Thursday
of the Second Week of Lent
Lectionary: 233
Lectionary: 233
Thus
says the LORD:
Cursed is the man who trusts in human beings,
who seeks his strength in flesh,
whose heart turns away from the LORD.
He is like a barren bush in the desert
that enjoys no change of season,
But stands in a lava waste,
a salt and empty earth.
Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD,
whose hope is the LORD.
He is like a tree planted beside the waters
that stretches out its roots to the stream:
It fears not the heat when it comes,
its leaves stay green;
In the year of drought it shows no distress,
but still bears fruit.
More tortuous than all else is the human heart,
beyond remedy; who can understand it?
I, the LORD, alone probe the mind
and test the heart,
To reward everyone according to his ways,
according to the merit of his deeds.
Cursed is the man who trusts in human beings,
who seeks his strength in flesh,
whose heart turns away from the LORD.
He is like a barren bush in the desert
that enjoys no change of season,
But stands in a lava waste,
a salt and empty earth.
Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD,
whose hope is the LORD.
He is like a tree planted beside the waters
that stretches out its roots to the stream:
It fears not the heat when it comes,
its leaves stay green;
In the year of drought it shows no distress,
but still bears fruit.
More tortuous than all else is the human heart,
beyond remedy; who can understand it?
I, the LORD, alone probe the mind
and test the heart,
To reward everyone according to his ways,
according to the merit of his deeds.
Responsorial
PsalmPS 1:1-2, 3, 4 AND 6
R.
(40:5a) Blessed are they who hope in the Lord.
Blessed the man who follows not
the counsel of the wicked
Nor walks in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the company of the insolent,
But delights in the law of the LORD
and meditates on his law day and night.
R. Blessed are they who hope in the Lord.
He is like a tree
planted near running water,
That yields its fruit in due season,
and whose leaves never fade.
Whatever he does, prospers.
R. Blessed are they who hope in the Lord.
Not so, the wicked, not so;
they are like chaff which the wind drives away.
For the LORD watches over the way of the just,
but the way of the wicked vanishes.
R. Blessed are they who hope in the Lord.
Blessed the man who follows not
the counsel of the wicked
Nor walks in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the company of the insolent,
But delights in the law of the LORD
and meditates on his law day and night.
R. Blessed are they who hope in the Lord.
He is like a tree
planted near running water,
That yields its fruit in due season,
and whose leaves never fade.
Whatever he does, prospers.
R. Blessed are they who hope in the Lord.
Not so, the wicked, not so;
they are like chaff which the wind drives away.
For the LORD watches over the way of the just,
but the way of the wicked vanishes.
R. Blessed are they who hope in the Lord.
Verse
Before The GospelSEE LK 8:15
Blessed
are they who have kept the word with a generous heart
and yield a harvest through perseverance.
and yield a harvest through perseverance.
GospelLK 16:19-31
Jesus
said to the Pharisees:
“There was a rich man who dressed in purple garments and fine linen
and dined sumptuously each day.
And lying at his door was a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores,
who would gladly have eaten his fill of the scraps
that fell from the rich man’s table.
Dogs even used to come and lick his sores.
When the poor man died,
he was carried away by angels to the bosom of Abraham.
The rich man also died and was buried,
and from the netherworld, where he was in torment,
he raised his eyes and saw Abraham far off
and Lazarus at his side.
And he cried out, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me.
Send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue,
for I am suffering torment in these flames.’
Abraham replied, ‘My child,
remember that you received what was good during your lifetime
while Lazarus likewise received what was bad;
but now he is comforted here, whereas you are tormented.
Moreover, between us and you a great chasm is established
to prevent anyone from crossing
who might wish to go from our side to yours
or from your side to ours.’
He said, ‘Then I beg you, father, send him
to my father’s house,
for I have five brothers, so that he may warn them,
lest they too come to this place of torment.’
But Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the prophets.
Let them listen to them.’
He said, ‘Oh no, father Abraham,
but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’
Then Abraham said,
‘If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets,
neither will they be persuaded
if someone should rise from the dead.’”
“There was a rich man who dressed in purple garments and fine linen
and dined sumptuously each day.
And lying at his door was a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores,
who would gladly have eaten his fill of the scraps
that fell from the rich man’s table.
Dogs even used to come and lick his sores.
When the poor man died,
he was carried away by angels to the bosom of Abraham.
The rich man also died and was buried,
and from the netherworld, where he was in torment,
he raised his eyes and saw Abraham far off
and Lazarus at his side.
And he cried out, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me.
Send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue,
for I am suffering torment in these flames.’
Abraham replied, ‘My child,
remember that you received what was good during your lifetime
while Lazarus likewise received what was bad;
but now he is comforted here, whereas you are tormented.
Moreover, between us and you a great chasm is established
to prevent anyone from crossing
who might wish to go from our side to yours
or from your side to ours.’
He said, ‘Then I beg you, father, send him
to my father’s house,
for I have five brothers, so that he may warn them,
lest they too come to this place of torment.’
But Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the prophets.
Let them listen to them.’
He said, ‘Oh no, father Abraham,
but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’
Then Abraham said,
‘If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets,
neither will they be persuaded
if someone should rise from the dead.’”
Meditation: Lazarus
was carried to Abraham's bosom
What sustains you when
trials and affliction come your way? The prophet Jeremiah tells us that whoever
relies on God will not be disappointed or be in want when everything around
them dries up or disappears (Jeremiah 17:7-8). God will not only be their
consolation, but their inexhaustible source of hope and joy as well.
Jesus' parable about the
afflictions of the poor man Lazarus brings home a similar point. In this story
Jesus paints a dramatic scene of contrasts - riches and poverty, heaven and
hell, compassion and indifference, inclusion and exclusion. We also see an
abrupt and dramatic reversal of fortune. Lazarus was not only poor, but sick
and unable to fend for himself. He was "laid" at the gates of
the rich man's house. The dogs which licked his sores probably also stole the
little bread he got for himself. Dogs in the ancient world symbolized contempt.
Enduring the torment of these savage dogs only added to the poor man's miseries
and sufferings. The rich man treated the beggar with contempt and indifference,
until he found his fortunes reversed at the end of his life! In God's economy,
those who hold on possessively to what they have, lose it all in the end, while
those who share generously receive back many times more than they gave way.
The name Lazarus means God
is my help. Despite a life of misfortune and suffering, Lazarus did not
lose hope in God. His eyes were set on a treasure stored up for him in heaven.
The rich man, however, could not see beyond his material wealth and possessions.
He not only had every thing he needed, he selfishly spent all he had on
himself. He was too absorbed in what he possessed to notice the needs of those
around him. He lost sight of God and the treasure of heaven because he
was preoccupied with seeking happiness in material things. He served wealth
rather than God. In the end the rich man became a beggar!
Do you know the joy and
freedom of possessing God as your true and lasting treasure? Those who put
their hope and security in heaven will not be disappointed (see Hebrews 6:19).
"Lord Jesus, you
are my joy and my treasure. Make me rich in the things of heaven and give me a
generous heart that I may freely share with others the spiritual and
material treasures you have given to me."
A Daily Quote for Lent: Creator of
both rich and poor, by Augustine of Hippo, 3540-430 A.D.
"God made both the
rich and the poor. So the rich and the poor are born alike. You meet one
another as you walk on the way together. Do not oppress or defraud anyone. One
may be needy and another may have plenty. But the Lord is the maker of them
both. Through the person who has, He helps the one who needs - and through the
person who does not have, He tests the one who has." (excerpt from Sermon
35, 7)
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 25,
LUKE 16:17-28
Lenten Weekday
(Jeremiah 17:5-10; Psalm 1)
Lenten Weekday
(Jeremiah 17:5-10; Psalm 1)
KEY VERSE: 'If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced even if someone rises from the dead" (v 31).
TO KNOW: In Jesus' day, it was believed that prosperity was a sign of God's favor and suffering a sign of God's displeasure. Jesus told a parable that was counter-cultural to this idea. In the story, a rich man feasted in sumptuous luxury while Lazarus, a poor man, suffered from disease and starvation at his gates. When the rich man died he ended up in Sheol, the abode of the dead where the wicked were consigned. When Lazarus died he was escorted to the bosom of Abraham, a metaphor for the resting place of the righteous (In the Old Testament death was described as "lying down with the ancestors," Gn 15:15, 47:30). The irony was that in their lifetimes, a chasm of poverty and wealth existed between Lazarus and the rich man, whereas in death there was an abyss of punishment and reward between them. The rich man begged Abraham to send Lazarus to warn his family so that they might avoid his fate. Abraham replied that Moses and the prophets had already proclaimed God's word, and if the rich man's family failed to listen to the warnings in Scripture, they would not be convinced even if someone rose from the dead (an allusion to Jesus' own resurrection).
TO LOVE: What is my parish doing for the poor? Do I help?
TO SERVE: Lord Jesus, open my eyes this Lent to see the suffering people at my doorstep.
Thursday 25 February 2016
Thu 25th. Jeremiah 17:5-10. Happy are they who hope in
the Lord—Ps 1:1-4, 6. Luke 16:19-31.
‘If they do not listen’.
Sometimes the simplest of messages can be the hardest
to digest. Noise interferes with the transmission; distractions cloud our
judgment; demands on our time prevent us from anything but skimming newsfeeds
and newspapers; and we wear blinkers, which narrow our view.
But it’s important we stop and take stock of our
situation and that of our neighbours. Listening is an act of generosity.
Ethicist, Peter Singer, calls it effective altruism – finding deep happiness by
being compassionate towards others, here and now.
The rich man might have enjoyed his lavish lifestyle,
but the agony he endured in Hades didn’t equate to the temporary pleasures he
experienced on earth; he desperately tried to warn his family of the dangers
but his pleas were in vein.
Unlike the rich man, we need to navigate the noises
and distractions and blinkers and lack of time to be with the marginalised; for
it is when we listen we can change.
MINUTE
MEDITATIONS
|
The Foundation Stone
|
An illness which throws life into a skid where all control is lost
becomes a revelation and a blessing. A handicapped child seen as an
inconvenience, a punishment or a shame can be rejected in various ways; then
the family’s eyes are opened and they see the child as a gift of God that
floods them with wonder and gratitude. The rejected stone becomes the
foundation stone.
February
25
Blessed Sebastian of Aparicio
(1502-1600)
Blessed Sebastian of Aparicio
(1502-1600)
Sebastian’s roads and bridges connected
many distant places. His final bridge-building was to help men and women
recognize their God-given dignity and destiny.
Sebastian’s parents were Spanish peasants. At the age of
31 he sailed to Mexico, where he began working in the fields. Eventually he
built roads to facilitate agricultural trading and other commerce. His 466-mile
road from Mexico City to Zacatecas took 10 years to build and required careful
negotiations with the indigenous peoples along the way.
In time Sebastian was a wealthy farmer and rancher. At
the age of 60 he entered a virginal marriage. His wife’s motivation may have
been a large inheritance; his was to provide a respectable life for a girl
without even a modest marriage dowry. When his first wife died, he entered
another virginal marriage for the same reason; his second wife also died young.
At the age of 72 Sebastian distributed his goods among
the poor and entered the Franciscans as a brother. Assigned to the large
(100-member) friary at Puebla de los Angeles south of Mexico City, Sebastian
went out collecting alms for the friars for the next 25 years. His charity to
all earned him the nickname "Angel of Mexico."
Sebastian was beatified in 1787 and is known as a
patron of travelers.
Comment:
According to the Rule of St. Francis, the friars were to work for their daily bread. Sometimes, however, their work would not provide for their needs; for example, working with people suffering from leprosy brought little or no pay. In cases such as these, the friars were allowed to beg, always keeping in mind the admonition of Francis to let their good example commend them to the people. The life of the prayerful Sebastian, still hard at work in his 90's, certainly drew many closer to God.
According to the Rule of St. Francis, the friars were to work for their daily bread. Sometimes, however, their work would not provide for their needs; for example, working with people suffering from leprosy brought little or no pay. In cases such as these, the friars were allowed to beg, always keeping in mind the admonition of Francis to let their good example commend them to the people. The life of the prayerful Sebastian, still hard at work in his 90's, certainly drew many closer to God.
Quote:
St. Francis once told his followers: "There is a contract between the world and the friars. The friars must give the world a good example; the world must provide for their needs. When they break faith and withdraw their good example, the world will withdraw its hand in a just censure" (2 Celano, #70).
St. Francis once told his followers: "There is a contract between the world and the friars. The friars must give the world a good example; the world must provide for their needs. When they break faith and withdraw their good example, the world will withdraw its hand in a just censure" (2 Celano, #70).
LECTIO DIVINA: LUKE 16,19-31
Lectio Divina:
Thursday, February 25, 2016
Lent Time
1) OPENING PRAYER
Lord our God,
many of us never had it so good
and so we have become smug and self-satisfied,happy in our own little world.
God, may our ears remain open to your word
and our hearts to you
and to our brothers and sisters.
Do not allow us to forget you,
or to place our trust in ourselves.
Make us restless for you
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
many of us never had it so good
and so we have become smug and self-satisfied,happy in our own little world.
God, may our ears remain open to your word
and our hearts to you
and to our brothers and sisters.
Do not allow us to forget you,
or to place our trust in ourselves.
Make us restless for you
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
2) GOSPEL READING - LUKE 16, 19-31
'There was a rich man who used to dress
in purple and fine linen and feast magnificently every day. And at his gate
there used to lie a poor man called Lazarus, covered with sores, who longed to
fill himself with what fell from the rich man's table. Even dogs came and
licked his sores.
Now it happened that the poor man died
and was carried away by the angels into Abraham's embrace. The rich man also
died and was buried. 'In his torment in Hades he looked up and saw Abraham a
long way off with Lazarus in his embrace. So he cried out, "Father
Abraham, pity me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and
cool my tongue, for I am in agony in these flames." Abraham said, "My
son, remember that during your life you had your fill of good things, just as
Lazarus his fill of bad. Now he is being comforted here while you are in agony.
But that is not all: between us and you a great gulf has been fixed, to prevent
those who want to cross from our side to yours or from your side to ours."
'So he said, "Father, I beg you then to send Lazarus to my father's house,
since I have five brothers, to give them warning so that they do not come to
this place of torment too." Abraham said, "They have Moses and the
prophets, let them listen to them." The rich man replied, "Ah no,
father Abraham, but if someone comes to them from the dead, they will
repent." Then Abraham said to him, "If they will not listen either to
Moses or to the prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone should
rise from the dead."
3) REFLECTION
• Every time that Jesus has something
important to communicate, he creates a story and tells a parable. In this way,
through the reflection on an invisible reality, he leads those who listen to
him to discover the invisible call of God, who is present in life. A parable is
made to make us think and reflect. For this reason it is important to pay
attention even to the smallest details. In the parable in today’s Gospel there
are three persons. The poor Lazarus, the rich man without a name and Father Abraham.
In the parable, Abraham represents the thought of God. The rich man without a
name represents the dominating ideology of that time. Lazarus represents the
silent cry of the poor of the time of Jesus and of all times.
• Luke 16, 19-21: The situation of the
rich man and the poor man. The two extremes of society. On the one side,
aggressive richness, on the other the poor man without resources, without
rights, covered with wounds, without anybody to accept him, to receive him,
except the dogs which came to lick his wounds. What separates both of them is
the closed door of the house of the rich man. On the part of the rich man,
there is no acceptance nor pity concerning the problem of the poor man at his
door. But the poor man has a name and the rich man does not. That is, the poor
man has his name written in the book of life, not the rich one. The poor man’s
name is Lazarus. It means God helps. And through the poor man, God helps the
rich man who could have a name in the book of life. But the rich man does not
accept to be helped by the poor man, because he keeps his door closed. This
beginning of the parable which describes the situation, is a faithful mirror of
what was happening during the time of Jesus and the time of Luke. It is the
mirror of everything which is happening today in the world!
• Luke 16, 22: The change which reveals
the hidden truth. The poor man died and was carried away by the angels into
Abraham’s embrace. The rich man also died and was buried. In the parable the
poor man dies before the rich one. This is an advertisement for the rich. Up to
the time when the poor man is alive and is at the door, there is still the
possibility of salvation for the rich man. But after the poor man dies, the
only instrument of salvation for the rich man also dies. Now, the poor man is
in Abraham’s embrace. The embrace of Abraham is the source of life, from where
the People of God is born, Lazarus, the poor man, forms part of the People of
Abraham, from which he was excluded, when he was before the door of the rich
man. The rich man who believes that he is a son of Abraham does not go toward
the embrace of Abraham! The introduction of the parable ends here. Now its
significance begins to be revealed, through the three conversations between the
rich man and Father Abraham.
• Luke 16, 23-26: The first
conversation. In the parable, Jesus opens a window on the other side of life,
the side of God. It is not a question of Heaven. It is a question of life which
only faith generates and which the rich man who has no faith cannot perceive.
It is only in the light of death that the ideology of the empire disintegrates
and appears for him what the true value of life is. On the part of God, without
the deceiving propaganda of the ideology, things change. The rich man sees
Lazarus in the embrace of Abraham and asks to be helped in his suffering. The
rich man discovers that Lazarus is his only possible benefactor. But now, it is
too late! The rich man without a name is pious, because he recognizes Abraham
and calls him Father Abraham responds and calls him son. In reality this word
of Abraham is addressed to all the rich who are alive. In so far as they are
alive, they have the possibility to become sons and daughters of Abraham, if
they know how to open the door to Lazarus, the poor man, the only one who in
God’s name can help them. Salvation for the rich man does not consist in
Lazarus giving him a drop of fresh water to refresh his tongue, but rather,
that he, the rich man, open the closed door to the poor man so as fill the
great abyss that exists.
• Luke 16, 27-29: The second
conversation. The rich man insists: “Then, Father, I beg you to send Lazarus to
my father’s house, because I have five brothers!” The rich man does not want
his brothers to end in the same place of suffering. Lazarus, the poor man, is
the only true intermediary between God and the rich. He is the only one,
because it is only to the poor that the rich have to return what they had and,
thus, re-establish the justice which has been damaged! The rich man is worried
for his brothers, but was never concerned about the poor! Abraham’s response is
clear: “They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them!” They have
the Bible! The rich man had the Bible. He knew it by heart. But he was never
aware of the fact that the Bible had something to do with the poor. The key
which the rich man has in order to be able to understand the Bible is the poor
man sitting at his door!
• Luke 16, 30-31: The third
conversation. “No, Abraham, but if someone from the dead goes to them, they
will repent!” The rich man recognizes that he is wrong, he has committed an
error, because he speaks of repenting, something which he never heard during
his life. He wants a miracle, a resurrection! But this type of resurrection
does not exist. The only resurrection is that of Jesus. Jesus, risen from the
dead comes to us in the person of the poor, of those who have no rights, of
those who have no land, of those who have no food, of those who have no house,
of those who have no health. In his final response, Abraham is clear and
convincing, forceful: “If they will not listen either to Moses or to the
prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone should rise from the
dead!” The conversation ends this way! This is the end of the parable!
• The key to understand the sense of the
Bible is the poor Lazarus, sitting before the door! God presents himself in the
person of the poor, sitting at our door, to help us cover the enormous abyss
which the rich have created. Lazarus is also Jesus, the poor and servant
Messiah, who was not accepted, but whose death changed all things radically.
And everything changes in the light of the death of the poor. The place of
torment, of torture is the situation of the person without God. Even if the
rich man thinks that he has religion and faith, in fact, he is not with God
because he does not open the door to the poor, as Zacchaeus did. (Lk 19, 1-10).
4) PERSONAL QUESTIONS
• How do we treat the poor? Do they have
a name for us? In the attitude that I have before them, am I like Lazarus or
like the rich man?
• When the poor enter in contact with
us, do they perceive something different? Do they perceive the Good News? And
I, to which side do I tend, toward the miracle or toward God’s Word?
5) CONCLUDING PRAYER
How blessed is anyone who rejects the
advice of the wicked
and does not take a stand in the path that sinners tread,
nor a seat in company with cynics,
but who delights in the law of Yahweh
and murmurs his law day and night. (Ps 1,1-2)
and does not take a stand in the path that sinners tread,
nor a seat in company with cynics,
but who delights in the law of Yahweh
and murmurs his law day and night. (Ps 1,1-2)
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