the rich man looked up and saw Abraham afar off, and with him Lazarus at rest. He called out, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me,
and send Lazarus, with the tip of his finger dipped in water, to cool my tongue, for I suffer so much in this fire!’ Abraham replied,
‘My son, remember that in your lifetime you were well-off, while the lot of Lazarus was misfortune. Now he is in comfort, and you
are in agony. (...) 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 (...).’ Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the prophets. Let them listen to them.’(...) If they will not listen to Moses and the
prophets, they will not be convinced, even if someone rises from the dead.’”

Reflection:

The rich man is a sorry character in this gospel. It is not his
fault that he is rich. He enjoys the legitimate fruit of his labor. He has not
done harm to anyone. Yet in spite of this, he was punished when he died.
It is not so much because he commissioned sinful acts. It is rather the sin of
omission that condemned him. He was not aware of his surroundings that
is why he did not see the suffering of the poor man Lazarus outside his gate.
His luxurious life made him blind to the greater community where he lived.
He was too entertained to see beyond his own comfortable life. We need
to cultivate mindfulness to see beyond our own interest. We live not only
for ourselves. May our awareness that we are linked with other life forms
make us aware of our duty to help them live life to the fullest.

© Copyright Bible Diary 2021