Cycle C - Year II:  

25 September 2022: Twenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time 

(Liturgical Color: Green)

Readings:

First Reading:        Amos 6:1, 4-7

Second Reading:   1 Timothy 6:11-16

Gospel:  Please Read  Luke 16:19-31 

Let us share the world!

God provides enough resources to maintain life in our world. So why is there so much poverty and so much hunger in our midst?  Let's reflect on this.

There is poverty in the world because of the unsatiable greed of the few.  So the wealth of the world is enjoyed only by the privileged and powerful, while the rest which is the majority make do from "the crumbs that are thrown to them" by the greedy. This is the sad reality.

The Gospel tells us about the Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus. It is a timely message about rich and poor people, the two extremes of our society, to make us think and reflect on our Christian living.

Our Lord Jesus paints a dramatic scene of contrast in this parable -- riches and poverty, heaven and hell, compassion and indifference, inclusion and exclusion.

The parable tells a story of the rich man who dresses well and dines sumptuously every day but ignores the poor Lazarus lying at his door steps and begging for food.  The poor man Lazarus is covered with sores but desiring to eat the scraps that fall from the rich man's table. Jesus said that even dogs come and lick Lazarus' sores. Obviously, Jesus is revealing His heart in narrating this parable, that He feels the pain and anguish of the poor and the sick, and this stirs Jesus' emotions.   

The story continues that at the end of their worldly lives, poor Lazarus was "carried by angels to the bosom of Abraham" in heaven, while the rich man was in "the netherworld, where he was in torment."

So what was the rich man's sin that merited his damnation?  It would appear that he did nothing wrong with Lazarus while in this life. This was not the point. The rich man's sin is that he also did not do anything to share what he has to help the poor man Lazarus. So, the rich man's wealth was not his sin since there is nothing mentioned in the story that this was ill-gotten. But rather, it was his self-indulgence that blinded him to the basic human needs of his fellowman that warranted his condemnation.

Jesus uses this story to teach an important lesson that all His followers must have a special place for the poor in their heart.  To be a disciple of Jesus is to have the preferential option for the poor, the sick and starving of this world.  That is why the Gospel parable makes it painfully obvious that this is a non-negotiable aspect of following our Lord Jesus Christ.  That is to say, if we plow through life so concerned only about our own needs and hurts that we cannot see or attend to the sufferings of others, then we cannot be Jesus' disciples.

The message of the Gospel proclamation is simple: if you have gifts and richness share them with those less fortunate. By making ourselves "poor in spirit" we will accumulate  riches beyond comprehension in heaven.

So clearly, Jesus reminds us today that if we fail to see the "Lazarus" around us and do nothing to alleviate their sufferings, we will not be happy come judgment day.  For indifference to those who are in need and who are suffering is what the Scriptures is putting before us today as sinful. What we do for others we do for God. And what we fail to do for others we fail to do for God. 

Also, the Philippines celebrates National Seafarers' Sunday organized by the Apostleship of the Sea.  Let us pray for our Filipino Seafarers for their safety and "for the grace of the Spirit so that the bonds of love and unity with their families may remain strong in spite of their physical separation. May they remain steadfast in their faith and become witnesses of the values of Christian living in all circumstances." Amen.

A blessed Sunday to us all. And thank you for a moment with God.

Ad Jesum per Mariam!