Dear beloved sisters and brothers in Christ,
A man died and arrived before the Judgment Seat. Looking through the Book of Life, the Lord did not find the man's name. “Your place is in hell,” the Lord ruled.
The man protested, “But what did I do? I did nothing!”
“Exactly,” replied God. “That is why you are going to hell.”
In the gospel story of the Rich Man and Lazarus, the sin of the rich man was not that he was rich and dressed in a purple cloak. We are not told that he was responsible for Lazarus lying miserably at his door in rags. The sin of the rich man was that he ignored Lazarus. Lazarus was simply not important to him. Out of sight, out of mind, the rich man ignored Lazarus.
In the Confiteor professed at the beginning of Mass, we say, “I have sinned through my own fault…in what I have failed to do.” Our sin is not just what we do in thought, word, and deed. Our sin includes the sin of omission. Too late the rich man realized that what he failed to do would roast him in hell.
Complacency is a sin as deadly as any other mortal sin. To the rich who ignored the suffering of their brother, the Lord promised exile. “Woe to the complacent in Zion! Lying upon beds of ivory, stretched comfortably on their couches, they eat lambs taken from the flock… yet they are not made ill by the collapse of Joseph” (Amos 6:4-7).
Tormented in flames, the rich man finally took notice of Lazarus. “Father Abraham,” he cried out, “send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue” (Luke 16:24). The rich man noticed Lazarus because Lazarus could be useful to him. Appropriate to his social station, he addressed Abraham and not the lowly Lazarus.
Abraham was not persuaded. So the rich man made a second request. “Father Abraham,” the rich man bargained, “send Lazarus to warn my five brothers” (Luke 16:27-28). At least the rich man was finally thinking of others. Perhaps Lazarus, like Dicken’s ghost of Christmas future, could scare his five brothers straight?
Numbers are important in the Bible. The fact that the rich man had five brothers instead of four or six is significant. In the Bible, seven is the perfect number. Like “lucky seven,” it means “complete.” The rich man plus his five brothers adds up to six. Where is the seventh brother? How to complete the brotherhood?
The rich man baked in flames for eternity because he ignored Lazarus. If he considered Lazarus at all, it was as an errand boy. If only he had called out, “Father Abraham, let me give my purple cloak to Lazarus, my brother.”
Who is it hard for you to treat as a brother or sister?
In Christ,
Father David
HURRICANE FIONA
No doubt Hurricane Fiona has hit hard our Sister Diocese in the Dominican Republic. Our annual collection could not be more timely. Check out the three minute video.
WHAT IF LAZARUS WAS AN IMMIGRANT
“Any action to transport persons under false pretenses and leave them stranded with no assistance, if this proves to be the case, fails to respect their human dignity and objectifies them.” The Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops wrote, “Immigration is not just a political issue, but a fundamental human and moral issue. For immigrants are not faceless numbers – but human persons. They are our brothers and sisters.”
DIGITAL CALENDAR
Our parish calendar is now online. See what’s happening in the parish this week and all of next month.
WALK FOR LIFE
Support the Sanford Pregnancy Center and its building campaign. Secret Lake Park, Casselberry, Saturday, October 22.
