September 26, 2010 26th Ordinary Sunday Amos 6:1, 4-7; 1 Tim. 6:11-16; Lk. 16:19-31 _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________   Readings:   http://www.usccb.org/nab/092610.shtml   ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________   The parable speaks of a rich man enjoying an exceptionally indulgent style of life, while poor Lazarus, covered with sores, lies at his door hoping for a few scraps from his table. This is a graphic example of the rich man’s utter disregard for someone in desperate need. As is so often the case in the parables of Jesus, a dramatic reversal of fortune then takes place. The one who was privileged finds himself in torment, while Lazarus, who was destitute, is safe in the embrace of Abraham.   It is always difficult to strike the right balance between respecting the “space” of another and stepping in to help. When should we make someone else’s life our business? The complexity of our society makes this balance even more difficult to achieve. This difficulty can be clearly seen within the family. Partners try to negotiate this balance with each other, as do parents with children and children with parents. But in the family, this negotiation is not attempted in a vacuum. It is done within the embrace of mutual love and concern.   A comparable love and concern bind covenant partners together. The absence of such dispositions is the reason why Amos castigated the wealthy Israelites, and why the rich man of the Gospel ended up in torment in the underworld. It is the same love and concern that bind us to one another and prompt us to step into another’s life in order to offer help. Our own covenant responsibilities extend far beyond the confines of our families or our parish communities. We cannot be deaf to the cries of the needy in far-flung corners of the world. We cannot close our eyes to the plight of the victims of oppression and war. We cannot be complacent while others are collapsing as their lives are being destroyed. We need to learn and commit ourselves earnestly to the teaching that the well-being of others is indeed our business.   The story tells us of a great gulf. If a man chooses a cheap heaven here, he can hardly expect to have a real heaven beyond death, for he has lost both taste and aptitude for a real heaven. If a man lives without compassion, he manifestly digs a chasm between himself and his fellow men; and by the same token he separates himself from God, for God is love. The story tells us that life here fashions an eternal destiny.     <<   Previous: 25th Ordinary Sunday  | Next: 27th Ordinary Sunday >>   Go Back to SERMONS (Year C)