Respect for each other

*Thomas, Nora and their teacher are standing on a sandy dirt road beside a sycamore tree. They are in Jericho. *

TEACHER: Today we are going to learn about the tax collector named Zacchaeus.

THOMAS: What’s a tax collector? I think I might have heard my dad talking about them before …

TEACHER: A tax collector is someone who takes money from people’s wages to pay for public things like schools, hospitals or the police. In the Bible, Zacchaeus was a man who lived in the town of Jericho. He was a rich man because he was in charge of collecting taxes from the people in the town. Nobody liked Zacchaeus because they thought that he took more money than he should from everyone. The townspeople thought he was a cheater.

We see pouches of money exchanging hands above the heads of the children, and the townspeople looking angry.

TEACHER: In the Bible, it says that one day, as Jesus was passing through town, Zacchaeus climbed a tree to make sure he got a good look at him.

*We see Zacchaeus sitting on a branch. Jesus approaches him. *

TEACHER: Jesus said, "Come down, Zacchaeus, I want to spend the day with you." Jesus' attention to Zacchaeus made the people of Jericho very upset.

THOMAS: How come?

*Disgruntled people gather around Zacchaeus. *

TEACHER: Because they thought that Zacchaeus was a sinner, and that he did not live in the way that Jesus had taught people to.

NORA: Did Zacchaeus ever feel bad for what he did?

TEACHER: Yes, after spending time with Jesus, Zacchaeus realised he should be a better person.

*Jesus and Zacchaeus sit and talk enthusiastically by the roadside, smiling. *

TEACHER: Zacchaeus promised to give half of his money to the poor, and that he would pay back four times the amount of money to anyone he had ever stolen from.

THOMAS: That was nice of him!

We see Zacchaeus returning money.

TEACHER: Zacchaeus realised that he was not truly living as God intended and he decided to spend his life helping others instead, just as Jesus said he should!