26th Sunday in Ordinary Time ~ Year C
26th Sunday in Ordinary Time ~ Year C (pdf)
Spiritual Reflection
“You received what was good, Lazarus what was bad; now he is comforted, whereas you are tormented” Lk 16:25
Up to the very end, Lazarus was stripped of material goods and had to beg for the things most necessary for his survival. Stricken with misery and hunger, . . . Lazarus finally ended up at the bosom of Abraham. This means that he did not rebel against his dramatic situation; instead, he accepted it and, in this manner, became poor in spirit.
Lacking something does not guarantee a person’s salvation. Nevertheless, it does present a chance for salvation by making it easier to purchase the pearl of the Kingdom. However, it is easy to waste this chance when we rely on and place our hope in material things, rather than God. Normally, we fail to have Lazarus’ attitude. Regardless of whether we are poor or rich, we resemble the rich man from the parable. According to the mentality of his time, the rich man thought that his riches were a sign of his particular chosenness. People respected him and, as a consequence, he felt exceptional in the eyes of God. He did not see the need to share with the poor, whom he considered worse than himself.
. . .When a person is immersed in temporality and lives as if God does not exist, he becomes blind and deaf to God’s grace. By adoring temporality, he does not see God’s presence in his own life. Nor does he hear the Lord who knocks through certain events, especially when God’s knocking is very soft.
. . . Commenting on this parable, the Holy Father, [Saint]John Paul II said that “The rich man was condemned because he did not pay attention to the other man – because he failed to take notice of Lazarus, the person who sat at his door and longed to eat the scraps from the table. Nowhere does Christ condemn the mere possession of earthly goods as such. Instead, he pronounces very harsh words against those who use their possessions in a selfish way, without paying attention to the needs of others.” The rich man, whose heart was full of the deception of riches and selfsufficiency, did not need God. He even regarded salvation like he did everything else – as something that he deserved. He considered himself great in the eyes of God. He probably had something in him of the attitude of the rich young man who was so attached to his material possessions that he was incapable of giving them away in response to Christ’s invitation. The rich young man went away sad while the rich man from the parable was closed to God’s mercy, which had the power to heal and purify him from greed.
Is there not something of the attitude of the rich man from the parable in us? Do we not consider ourselves the worthy owners of the different graces that we receive from God? Do we not turn away from God because we think that we can manage without Him?. . .God sustains our lives and gives us health and strength. Thanks to Him we can see, hear and walk. God gives us the ability to think and act. Are we grateful for these graces?. . .
Everything is alms from God’s love. Do we thank Him more than just occasionally for these alms from His love? When we fail to thank God for these gifts that we receive from Him, we behave as if we were self-sufficient, as if our lives and the fate of the world depended on us. Is not a beggar, who is closed to his “knocking” Benefactor, a pitiful person because he has it in his head that he himself is a king? St. Paul asks, “What do you possess that you have not received? But if you received it, why are you boasting as if you did not receive it?”(1 Cor 4:7). Why do we boast, even if in the depths of our own hearts, about our abilities, talents and achievements, instead of thanking God for these gifts?
S.C Biela, Open Wide the Door to Christ, pp. 13-16
References from the Catechism of the Catholic Church
1021 Death puts an end to human life as the time open to either accepting or rejecting the divine grace manifested in Christ.592 The New Testament speaks of judgment primarily in its aspect of the final encounter with Christ in his second coming, but also repeatedly affirms that each will be rewarded immediately after death in accordance with his works and faith. The parable of the poor man Lazarus and the words of Christ on the cross to the good thief, as well as other New Testament texts speak of a final destiny of the soul – a destiny which can be different for some and for others.593
2831 But the presence of those who hunger because they lack bread opens up another profound meaning of this petition. The drama of hunger in the world calls Christians who pray sincerely to exercise responsibility toward their brethren, both in their personal behavior and in their solidarity with the human family. This petition of the Lord's Prayer cannot be isolated from the parables of the poor man Lazarus and of the Last Judgment.118
Questions for Reflection
1. Reviewing my currant life with the parable of Lazarus and the Rich Man, what would I say of my attitude in the face of the material and spiritual gifts God has bestowed on me and what have I discovered about myself in my attitude toward others and God?
2. How do I understand that my abilities and achievements, the work by which I make a living, are gifts from God I take for granted, or that I consider due me, instead of thanking God for these?
3. My mother Mary simply said ‘yes.’ Do I say ‘yes’ but think that I would like more or deserve more? Do I consider the will of God? Meditating on Mary’s lifelong ‘fiat,’ how can she teach me acceptance in everything that God chooses for me?
Prayer after Sharing
Thank you, God, for allowing me to see the truth about my weaknesses and how it calls upon the abyss of your merciful Love.