounter, this seminal change of attitude and behavior, result in further conversions of attitudes and behaviors? What did this initial change of heart and action mean for subsequent changes, particularly as they related to tax collecting knowing what we know about the practices and purposes of tax collecting? Could Zacchaeus have continued collecting taxes? Should Zacchaeus have continued collecting taxes? Our answers will likely depend on how we under-stand not only Zacchaeus's conversion but our own, and how we might imagine the possibilities of where our conversions may take us.

36. See Trevor Hart, Faith Thinking: The Dynamics of Christian Theology (Downers Grove, III: InterVarsity, 1995), 137-9. Hart offers an important warning about reading Scripture at the two ex-tremes of objectivism and relativism. Objectivism insists on one meaning and only one way of reading Scripture, which closes one's self off from any other readings and fresh possibilities which Scripture, the Spirit, and Christian community offer. Hart is also critical of relativism in our reading of Scripture in that there are no constraints in our interpretation. We become free to read Scripture as we want, with no stable reference points beyond our own proclivity for comfortable and comforting renderings of texts. Both are a "taming of the text" that ultimately fails to take Scripture seriously.

37. See William Spohrs rich insights on analogical imagination in Go and Do Likewise: Jesus and Ethics (New York: Continuum, 2007), 61. See also Richard Hays, The Moral Vision of the New Testament: Community, Cross and New Creation (San Francisco: Harper, 1996), 3-7, and John Mclntyre, Faith, Theology and Imagination (Edinburgh: Handsel, 1987) for other helpful insights on the relationships between Scripture, faith, theology and imagination.


Two Notions of Conversion

Conversion is a word that describes an experience of change, or a turnaround in belief, attitudes, and behavior. It may involve the rejection of one set of religious beliefs and practices, or no belief, and the adoption of another. It may entail a dras-tic reversal of direction in favor of a new way of life or something more gradual. In Christian theology, conversion is a term used to describe various elements and aspects of a persons encounter with Christ that result in an awareness of sin, an acceptance of Christs work on the cross, and a response of saving faith in Christ as fundamental aspects of being converted, or turning from one way of life and accept-ing the new life which Christ offers. A person is therefore, converted, or changed in the past tense. Often conversion is equated with salvation, and points to the past and looks forward to the future. A person turns from one way of life, or converts, and therefore one will be saved. A person points backward to the date, time, and place, often excruciatingly specific, when she or he accepted Christ as her or his Savior, was converted, and therefore will be saved from the judgment of God for sin. This past action has bearing for the future in that a persons decision of conversion guarantees a place in heaven.

This first notion of conversion places an emphasis on the past event "getting saved" and the future reward of "being saved" as both a result and benefit of conver-sion. It equates being converted with getting saved as the ultimate goal of one s life that was accomplished through a one-time decision to convert.38 While this first notion of conversion may reflect aspects of the biblical witness and contemporary experience in that people do have dramatic encounters with Jesus that change them forever and offer hope and promise for the future, it misses some fundamental no-tions of conversion that have implications for the here and now, the important times of our lives between the then of the past and the then of the future. This first notion of conversion as one-time event enables us to read Zacchaeuss story as a tale of conversion in that Jesus was searching for Zacchaeus; Zacchaeus had an encounter with Jesus that elicited a response that could be interpreted as repentance; and with the result of the inclusion of Zacchaeus into the people of God. The past event and

38. See Wyndy Corbin Reuschling, Reviving Evangelical Ethics: The Promises and Pitfalls of Classic Models of Morality (Grand Rapids: Brazos, 2008), 99-100. See also the essay by Luke L. Keefer, "What is Conversion?" in Brethren in Christ History and Life 30 (Apr 2007): 63-84; and Gordon T. Smith, Beginning Well: Christian Conversion and Authentic Transformation (Downers Grove, 111.: InterVarsity, 2001).

Wyndy Corbin Reuschling Zacchaeuss Conversion

the future promise assure us Zacchaeus was converted, and hence fulfills our desire for a tidy explanation of how one is converted to Christ.

Yet this first notion of conversion leaves me troubled in a number of ways. It still does not explain the difference that this encounter with Jesus made in Zacchaeus's life in the every day and over the long term, and on his vocation as a tax collector. Do we only encounter Jesus once and experience a life change upon conversion only once? This bi-polar view of conversion, that emphasizes the past and the future and compartmentalizes the here and now, fails to recognize that authentic conversion is on-going and progressive,39 and should impact all areas of our lives, the spiritual, intellectual, and vocational40 and, I would add, the relational, social, and moral. This first notion of conversion tends to relegate our experiences and encounters with Christ to some kind of ethereal sphere which privileges the spiritual over the ma-terial aspects of our lives. This brackets the very concrete and social dimensions of our lives, such as our vocations, ways of earning and using money, the ethical demands of Christian discipleship and our responsibilities to others, from perti-nent moral critique that come from the commitments we have as followers of Jesus Christ. Morality becomes bifurcated from conversion, discipleship from salvation, and beliefs from practices, since all that matters is that we were converted and we shall be saved.

It is the second view of conversion, a "progressive understanding"41 that I find more apt for exploring how conversion is on-going and how it might impact our vocational choices. Instead of seeing conversion as a one-time encounter of "getting saved," might it better to see conversion as continual posturing and willingness for change and formation that can be gradual,42 but may be as cataclysmic as a first en-counter with Christ? In other words, even as Christians, we can be converted again and again when encountering the demands and implications of the Gospel that may put us on a different course. Seeing conversion not as the end of Christian life but its beginning may enable us to make stronger connections between conversion, moral

39. Luke L. Keefer, "What is Conversion?" 73.

40. Ibid.

41. Ibid.

42. This gradual kind of formation is akin to sanctification. I am avoiding this word while recogniz-ing it is theologically rich and important in Christian faith. I want to keep the focus on conversion in order to stress that even in the process of sanctification we might be "re-converted" in a radical turn-around as opposed to a gradual formation forward.

8o EX AUDITU VOL. 25 / 2009

formation, discipleship, and choices throughout the course of our lives. Should we not always be converting to the ways and purposes of Christ?

In light of these possibilities, I offer this tentative definition of conversion as an ongoing socialization and formation by and into a Christian narrative for all dimen-sions of life.431 realize that it is difficult to talk about conversion without talking about the work of the Triune God in the economy of salvation and the important role of the Holy Spirit.44 Due to the limits of this paper and the topic of our conversation, I want to focus on conversion "as the human activity that enables us to appropriate the justifying work of God."451 will expand on this definition and the human side of conversion and then return to Zacchaeus for possible answers to my questions about his vocation as a tax collector in light of the on-going nature of conversion.

Conversion is not simply an event or a one-time encounter with Christ. Conversion is the beginning of a new life, the acceptance of a new life story, an invitation into a new community and a new way of seeing the world that is now in-formed by the love, mercy, and reconciling grace of God on behalf of the world. This involves processes of socialization by learning and practicing the demands of this new life in Christ. It is what Nicholas Taylor and Joel Green call an "autobiographical reconstruction."46 This reconstruction of our selves is on-going, personal and com-munal. Who we understand ourselves to be changes and how we conceive of our lives before God and with others radically shifts. We no longer exist for ourselves and because of this we need to learn ways of relating to God and others that reflects our

43. This definition has been informed by the following works: Beverly Roberts Gaventa, From Darkness to Light: Aspects of Conversion in the New Testament (OBT 20; Philadelphia: Fortress, 1986); Joel B. Green, Body, Soul, and Human Life: The Nature of Humanity in the Bible (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2008); Scot McKnight, Turning to Jesus: The Sociology of Conversion in the Gospels (Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2002); Wayne A. Meeks, The Origins of Christian Morality (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 1993); Lewis R. Rambo, Understanding Religious Conversion (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 1993); Tobias Rink, "An Interdisciplinary Perspective on Conversion," Missionalia 53:2 (August 2007): 18-43; Nicholas H. Taylor," The Social Nature of Conversion in the Early Christian World," in Modelling Early Christianity: Social Scientific Studies of the New Testament in Its Context, (ed. Philip F. Esler; London: Routledge, 1995), 128-38; and Jim Wallis, The Call to Conversion: Why Faith is Always Personal but Never Private (revised and updated edition; New York: HarperSanFrancisco, 2005).

44. I agree with Elizabeth Musselman Palmer in her response to my paper in that God's grace and initiative is the starting point for any understanding of salvation, and hence conversion.

45. Gordon Smith, Beginning Well, 10.

46. Nicholas H. Taylor, "The Social Nature of Conversion," 134; and Joel B. Green, Body, Soul, and Human Life, 129. Both Taylor and Green are using insights from social theory, particularly the works of Peter Berger and Thomas Luckmann, and David Snow and Richard Machalek.


acceptance of this new Christian narrative. Processes of socialization require a com-munity where we learn what it means to be a Christian and what attitudes, behaviors and commitments are consistent with Christian faith and practice.47 Concerned with overly personal and sentimental understandings of conversion that do not make a lasting impact on our lives, Gordon Smith seeks to highlight the deeply communal and on-going nature of conversion and the necessity of a community in which the language and practices of Christian faith are learned on a continual basis. Without this social dimension, conversion is incomplete. Smith writes,

In the community of faith we learn the language of faith and conversion through sermons, hymns, prayers and readings of Scripture. But we also learn this faith language through ongoing conversations day in and day out in the context of both play and work. This communal language enables us to make sense of and give definition to our human predicament, the longings and aspirations of our hearts, the reality of God and the work of the Spirit in our lives.48

Smith goes so far as to suggest that without Christian community conversion is not possible. It is the Christian community that mediates and communicates through the language of faith this new interpretive framework that reinterprets and reorients our lives. It is the community of faith which socializes us and helps us to learn the "rules" of Christian faith through its liturgy, worship, teaching, mission, and ministries of service. It is the Christian community where we learn to live out our salvation (Phil 2:12-18), and which provides the environment and means for continual conversion to the purposes of God through its preaching and embodi-ment of the story of God. As Taylor notes, "resocialization, therefore, is integral to the conversion process, particularly in societies where human identity is essentially social.,>49 Since we are social creatures, conversion is never just a personal or private decision even though these aspects are important. Conversion is social and embod-ied, and is lived out through the adoption of "requisite beliefs and practices"50 that are found in a Christian narrative.

47. See Tod E. Bolsinger, It Takes a Church to Raise a Christian: How the Community of God Transforms Lives (Grand Rapids: Brazos, 2004).

48. Smith, Beginning Well, 41.

49. Taylor, "The Social Nature of Conversion," 136.

50. Ibid.


This on-going socialization in a process of conversion requires the assumption of a "master attribution,"51 "a new conceptual scheme,"52 a new story, or narrative by which we interpret and orient our (new) lives. If Alasdair Maclntyre is correct that we all have and need narratives by which to live, then it matters which narrative we believe and embody.53 For those converted and continually converting to Christ, this narrative is the Kingdom of God, which involves a

. . . total relocation from which we see the world. True conversion is the radical reorientation of our lives according to our membership, our new citizenship in the Kingdom of God. Conversion is not just or only "getting saved" as the end of Christian life. Conversion is both an entry point and the continual process by which we actualize the story of Jesus, develop virtues, and engage in ethical practices.54

Conversion transfers us "from darkness to light" ( Pet 2:9) and disrupts and recreates commitments, belongings, loyalties, and identities. This "total relocation" may likely cause dissonance between what we believe and what we do, and the commitments we have already made and the ones we should make. Conversion relocates us as members of God s Kingdom, where we are now co-participants in God s purposes of justice, mercy, restoration, community, and service to others. As we grow in "actualizing the story of Jesus," and continually change in our perceptions, attitudes, and behavior, we will be confronted with choices in such practical areas as our vocations as means of serving the purposes of God.

This is what is hopeful and morally rich about the nature of on-going conversion that takes seriously the here and now of our lives. We can continually examine our choices and our practices in light of what we believe; we can continue to rely on our communities of faith for wisdom and direction; and we can also hold onto the

51. Ibid., 134.

52. Green, Body, Soul and Human Life, 126-27. 53. Alasdair Maclntyre's work in After Virtue (Notre Dame, Ind.: University of Notre Dame Press,

1984) has been influential in Christian ethics and has resulted in a recovery of narrative, virtue and teleology in moral deliberation. See the following as examples: Stanley Hauerwas, A Community of Character: Toward a Constructive Christian Ethic (Notre Dame, Ind.: University of Notre Dame Press, 1981) and The Peaceable Kingdom (Notre Dame, Ind.: University of Notre Dame Press, 1983); Stanley Hauerwas and Charles Pinches, Christians Among the Virtues: Theological Conversations with Ancient and Modern Ethics (Notre Dame, Ind.: University of Notre Dame Press, 1997); Nancey Murphy, Brad Kallenberg and Mark Thiessen Nation, eds., Virtues and Practices in the Christian Tradition: Ethics After Maclntyre (Notre Dame, Ind.: University of Notre Dame Press, 1997); and Samuel Wells, Improvisation: The Drama of Christian Ethics (Grand Rapids: Brazos, 2004).

54. Corbin Reuschling, Reviving Evangelical Ethics, 100.


hope that we are always being formed, always changing, always converting in fun-damental and dynamic relationships with the Triune God and with others.55 So as Green asks and answers, "Who, then is a convert? The simple answer would be, one who has undergone a redirectional rotation and is on the move in faithful service to the purpose of God as this is revealed in Jesus Christ and underwritten by the Spirit of God."56 Continual conversion involves faithful movement forward and a willingness to have our lives disrupted again and again by the call and challenges of the Gospel for the way we live and for what we do. This on-going process of conver-sion, when "transposed into narrative and embodied in tradition, can make possible other conversions"57 and produce profound changes and redirections in every aspect of our lives, as we hope it did for Zacchaeus.

Zacchaeus's Conversion: To be or Not to be a Tax Collector

In his article, "What is Conversion?" my colleague, Luke Keefer, recounts the story of New Testament scholar, Etta Linnemann.58 He notes a crucial juncture in her own faith, a dramatic encounter with Christ that caused her to call into question her com-mitments to historical biblical criticism under the tutelage of Rudolph Bultmann. Linnemanns initial dramatic conversion prompted yet another one, "a crisis of faith. Could she continue to employ her critical approaches to Scripture without offend-ing the Lord who saved her?"59 Apparently she decided she could not, publically announced her conversion and denounced her previous scholarship. Keefer goes on to note additional dimensions to Linnemanns conversion.

This change in scholarship brought about a further vocational choice. Could she continue to teach in an educational system that fostered doubt in those who were being trained for ministry? She decided she could not and resigned from her teaching position. Subsequently, she followed the

55. See Jeannine K. Brown, Caria M. Dahl, and Wyndy Corbin Reuschling, Becoming Whole and Holy: An Integrative Conversation About Christian Formation (Grand Rapids: Brazos, forthcoming).

56. Green, Body, Soul, and Human Life, 135. 57. Brian V. Johnstone, C.Ss.R, "The Dynamics of Conversion," in Spirituality and Morality:

Integrating Prayer and Action (Mahwah, N.J.: Paulist Press, 1996), 40-41. 58. Keefer, "What is Conversion?" 72-73. See Etta Linnemann, Historical Criticism of the Bible:

Methodology or Ideology? (trans. Robert Yarbrough; Grand Rapids: Baker, 1990; Repr. Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2001).

59. Keefer, "What is Conversion?" 73.


leading of the Lord to a Bible school in Indonesia, where pastoral candi-dates were being trained to proclaim the gospel.60

Conversion for Linnemann brought about a change in vocation. Did it do the same for Zacchaeus? It is important to remember that we meet Zacchaeus for the first and only time at a point of encountering Christ. We do not know how things turned out for him. We can imagine and hope that Zacchaeus willingly and joyfully entered into an on-going journey of formation and conversion. I would like to imag-ine that this initial encounter and subsequent ones did cause degrees of dissonance and discomfort with his job as a tax collector so that Zacchaeus himself wondered if he could be both a tax collector and an on-going convert of Jesus Christ.

Could Zacchaeus have remained a tax collector? I posed this question in a Sunday school class I was teaching at church. This was a class of older adults who had been involved with this church for years. Many had grown up in this church along with their children and grandchildren. These were faithful saints who had met Jesus, who knew the Bible, and who retold various experiences and stories of Gods faithfulness to them. A number of people in the class took issue with this question for a variety of reasons. Some were successful business people who saw their honest business activities as a means of honoring God and blessing other persons with jobs. Some saw work as a gift and command from God. No matter what kind of work we do, we should "work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord not men ' (Col 3:23). Work is amoral; it is our attitude toward work that concerns God. Others were puzzled by this question because salvation and conversion were spiritual matters that accomplished the main purposes which God had for their lives. There were very little connections made between how conversion might reshape our very notions of work, how it is done, why it is done, and whom it serves. Topics such as work were not viewed even as a spiritual issue, let alone a moral one that had much to do with conversion to Christian faith which, it was believed, was about spiritual matters. I found this a bit surprising given the extraordinary amount of time we spend work-ing and forming relationships with those with whom we work. Work takes up a lot of our time and energy, yet this group of faithful church goers had a difficult time making connections between their own faith commitments, the purposes of their work, and the kinds of work in which they participate. For many, conversion and work belong to two different spheres.61

60. Ibid.

61. This was a Protestant church informed by streams of Anabaptist pietism and American evangel-icalism. Some of these comments reflected an appropriation of the "two kingdoms" inherited from the


In light of this common scenario and perceptions about work and conversion, the answer to the question about whether or not Zacchaeus could have remained a tax collector, could be yes, but with a number of conditions which the members of this Sunday school class would affirm. At a minimum, Zacchaeus s conversion and new citizenship in the Kingdom of God should have resulted in changed behaviors and new priorities. While conversion has important spiritual dimensions given the work of the Holy Spirit, conversion also involves visible changes in attitudes and be-haviors. The story of Zacchaeus gives us a glimpse of this. He recognized wrong and made adjustments in the way he collected taxes, in his attitude and use of wealth, and his response to those he had exploited. Zacchaeus would need to cease collect-ing more taxes than he was required (Luke 3:12-13) and stop using his position to exploit others for his own benefit. Zacchaeus could be an honest tax collector and a generous one; using the wealth he had gained honestly to help others. We do see a tangible change, observable by those who witnessed the interaction between Zacchaeus and Jesus. We have a glimpse of what Zacchaeus stopped doing, such as exploiting people and dishonestly collecting taxes. This is an important but incom-plete aspect of conversion because it still leaves open the question of Zacchaeuss participation in an enterprise that thrived on exploiting others and maintained op-pressive conditions for a majority of people.

This is why the more interesting question for me is should Zacchaeus have remained a tax collector? If we have an understanding of conversion as on-going socialization by and into a Christian narrative, I think the answer is no. Zacchaeus should not have continued to be a tax collector for the long term. Zacchaeuss con-tinual conversion must have created levels of dissonance as he confronted compet-ing obligations and loyalties as a disciple of Christ, and as a member of this new community, with his service to Rome. If Christian conversion is an on-going so-cialization process by and into the purposes and values of the Kingdom of God, then decisions about ways of earning an income are not merely individual. They are communal and may often place converts such as Zacchaeus at odds with ac-

Protestant Reformer, Martin Luther. See "Secular Authority: To What Extent It Should be Obeyed" in Martin Luther: Selections from his Writings, (ed. John Dillenberger; Garden City, N.Y.: Anchor, 1961), 363-402. In this treatise, Luther articulates the two spheres of the Kingdom of Christ and the kingdom of the world which have different sets of responsibilities ordained by God. Christians belong to both and will often have dual and competing loyalties. For some, the result has been a separation between spiritual matters and "earthly" concerns such as work, political authority, use of the sword, economics, etc., that are given a separate sphere in which to operate. The use of Luther's "two kingdoms'* in certain segments of Protestantism has contributed to a bracketing and division that further removes issues such as work, military participation, politics, and economics from Christian moral critique.


cepted customary practices such as tax collecting. To think that there may have been no conflict between Zacchaeus s conversion and the purposes and practices of tax collecting reveals "thin* notions of conversion that are private and personal, and limited to a one-time event of "getting saved" with very little change or conflicts of conscience. As Lewis Rambo notes, conversion is far more complex and has implica-tions for our moral commitments and "sociopolitical engagement." He writes,

Genuine conversion requires that the person move and grow beyond mere personal conversion. Engaging the social institutions and systems of the wider world requires yet another level of conversion, and entails ac-knowledging accountability and taking responsibility, to the fullest degree possible, for the quality of life produced by these institutions. While the substance of the other forms of conversion are important, the core evalu-ation of social conversion is justice for all. For Christian converts, then, challenging institutions to live according to the ethics of Jesus would be a consistent, logical goal.62

An understanding of conversion that is continual and has moral implications affirms this important social dimension of conversion, in that "transformation cannot be a purely interior phenomenon; the energy it generates radiates out and modifies social structures."63 While tax collecting provided basic amenities and ser-vices to persons, the means and ends of tax collecting could also be at odds with the moral vision of Gods Kingdom of justice, mercy, and generosity. Tax collecting served the kingdom of Rome and ensured Romes continual power and presence. Certain persons benefitted from tax collecting at the expense of those who become more impoverished and more vulnerable as a result of the system. Many of these were members of Zacchaeus's new community of Christian disciples. This placed

62. Lewis R. Rambo, Understanding Religious Conversion (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 1993), 147. Rambo is building on Donald Gelpi's proposal for five dimensions of conversion: affective, intellectual, ethical, religious, and social. I have a more modest expectation that institutions can live according to the ethic of Jesus but I appreciate and take seriously the challenge this notion of conversion presents to social ethics. See also the interesting essay by Stephen Long, "Corporations and the Ends We Serve," in Calculated Futures: Theology, Ethics and Economics (eds., D. Stephen Long and Nancy Ruth Fox, with Tripp York; Waco, Tex.: Baylor University Press, 2007). Long writes, "No one should expect members of a corporation to begin their day by citing the Nicene Creed . . . The point is not to turn the corporation into a confessional institution; it is to recognize that, for the baptized, their work in the corporation must be able to be offered to God's glory. No neutral space exists outside the vocation to offer our labor as such a gift. At the minimum, this requires that we not let our labor produce vices in us or others. At a maximum, we should not be surprised if opportunities arise to receive gifts of faith, hope, and charity through our daily labor" (127).

63. Johnstone, "The Dynamics of Conversion," 37.


Zacchaeus right in the middle of serving two masters and two kingdoms that at some point would need to be reconciled if conversion was to have a morally forming impact on his choices, practices, and commitments to the new community of Christ followers, and if his work was to reflect the priorities of the Kingdom. He could have been a good Christian trying to make a difference in a complex system or working to subvert it from the inside out. Or he could have been a part of propping up a system, engaging in practices, and serving ends, that belied the narrative to which he had been converted and the One to whom he made his confession of conversion.

Conclusion

My hope in this paper was to raise the possibility that conversion is on-going and has tangible effects on our attitudes and behaviors in such important areas like oc-cupations and work. A progressive understanding of conversion helps us continu-ally examine our choices, practices, and commitments in all areas of our lives. Our occupations are not in separate spheres or beyond the purview of moral critique. I realize there are no "pure" vocations devoid of conflict, dissonance, and ethical co-nundrums due to the complexity of economic and political structures. But I do want to hold out the possibility that there are some occupations which we just should not pursue and ones we should leave because, according to Miroslav Volf, they do not serve the purposes of Gods "new creation."64 Work that serves Gods new creation is work that is "related to the goal of all history, which will bring God, human beings, and the nonhuman creation into 'shalomic' harmony."65 Since conversion is the en-trance and acceptance into this new creation, how we think about our work in light of our conversions and Gods desires for creation is important.

What might be some questions for reflecting on the implications of our con-versions and Christian commitments for the kinds of vocations we pursue and the work we do? The story of Zacchaeus makes a claim on us because it is in the sacred Scriptures that we see as authoritative and normative for Christian faith and practice. Even though we can only speculate on how it all turned out for Zacchaeus, we can

64. Miroslav Volf, Work in the Spirit: Toward a Theology of Work (Eugene, Ore.: Wipf and Stock, 2001; previously published by Oxford University Press, 1991), 79-85. Volf's theology of work arises out of the complex nature of employment in industrial societies which are very different from the context first century Palestine. Volf notes this difference (77), as do I. However Volf's proposals help us think about our work in light of our Christian commitments and the on-going realization of God's good purposes for the world.

65. Ibid., 85.


pose questions and exercise theological imagination.66 If our work is an important means for serving God and reflecting God's intentions for creation, discerning the kind of work that contributes to Gods "shalomic harmony," and what we should do in and through our work is important. As my pastor, the Rev. Jim Cox, reminded us in a recent sermon, "God is not indifferent to how we make money and how we spend money."67 How does Christian faith guide our vocational choices? Who ben-efits from our work? Who is harmed by our work? How does the actual conducting of our work reflect the virtues and vision of the Kingdom of God? How does our work form us into more faithful disciples of Christ? How are our salaries obtained and invested, and resources shared with others in acts of justice and compassion? These questions simply offer a start to think about work in light of what it means to be a convert of Jesus Christ, invited in by the work of the Holy Spirit to participate in the good work of God in the world.

So, even as Christians, we still need to be continually converted. We will always need a radical reorientation of our lives to the purposes of God. We need to name the dissonance and conflicts between what we do and what we believe, particularly as they relate to such important activities as work. Should Zacchaeus have remained a tax collector? I dont think so. But should I continue to do what is acceptable, customary, and convenient in my work? I dont think so, especially if I am willing to be continually converted by the Gospel of Christ for the purposes of the continual conversion of God's creation toward "shalomic harmony" of justice and peace.

66. This point was made by Elizabeth Musselman Palmer since Luke does not give us the end of the story. Even though we cannot answer the question with assured definitiveness of whether or not Zacchaeus should have remained a tax collector, we are still left with a story that has implications for us which is the point.

67. This was part of a sermon series at Christ United Methodist Church in Ashland, Ohio, on The Social Principles of the United Methodist Church, 2009-2012 (Washington, D.C.: United Methodist, 2009).

^ s

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Conversion de Zaqueo

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