Luke 16:1-13 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time September 18, 2022 No servant can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and mammon.
September 17, 2022
Luke 17:5-10 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time October 2, 2022 The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.” The Lord replied, “If you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you would say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.
October 1, 2022
26th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Amos 6:1, 4-7
1 Timothy 6:11-16
Luke 16:19-31
A. Text/Context
• We have just heard in the gospel how the poor man Lazarus after his death gained eternal life in company with God after all the sufferings he endured when he was still alive on earth
• At the same time we also heard the harrowing laments and the horrors of the rich man who died after enjoying all the luxuries in the world that money can buy when he was still alive on earth
• For short the poor man died and went to heaven and the rich man died and went to hell
• A similar story is heard in the 1st reading. The revelers eat and drink without any care to their countrymen who are suffering. Time is over, they are to be exiled
• What is the reason why did the rich man suffered all the tortures of eternal flames in hell when the rich man did not even hurt Lazarus?
• The rich man did not abuse or torture or hurt Lazarus? He did not do anything. What sin did he commit why he was plunged into perdition?
• This is exactly the reason why the rich man went to hell because he did not do anything even though he has the capacity to do so much
B. Human Situation
• The fault of the rich man is not because he has so much wealth but because in spite of all the riches that he has, he did not lift a finger to help the poor man
• Lazarus was just even at the doorsteps of the rich man’s house and only eats the morsel that falls from the rich man’s table
• The rich man only thinks of himself. He has the capacity to help by feeding Lazarus but he never did it
• This is the social dimension of the Christian faith. We also have a social obligation because we are large one family of God
• There are two kinds of sins that we commit: the sin of commission and the sin of omission
• And we recited this in the beginning of this mass I confess …
• In what I have done – the sins that we have committed
• And in what I have failed to do – the sins resulting from the things that we are supposed to do but we did not do it
• Of course, the sins of commission are very obvious; stealing, adultery, killing, lying, defrauding, etc.
• But the more subtle sin is the sin of omission because it appears that we are free from the obligations that we have for others
• Lazarus could not have died if he was sent just a bag of medicines to restore his health
• Your neighbor could not have been defrauded if you sent a text message that the man convincing your friend is a real swindler
• Your neighbor could not have been jailed if you testified as a witness that he is not the real killer, etc., etc.
• There are so many bad things that we can prevent to happen if we only lift our finger to help those who are in need
C. Challenge
• That is why if today we really do not care for others, know for sure, it is a bad sign for the salvation of our own souls
• And it may not just about money. You can also spend your precious time comforting a friend who needs to be counselled, or you may just have a listening ear
• We may not be able to solve the problems of others, but if we listen and give our sympathy, the problems are easier to bear because you are there
• We must always remember that money is not evil in itself. It becomes evil when we have already forgotten to help those in need
• It becomes evil when become a slave to it. It becomes evil when we even use it to abuse and to trample on the rights of others
• The gospel today is reminding us that we have a moral obligation to others
• There is a social and moral obligation to help others if we have the capacity to do it. If we do not have the capacity, your presence, your sympathy will help
• We must always remember that God does not require us to give everything for the sake of others
• God only requires us to help of what we can afford only
• The more treasures and riches that we have the bigger the obligation that is required of us
• If we do not have anything. Then we really have nothing to share
• We can always share our time, our effort, our support, our own selves even if we are devoid of monetary possessions
• In the end, the rich and poor alike are all required to express any form of charity to all those who need it
• It is also a mystery that even in very affluent countries where there are so many programs to help the poor people. There are still poor people
• Sometimes I would think that there really poor people so that the rich people can share their wealth to them
• As the 2nd reading in Timothy says that we should uphold the virtues as a people of God
• As real Christians, there are social and moral obligations that we need to fulfill in order to be virtuous in the eyes of God
• The gospel gives us a very clear reminder that our Christian faith is not only relegated to the spiritual and moral aspects
• Whatever is our status in a society there is always a social dimension of what we believe
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