Homily:
Once a rich elderly man told me, “I am the Lazarus in this parable”. He was rich, owning many houses, staying with his wife, children and grandchildren. Looking from outside, the family looked very prosperous, peaceful and beautiful. It was surprising to hear these words from a person whose family looked loving and caring. What made this rich elderly person say that he is the Lazarus in the story?
It is because no one cared for him in his family. He was not respected in his own family. He did everything for them but no one noticed him. When he opened his mouth to talk, he was always suppressed in front of everyone. Everyone was busy with their own tasks, so no one was able to give him some time to talk with him. Though he did not like the food, he adjusted and ate. His family was his world to him, he noticed all their needs and took care of them without telling them his needs. He was dependent only on them but still he was forgotten by them.
Our Almighty God always places a Lazarus for each one of us. Our Lazarus may be financially poor or incompetent or in some way dependent on us. But he/she is the God-given opportunity for us to show mercy, the pathway shown by God for us to reach Heaven.
The rich man in the story did not do any evil purposely to Lazarus. Then why did he end up in hell instead of Heaven? Because he was blind to the needs of people around him. He could not notice their scarcity.
In the marriage of Cana, Mother Mary noticed that the wine was running low and She interceded for them. Our Lord Jesus noticed Zacchaeus and called him. He noticed the man lying near the pool of Bethesda who was sick for 38 years and cured him. In John 9:1, Jesus notices a man born blind and cures him and so on… Our Lord Jesus and Mamma Mary noticed the suffering people around them. Do we notice the suffering people around us?
Once a family went to a priest for prayer. The husband in the family was suffering from a heart disease ailment. After the priest prayed, the wife told her husband, “Irrespective of whether the miraculous cure happens or not, I am consoled to know that there is someone who can pray for us with real compassion”. Compassion consoles a suffering soul. Can we notice a suffering soul and console him? We may not be able to visit them in person, but we can call and console them. We can let our Lazarus know that we care for them.
If the rich man had shared a meal with Lazarus daily, it would not have cost him anything. But it would have satisfied the hunger of poor Lazarus. A little may not seem much to us but that little can make someone else fully satisfied.
The rich man was not angry at Lazarus. He just did not care to support him. It was his self-centredness that made God reject the rich man.
There will be many Lazarus people in our lives and it will not be the same single Lazarus all of our life. God will place a different Lazarus at different points in our lives. No need to search for Lazarus. They will be around us. We need to notice and provide for them. Lazarus may be in our own family, who is uncared for. It is not that we do not want to see our Lazarus happy, it is that we are too busy taking care of ourselves. The rich man would not have been sad if someone else came and took good care of Lazarus, it was that he was too busy taking care of himself. There was no one else in his mind apart from himself, his family and his own priorities. God’s priorities were not his priorities. Are we following the foot steps of the rich man?
Our Lord Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount, “Blessed are the Merciful, for they will receive mercy”. Let us show mercy and become beautiful servants of God.
Our Lazarus gives purpose to our life. Once our Lazarus dies, we will also die. If we do not take care of our Lazarus, when our time comes, we may realise and say along with the richest man on earth of his times, King Solomon, “Vanity of vanities, All is vanity, except loving God and serving Him alone”.
At the final judgement, Heaven or hell is allocated to us based on how we take care of our Lazarus.
“For I was hungry and you gave Me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave Me something to drink, I was a stranger and you took Me in, I was naked and you clothed Me, I was sick and you looked after Me, I was in prison and you visited Me.”
If the rich man had welcomed Lazarus into his house, Our Lord Jesus would have welcomed the rich man into His house!!!
Key Message:
Am I taking care of my Lazarus?
Homily:
Once a rich elderly man told me, “I am the Lazarus in this parable”. He was rich, owning many houses, staying with his wife, children and grandchildren. Looking from outside, the family looked very prosperous, peaceful and beautiful. It was surprising to hear these words from a person whose family looked loving and caring. What made this rich elderly person say that he is the Lazarus in the story?
It is because no one cared for him in his family. He was not respected in his own family. He did everything for them but no one noticed him. When he opened his mouth to talk, he was always suppressed in front of everyone. Everyone was busy with their own tasks, so no one was able to give him some time to talk with him. Though he did not like the food, he adjusted and ate. His family was his world to him, he noticed all their needs and took care of them without telling them his needs. He was dependent only on them but still he was forgotten by them.
Our Almighty God always places a Lazarus for each one of us. Our Lazarus may be financially poor or incompetent or in some way dependent on us. But he/she is the God-given opportunity for us to show mercy, the pathway shown by God for us to reach Heaven.
The rich man in the story did not do any evil purposely to Lazarus. Then why did he end up in hell instead of Heaven? Because he was blind to the needs of people around him. He could not notice their scarcity.
In the marriage of Cana, Mother Mary noticed that the wine was running low and She interceded for them. Our Lord Jesus noticed Zacchaeus and called him. He noticed the man lying near the pool of Bethesda who was sick for 38 years and cured him. In John 9:1, Jesus notices a man born blind and cures him and so on… Our Lord Jesus and Mamma Mary noticed the suffering people around them. Do we notice the suffering people around us?
Once a family went to a priest for prayer. The husband in the family was suffering from a heart disease ailment. After the priest prayed, the wife told her husband, “Irrespective of whether the miraculous cure happens or not, I am consoled to know that there is someone who can pray for us with real compassion”. Compassion consoles a suffering soul. Can we notice a suffering soul and console him? We may not be able to visit them in person, but we can call and console them. We can let our Lazarus know that we care for them.
If the rich man had shared a meal with Lazarus daily, it would not have cost him anything. But it would have satisfied the hunger of poor Lazarus. A little may not seem much to us but that little can make someone else fully satisfied.
The rich man was not angry at Lazarus. He just did not care to support him. It was his self-centredness that made God reject the rich man.
There will be many Lazarus people in our lives and it will not be the same single Lazarus all of our life. God will place a different Lazarus at different points in our lives. No need to search for Lazarus. They will be around us. We need to notice and provide for them. Lazarus may be in our own family, who is uncared for. It is not that we do not want to see our Lazarus happy, it is that we are too busy taking care of ourselves. The rich man would not have been sad if someone else came and took good care of Lazarus, it was that he was too busy taking care of himself. There was no one else in his mind apart from himself, his family and his own priorities. God’s priorities were not his priorities. Are we following the foot steps of the rich man?
Our Lord Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount, “Blessed are the Merciful, for they will receive mercy”. Let us show mercy and become beautiful servants of God.
Our Lazarus gives purpose to our life. Once our Lazarus dies, we will also die. If we do not take care of our Lazarus, when our time comes, we may realise and say along with the richest man on earth of his times, King Solomon, “Vanity of vanities, All is vanity, except loving God and serving Him alone”.
At the final judgement, Heaven or hell is allocated to us based on how we take care of our Lazarus.
“For I was hungry and you gave Me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave Me something to drink, I was a stranger and you took Me in, I was naked and you clothed Me, I was sick and you looked after Me, I was in prison and you visited Me.”
If the rich man had welcomed Lazarus into his house, Our Lord Jesus would have welcomed the rich man into His house!!!
Nice reflection