Amos 6:1,4-7/Psalm 146:7-10/1 Timothy 6:11-16/Luke 16:19-31
THE RICH MAN AND LAZARUS
Today’s gospel contains the parable of the the rich man and Lazarus. The rich man lived a life of extreme luxury while Lazarus lived in abject poverty at the gate of the rich man. The narrative shows that the rich man knew that a poor man lived at his gate; he even knew his name was Lazarus but did nothing about his situation. Oftentimes, we know the poor persons at our gate; we know their names; we even engage them with some tasks but do nothing about their condition. At the end, the gospel says they both died; Lazarus was taken to heaven while the rich man was buried. This parable warns us against negligence and indifference to the plight of the poor or less privileged. It also underscores Christ teaching on wealth. For Christ, wealth is a responsibility towards the care and well-being of ourselves and our neighbours.
Pope Francis described the rich man’s drama as being “very much informed.” That information, the pope said, “never penetrated his heart. He wasn’t moved by the drama that others were living.” This is our drama too, he said. “We all know because we’ve heard it on the television or we’ve read it in the newspapers: How many children suffer hunger today in the world, how many children don’t have the necessary medicines, how many children can’t go to school. We say, ‘poor things’ and continue on.… We know these things exist, but it doesn’t penetrate our heart.”
Lazarus is the Greek version of the Hebrew name אלעזר, Elʿāzār (Eleazar) el”, which means “God” or “all powerful”, and “ezer” which means “help”. meaning “God helps” or “God is my helper” or “God supports”. Throughout his life Lazarus was never supported or cared for by anyone other than God. God helped and saved him.
God is our help, today’s psalm tells us “It is the Lord who gives bread to the hungry, who does Justice to the oppressed, sets prisoners free and raises up those who are bowed down” During crisis don’t give up, God will raise you up. Men may fail you but God will not fail you. Hold on to God, he is our help and our shield. Eleazar means “God is my helper”; have faith and be strong, God is your helper not man. Put your trust in God not man. And if God helps you, help others; 2 Cor1: 3-4 says; “Blessed be the God […] who helps us in all our troubles, so that we can help those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.
In the parable the rich man ended up in hell. In the Bible it is common to find the rich ending up in hell like the case of the rich fool. Does this suggest that hell is the fate of the rich? Is it bad to be wealthy? For a fact not all the rich were condemned in the Bible. For example Zaccheaus the rich tax collector in spite of his riches was saved together with his family (Luke 19:1-10); Joseph of Arimathea was a rich man who offered his tomb for the saviour to be buried (Matt. 27:57-60); Nicodemus was a rich man who brought a hundred liters of expensive aromatic oils to anoint the body of Jesus Christ (John 19:39).
These were wealthy men who paid their due by the service they rendered to God and humanity. So, God is not against riches, God wants you to have wealth; but he does not want wealth to have you. 3 John 1:2 says; “Beloved, I pray that in all things thou may prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospers.” Inasmuch as God desires our prosperity, He equally wants us to be saved. The gospel acclamation today says Jesus became poor that we may become rich. The problem is not riches but the trust in riches. “How hard it is for those who trust in riches to enter the kingdom of God” (Mark 10:24). Prophet Amos condemns such persons, he says that they shall be the first of those to go into exile. Therefore, whether you are rich or poor, trust in the Lord and you shall be saved.
Again, this parable underscores the reality of Heaven and Hell, Christians don’t give much attentions to this topic. The question of heaven and hell remain strongly debated today. Jesus knows about our fears , so he continues to teach us about this reality. On many occasions Jesus spoke about heaven and hell. Many of his parables were emphases on this truth. There are increasing speculations about heaven and hell. The fact still remains the words of scriptures. Precisely because of that Christ says in today’s gospel that “if they don’t believe the scriptures; they won’t believe even if someone should rise from the dead to preach to them.”
Lastly, the basic sin of the rich man was the sin of omission. “Sin is a serious offence against God, by any thought, words, action or omission against the will of God.” The rich man omitted charity is his budget plan. In the teaching of the Church, an omission is a failure to do something one can and ought to do. If an omission happens deliberately and freely, it is considered a sin. James 4:17 says; “Whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, to him it is sin.” Failure to do things we ought to do. The man sinned by failing to help the needy. Do we consider the needy today? It is even a sin not to pray (1Sam. 12:23) and failure to provide for our family is also a sin (1Tim5:8). Don’t fail to do what you can do. In all things, St. Paul says in the second reading aim at righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness and gentleness.
