Preparation for Sunday mass: Luke 19:1-10

1 He entered Jericho and was passing through it. 2 A man was there named Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was rich. 3 He was trying to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was short in stature. 4 So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree to see him, because he was going to pass that way. 5 When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, "Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today."

6 So he hurried down and was happy to welcome him. 7 All who saw it began to grumble and said, "He has gone to be the guest of one who is a sinner."

8 Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, "Look, half of my possessions, Lord, I will give to the poor; and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will pay back four times as much."

9 Then Jesus said to him, "Today salvation has come to this house, because he too is a son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek out and to save the lost."

Questions for adults:

- Why does Zacchaeus want to see Jesus so badly?

- Why does Jesus want to stay in Zacchaeus’s house?

- How does the encounter with Jesus change Zacchaeus?

Questions for kids:

- What is a tax collector and why do people not like them?

- Why are the people unhappy that Jesus goes to the house of Zacchaeus?

- What does Zacchaeus promise to do after the encounter with Jesus and why?