Sunday Homily, September 29, 2013, 26th Ordinary Time C
Readings:
Amos 6, 1, 4-7, Woe to the complacent.
Psalm 146, Praise the Lord, my sould.
1 Timothy 6, 11-16, Pursue righteousness, devotion, faith, love.
Luke 16, 19-31, The rich man and Lazarus.
Amos observations : (from last week's Mass)
What : One of the 12 minor prophets, only 9 chapters.
Who:
the book presents the thoughts and observations of Amos, who was a sheep herder
and a fig farmer. He was born in the southern kingdom of Judah in a
little town south of Jerusalem, but he is condemning the people, especially the
rich, of the northern kingdom, Israel.
Time:
Amos was active around 755 before Christ, but his words and message were
revised and edited down through the years, especially during the Babylonian
Captivity, around 555 before Christ. He lives just before the Syrians
destroy the northern kingdom of Israel, around 700 before Christ.
Message:
Prayer and sacrifice don’t make up for social injustice and oppression of the
poor by the rich.
Today:
God will punish you rich and prosperous for your abuse of the poor. Amos
may have seen the threat coming from the Syrians.
Sources: Good News Bible, New Interpreter’s Study
Bible, Wikipedia
Some of Francis’ points in his homily this morning:
- The first sin
of the rich man is that he is blind. He
came and went every day and did not even see Lazarus at his doorstep. Wealth can blind us, too. - The second sin of the rich man is that even in Hades
he still thinks he is significant enough to tell Abraham to order Lazarus to
warn his 5 brothers. His self image is
inflated and blinds him to this character flaw. Entitlement? - The rich man is condemned not because of his wealth in
itself, but that because of it he feels self righteous. The trap of wealth, I am better than that one. - There may be a parallel in Luke’s mind between Lazarus
and Jesus, which comes out in the talk between the rich man and Abraham. Jesus was poor, died, and returned to
life. Were Lazarus to die and return to
life, neither would he be believed, any more than Jesus was believed. - There is a play on words with Lazarus. In ancient languages the name Lazarus could
be equivalent to Abraham. Therefore,
Luke rubs it in: Lazarus may be a personification of Abraham himself, lying on the
doorstep of the rich man who never sees him.
The lesson: Who is the Lazarus, who is the poor
person at your own doorstep?
Source: The Liberating Stories of Jesus, Francis Vanderwall