Daily Reflection
November 18, 2025

Today’s readings are about doing what is right for the betterment of all, no matter the cost. Both Eleazar and Jesus know what standing up and speaking the truth will cost.

In 2 Maccabees 6:18-31, Eleazar faced a king who forced the Jewish people to abandon their faith and culture and adopt Greek customs. Many told him to compromise, bring his own food, and pretend to eat the forbidden food others provided. Eleazar contemplated his station, his age, his reputation, and his moral compass to teach the next generation that lying or betraying one’s faith is unacceptable. Eleazar shows that faithfulness to God is his ultimate devotion, and his integrity prevents him from compromising his beliefs, even if it means death.

This parable illustrates that being morally honest and rejecting hypocrisy is complex but courageous. Today, we see people distort morality to serve themselves and offer thoughts and prayers during real tragedies. The world becomes chaotic when prestige, power, and money influence choices rather than courage in facing pressure to conform and betray one’s core beliefs. Teaching my children and students that choosing right over easy is important. Having character and integrity isn’t always simple, especially when confronting injustice. If more people lived with Eleazar’s level of honesty and principle, society would be more just and trustworthy. His story challenges us to build communities, institutions, and systems based on truth — not convenience or deception.

In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus is passing through Jericho and has attracted a large crowd. The chief tax collector, Zacchaeus, wants to get a glimpse of Jesus and climbs a tree to see him. Jesus calls to Zacchaeus and asks him to stay at his home for the night. Everyone is shocked as they see Zacchaeus as a sinner and someone who isn’t “holy” as he takes people’s money and profits. Jesus shows the townspeople that he isn’t worried about their reaction and proceeds to Zacchaeus’ home. This interaction indicates that Jesus reached out to Zacchaeus, not the other way around. Zacchaeus didn’t have to beg or prove himself; Jesus called him by name. Because of Jesus’ outreach, we see Zacchaeus change. Zacchaeus understands his wrongdoings and repents, not in a “Jesus is in front of me, so I have to save face” way. His heart, mind, and soul have changed; it is true repentance. Zacchaeus is saved because of Jesus’ acceptance and forgiveness.

The gospel teaches us several real lessons:

1. No one is beyond God’s reach; Even the most unredeemed can be forgiven.

2. Encountering God’s love can change lives; Real faith is action, generosity, and justice.

3. God sees us all; God’s love is intimate and personal.

4. God’s grace is transformational; Acceptance and forgiveness inspire change.

5. The mission for us all as Christians is to find the lost, lonely, and suffering who have lost their way, to forgive them, and bring them home to Christ.

Be good to one another. God’s grace allows us to do great things. Be a person of integrity and lead with character.

“I prefer to be true to myself, even at the hazard of incurring the ridicule of others, rather than to be false, and to incur my own abhorrence.” ― Frederick Douglass