Pharisee and the Publican

The parable told by Jesus of Nazareth From the Pharisee and the publican illustrates the right kind of Christian prayer. It was narrated in the Gospels in the New Testament of the Bible only through the Gospel according to Luke ( Lk 18:9-14 EU).

Content

A Pharisee and a tax collector go to the temple in Jerusalem to pray. The Pharisee thanks God in his prayer that he is the Pharisees and emphasizes that he is ( in his eyes ) exemplary behavior - and not like about robbers, adulterers, or even the tax collector next to him. He praises his achievements in fasting, and in giving of tithes and sees no reason to commit themselves as sinners before the Most High. The tax collector, however, reflected against his chest, dares not look up and ask God to the sinner, to be gracious to him. In contrast to the Pharisees he is aware of his sinfulness confident and full of humility. The parable is completed by the words of Jesus, who explains that the tax collectors justified home would, unlike the Pharisees, because everyone who enhancing himself will be humbled, but he who humiliate himself will be exalted.

Interpretation

Jesus' listeners

During the 1st century AD, the Pharisees represented a distinguished group among the Jews, and were known also to strictly adhere to the laws of Moses and the oral tradition " provisions of the ancestors ." Tax collector, however, counted as socially ostracized group, as they collaborated as an occupying power with the Romans and as a tax collector money pressed by the population. In this parable, the two groups are presented according to the stereotype of their time ( = Pharisees pious, publicans = gesetzesuntreu ), but then provided with an unexpected twist for the audience. However, the prayer of the Pharisee meant to his contemporaries not something unusual, on the contrary, it is a righteous Jewish prayer. Why, then, the desperation prayer of the publican favors the judgment of Jesus, it is clear by the connection to the ( mean, 4 ) penitential psalm prays the publican (Psalm 51.13 EU) and the einmüdet in the sentence:

Modern theologians emphasize that this is not an example of narrative, but a parable. Therefore, the matter was neither a condemnation of the Pharisees nor an appreciation of the publican; rather their usual assessment will provided. The crux of the story is the fact that even a Pharisee could undermine self-righteousness, and even a tax collector was in a position to do penance; and even the ability to repent, it came to Jesus.

Modern interpretations

The traditional interpretation of the parable led to a rather stereotypical image of the Pharisees in which they were equated with hypocrites. Newer interpretations emphasize, first, that the actual and honest, not hypocritical pursuit of the Pharisees to be appreciated for a life pleasing to God. On the other hand often take modern theologians to a much greater nearness of Jesus to the Pharisees than to other Jewish groups. The parable warning against sin as " a master of manipulating ". She was able to turn law-abiding in misanthrope and insidiously to destroy human community. Previously it was necessary to guard against - also not to want to feel better than that Pharisee who died of his self-righteousness. The Jerusalem Bible Encyclopedia sees the "sinful but repentant publican closer to God than the proud righteous."

Liturgical use

In classical lectionary of the Western Church ( and to this day in the Lesordnung EKD ), the parable on the 11th Sunday after Trinitatis/12. Read Sunday after Pentecost as gospel and gives the Sunday his characteristic theme. Johann Sebastian Bach created as a meditation to the cantata My heart swims in blood.

In today's Roman Catholic lectionary the parable in Year C (Luke ) is read on the 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time.

In the Orthodox Churches, the reading of the preparation is used to fasting and Lent. Sunday of the Pharisee and the tax collector is the fifth Sunday before the beginning of the Easter Lent.

Folk reception

Eugen Roth wrote the following on this subject:

The Salto A man once looked at in more detail the story of the Pharisee who thanked God full of hypocrisy that he was not a publican. Thank God! he cried in vain sense that I am not a Pharisee!