In the Gospel reading, Jesus tells a parable about a rich man who feasted every single day and Lazarus, a beggar, who lies outside the gate of the rich man’s house. In the story, both men die and end up in very different places. The poor man ends up in the bosom of Abraham, and the rich man ends up in Hades.

Now in Hades, the rich man wants the poor man to serve him, but Abraham says that isn’t possible. Nor is it possible for Lazarus to go back to earth and warn the rich man’s relatives. No, once we die, we are held accountable for what we did… and what we didn’t do.

In this parable, it’s what the rich man didn’t do that has created his misery. The failure to do the good we should have done is called the sin of omission, and that’s where the guilt of the rich man rests. He never saw Lazarus as another human being so he did nothing to alleviate his suffering. He might not have actually added to Lazarus’ pain, but he failed to help him.

We all have people who are lying at the gate of our lives. Instead of stepping over them like the rich man did to Lazarus, we are called to use our resources, whatever they may be, to serve the poor in our lives lest we, too, be guilty of the sin of omission.

In addition, the second reading this week, although it does not directly talk about material wealth, does instruct us in how to be rich in character and how to live in imitation of Christ. Both readings remind us that regardless of our own personal financial situation, we can all increase our faith in abundance by serving the poor we encounter in our daily lives.

 

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Reflection by Opening the Word

 

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It is wealth that blinded Israel to the obligations of the covenant and its own complacency in the time of Amos, and Paul now warns Bishop Timothy that “some people in their desire for it have strayed from the faith and have pierced themselves with many pains” (1 Timothy 6:10). Our first reading describes the dangers to our religious commitment that wealth can pose, and this reading describes what the man or woman of God should seek as an alternative.

Writing from Macedonia to the young Timothy, this exhortation comes near the end of Paul’s letter. Paul shows no shyness about invoking his full authority in order to stiffen the commitment of Timothy in the face of false teachings that had appeared in Ephesus. All Christians, and not merely bishops, are called to the highest possible standard of integrity, piety, faith, love, steadfastness, and gentleness of spirit. Without the grace we receive from our profession of faith and the sacraments which flow from it, none of us could meet that standard. This parable is about a rich man (sometimes called “Dives” in Latin, meaning “rich man”) and a poor beggar named Lazarus, who lives at the gate of the rich man. In the end, Dives finds “torment” in the afterlife and Lazarus finds “rest” in the bosom of Abraham. It’s this reference to Abraham’s bosom, traditionally understood as the place where the souls of the just awaited their redemption prior to Christ’s coming (CCC 633), which would have appealed to the Pharisees. Jesus may be issuing a warning to the Pharisees as well. Dives did nothing to offend Lazarus, he simply failed to notice him; his heart had grown hard to the point that he couldn’t see the needs of a man sitting at his own gate.

There’s a religious corollary to the hardness of the heart that material wealth can cause. We can easily become complacent toward those who are outside the Church because of the wealth that God has given us in all the graces of the new covenant. We must strive to be more attentive to the needs of those at our gates, even those outside our covenant family. In the case of both material help and sharing the Gospel, fidelity to God and his covenant demands it.

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In prayer, imagine for a moment that you are one of the rich man’s friends. He has invited you to dinner and you are excited about the meal you will eat because you know it will be delicious. As you approach the rich man’s house, you see Lazarus lying at the gate. What do you feel as you see him? What do you do? Do you step over him, anxious to get inside to the banquet? Do you stop to talk to him? Now imagine that the rich man sees you and begins to gesture to you to hurry up and come in the house. What do you say to the rich man?

Ask the Holy Spirit to show you ways you might be selfish with the goods that you have been given. Do you use the goods entrusted to you to help serve the needy? Ask God to show you one way you might better serve the poor or a “Lazarus” in your life this week.