Mass Readings

First reading	Amos 6:1 - 7 ©
Woe to those ensconced so snugly in Zion and to those who feel so safe on the mountain of Samaria, those famous men of this first of nations to whom the House of Israel goes as client. Lying on ivory beds and sprawling on their divans, they dine on lambs from the flock, and stall-fattened veal; they bawl to the sound of the harp, they invent new instruments of music like David, they drink wine by the bowlful, and use the finest oil for anointing themselves, but about the ruin of Joseph they do not care at all. That is why they will be the first to be exiled; the sprawlers’ revelry is over.

First reading

Amos 6:1 - 7 ©

Woe to those ensconced so snugly in Zion
and to those who feel so safe on the mountain of Samaria,
those famous men of this first of nations
to whom the House of Israel goes as client.
Lying on ivory beds
and sprawling on their divans,
they dine on lambs from the flock,
and stall-fattened veal;
they bawl to the sound of the harp,
they invent new instruments of music like David,
they drink wine by the bowlful,
and use the finest oil for anointing themselves,
but about the ruin of Joseph they do not care at all.
That is why they will be the first to be exiled;
the sprawlers’ revelry is over.

Psalm or canticle: Psalm 145

Second reading	1 Timothy 6:11 - 16 ©
As a man dedicated to God, you must aim to be saintly and religious, filled with faith and love, patient and gentle. Fight the good fight of the faith and win for yourself the eternal life to which you were called when you made your profession and spoke up for the truth in front of many witnesses. Now, before God the source of all life and before Christ, who spoke up as a witness for the truth in front of Pontius Pilate, I put to you the duty of doing all that you have been told, with no faults or failures, until the Appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, who at the due time will be revealed by God, the blessed and only Ruler of all, the King of kings and the Lord of lords, who alone is immortal, whose home is in inaccessible light, whom no man has seen and no man is able to see: to him be honour and everlasting power. Amen.

Second reading

1 Timothy 6:11 - 16 ©

As a man dedicated to God, you must aim to be saintly and religious, filled with faith and love, patient and gentle. Fight the good fight of the faith and win for yourself the eternal life to which you were called when you made your profession and spoke up for the truth in front of many witnesses. Now, before God the source of all life and before Christ, who spoke up as a witness for the truth in front of Pontius Pilate, I put to you the duty of doing all that you have been told, with no faults or failures, until the Appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who at the due time will be revealed
by God, the blessed and only Ruler of all,
the King of kings and the Lord of lords,
who alone is immortal,
whose home is in inaccessible light,
whom no man has seen and no man is able to see:
to him be honour and everlasting power. Amen.

Gospel	Luke 16:19 - 31 ©
Jesus said to his disciples, ‘There was a rich man who used to dress in purple and fine linen and feast magnificently every day. And at his gate there lay a poor man called Lazarus, covered with sores, who longed to fill himself with the scraps that fell from the rich man’s table. Dogs even came and licked his sores. Now the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to the bosom of Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried. ‘In his torment in Hades he looked up and saw Abraham a long way off with Lazarus in his bosom. So he cried out, “Father Abraham, pity me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in agony in these flames”. “My son,” Abraham replied “remember that during your life good things came your way, just as bad things came the way of Lazarus. Now he is being comforted here while you are in agony. But that is not all: between us and you a great gulf has been fixed, to stop anyone, if he wanted to, crossing from our side to yours, and to stop any crossing from your side to ours.” ‘The rich man replied, “Father, I beg you then to send Lazarus to my father’s house, since I have five brothers, to give them warning so that they do not come to this place of torment too”. “They have Moses and the prophets,” said Abraham “let them listen to them.”. “Ah no, father Abraham,” said the rich man “but if someone comes to them from the dead, they will repent.” Then Abraham said to him, “If they will not listen either to Moses or to the prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone should rise from the dead”.’

Gospel

Luke 16:19 - 31 ©

Jesus said to his disciples, ‘There was a rich man who used to dress in purple and fine linen and feast magnificently every day. And at his gate there lay a poor man called Lazarus, covered with sores, who longed to fill himself with the scraps that fell from the rich man’s table. Dogs even came and licked his sores. Now the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to the bosom of Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried.
‘In his torment in Hades he looked up and saw Abraham a long way off with Lazarus in his bosom. So he cried out, “Father Abraham, pity me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in agony in these flames”. “My son,” Abraham replied “remember that during your life good things came your way, just as bad things came the way of Lazarus. Now he is being comforted here while you are in agony. But that is not all: between us and you a great gulf has been fixed, to stop anyone, if he wanted to, crossing from our side to yours, and to stop any crossing from your side to ours.”
‘The rich man replied, “Father, I beg you then to send Lazarus to my father’s house, since I have five brothers, to give them warning so that they do not come to this place of torment too”. “They have Moses and the prophets,” said Abraham “let them listen to them.”. “Ah no, father Abraham,” said the rich man “but if someone comes to them from the dead, they will repent.” Then Abraham said to him, “If they will not listen either to Moses or to the prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone should rise from the dead”.’

Option for the Poor

Fr. Jack Peterson

Other Articles by Fr. Jack Peterson
Printer Friendly Version

Option for the Poor

September 28, 2007

Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. He came to us, sent by our heavenly Father, to redeem the world from sin, death and the power of Satan, to reconcile us with the Father and to teach us the path to the fullness of life. Our Lord's parables are particularly important stories that teach critical truths about this "way" which leads to peace and happiness.

Today's Gospel parable about the rich man and Lazarus is a handcrafted story which enables Christ to teach with precision that each of His disciples must have a special place in his heart for the poor.

Christ describes Lazarus as a poor man, covered with sores and desiring to eat the scraps from the rich man's table. As if that description was not enough to encourage compassion in the heart of His disciples, He adds that dogs even used to come and lick his sores. Jesus is revealing His heart. He sees the pain and anguish of the poor and the sick, and it stirs His emotions.

The rich man dresses well and dines sumptuously. The evil is that he does not see poor Lazarus lying at his door. His failure to see or do anything about this poor man is the only reason given in the passage for his existence after his death in "the netherworld, where he was in torment." It was obviously a determining factor in how he was judged upon his exit from this world.

Jesus gives a hint at the solution when He describes the rich man's interaction with Abraham, in whose bosom Lazarus rests upon his death. Abraham reprimands the rich man: "Remember that you received what was good during your lifetime." His blessings on earth were a gift from God. He received them. Sure, he may have been clever, hard working and industrious, but those gifts came from God as well. His success in business and life came from God, but he failed to recognize those gifts and to realize that he was supposed to share his gifts with the poor, the sick and the not-so-clever of this world. He sinned by failing to thank God for his gifts and failing to share his gifts with others.

I had a recent experience which made this truth of our Christian faith real and tangible. I met with a friend a couple of weeks ago to have a serious conversation about some recent trials in his life. We were sitting outside of an ice cream shop when a homeless man approached us to engage in conversation and ask for some assistance. I was impressed when my friend took him into a nearby sub shop and bought him dinner. He interrupted his own conversation with me and attended to this man's needs for companionship and food. It warmed my heart.

My friend reminded me that to be a disciple of Jesus Christ is to have an option for the poor, the sick and the starving of this world. Today's parable makes it painfully obvious that this is a non-negotiable aspect of the "way." If we plow through life so concerned about our own needs and hurts that we cannot see or attend to the suffering of our neighbor, we are not His disciples, we will not experience "life" on this earth, and we will not be among those who have embraced the full truth of the Gospel. Jesus says that if we fail to see the Lazarus around us and do something to alleviate his suffering, we will not be happy come judgment day.

On the contrary, as we come to know and love Jesus as our Savior and our brother, we will begin to love those whom He loves, see what He sees and take care of those who are hurting around us. Lord, grant me a heart for the poor, the sick and the hungry.