the lot of Lazarus was misfortune. Now he is in comfort, and you are in agony. But that is not all. Between your place and ours a great chasm has been fixed, so that no one can cross over from here to you, or from your side to us.’The rich man implored once more, ‘Then I beg you, Father Abraham, send Lazarus to my father’s house, where my five brothers live. Let him warn them, so that they may not end up in this place of torment.’ Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the prophets. Let them listen to them.’ But the rich man said, ‘No, Father Abraham; but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’Abraham said, ‘If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets, they will not be convinced, even if someone rises from the dead.’”
Lectio Divina
READ: The prophet Amos boldly denounces the lifestyle of those who live in comfort and affluence. In his letter to Timothy, Paul counsels to strive to be holy, living in faith and love, and blameless. Luke narrates a contrasting lot of a rich man and Lazarus, here and in the afterlife.
REFLECT: The parable of the rich man and Lazarus showcases the outcome of the failure to undergo conver- sion to faith in Jesus and the Good News. Without conver- sion, the rich man continues to live in his comfortable life while ignoring and taking no action to relieve Lazarus from his situation. The conse- quence: he found himself in eternal fire. Conversion would include loving and caring for those that God loves. It in- volves taking concrete actions to care for and protect others, especially the poor. God, who takes notice of the suffe- ring and pain of the poor, the needy, and the neglected, acts to liberate them from their situation. That is why conver- sion to the Good News would also include participating in or becoming an instrument of God’s liberating action. To a converted person, to live a life of comfort and affluence and to remain silent while a great number of peoples suffers injustices and abuse, and another numerous number of people languishes in misery and poverty, is unacceptable.
PRAY: Loving God, may we, in our simple or great ways, contribute in alleviating the suffering of your “little ones.”
ACT: Take part in social justice and eco-justice works.
© Copyright Bible Diary 2019
