Wealthy…. My what a big charge we have on that word. It is easy to harbor ill will towards the wealthy – and that’s putting it gently. Take a look around and let’s be honest, it’s easy to pass judgment on the rich. We live in a world pierced with class envy. “They” have more and it’s not fair! I want a piece of their pie! After all, today’s Gospel even supports our position. It was the suffering Lazarus who was carried by angels to rest in the bosom of Abraham and the nameless rich man, well, he suffered eternal torment in the netherworld after his death. Interesting how Jesus he didn’t even give the rich man a name. After all, he named the suffering man Lazarus, a Greek name meaning “God is my help”. So why not name the rich man?
The one thing we do know is that Jesus’ words were very important, after all, when he spoke he was speaking the Word of God. The Word became flesh for our sake. So why did he not name the rich man? Perhaps Jesus did not name him because he wanted his audience to fill in the pieces. As a Christian we can assume he was trying to touch their hearts and show them the truth. We know Jesus was addressing the Pharisees; however, why did he share this particular story with these men?
To begin to understand why Jesus shared this particular story with these men we need to understand a little bit about them. To begin, the Pharisees were the most important faction of this period and they were considered to be the spiritual fathers of modern Judiasm. They, unlike the Sadducess, believed in an after-life and that God punished the wicked and rewarded the righteous in the world to come. So any story of the after-life and righteousness would certainly have gotten their attention. Additionally, the Pharisees denied they were sinners because of their perceived obedience to the commandments. They upheld the law and distanced themselves from the unrighteous as they sought holiness. They also believed that the Hebrew descendants of Abraham were the only people beloved by God and no other group of people were of value in his sight. Basically, this group believed they would be the ones resting in Abraham’s bosom.
So why this talk with them? After all, it sounds pretty harsh. The rich man is going to suffer eternal agony in the netherworld and he won’t even be granted to opportunity to reach out to his brother’s with a warning. We don’t read of any sins he committed, other then dressing in fine garments and eating very well. We don’t even hear that he ignored Lazarus. So what is this crime that warrants such harsh punishment? Here’s the clincher. The Pharisees, in addition to believing that only the Hebrew descendants of Abraham were God’s beloved children, also saw poverty as a curse from God which lead them to favor the rich over the poor. And now, this poor preacher was telling them that the poor man named “God is my help” will rest with Abraham, while the rich man will suffer eternally in the netherworld. The minds of the Pharisees must have been spinning. No wonder they didn’t want to listen to Jesus!
So back to the word “wealthy”. Is the story Jesus is telling the Pharisees about the eternal damnation of the “rich” man, or is he pushing their buttons to make them look at poverty and wealth differently? Perhaps Jesus wants the Pharisees to see outside of the box and realize that others will rest with Abraham and they may not be rich or Hebrew descendants – after all, remember the name Lazarus is of Greek origin.
We can look to the first reading today and the Psalm for further insight. “Cursed is the man who trusts in human beings, who seeks his strength in flesh, whose heart turns away from the Lord” So if wealth has been created in such a way that we turn from the Lord and we seek strength in this world of flesh we will be cursed. However, upon further reading we see that the man who hopes and trusts in the Lord will be blessed and he will bear fruit even in drought. What that fruit is we do not know as it is God alone who will reward everyone according to his ways and merit of his deeds.
Today’s Psalm promises us even more. “Blessed is the man who does not follow the counsel of the wicked nor walks in the way of sinners, but rather, delights in the law of the Lord. This one is like a tree planted near running water whose leaves will never fade. Whatever he does will prosper.” Here we would believe that God indeed desires to prosper the one who hopes in him.
The key is to hope and trust in God. Perhaps he has blessed a rich man with material wealth or a poor man with spiritual wealth. Whatever the blessing, we are assured it can be used for God’s will if we but only chose to put our hope and trust in Him. When we allow him to direct our blessings we can then immerse ourselves in the beauty God will bestow upon us. Many a saint has trusted and hoped in God, surrendering their blessings back to him, allowing themselves to be used in God’s great plan. Modern day Saint Katherine Drexel, whose feast day was earlier this week, comes to mind. Her hope and trust in God lead her to use her financial and spiritual blessings for the benefit of generations of God’s children who could be called “Lazarus”.
Whatever God has blessed us with it is up to us to be wise stewards with these gifts. I challenge each and every one of us, myself included, to not pass judgment on one wealthier. After all, judgment is for God alone. Let us pray we are wise stewards of the gifts God has so lovingly blessed us with. Let us pray that we continue to keep our trust in the Lord and use the fruits born out of this trust for the further expansion of his kingdom. Let God always be our help.
Jesus- I Love You!
Breath of Christ
Breath in “I”
Breath out “love”
Breath in “you”
Breath out “Jesus”
