Prosperity
Gospel: Lk 16:19-31
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/022924.cfm
In Jesus’s time, there were a lot of people who believed that those who lived a life with riches and success were seen as having good favor with God. It is as if God rewards the good with earthly success and privilege. The Pharisees believed that the Jewish captivity by the Romans was due to the Jewish people not living up to their part of the covenant with God. If the Jewish people lived by the covenant fully then God would restore Israel. During this time, there was also the belief that sickness and poor health were caused by the sin of an individual or of one’s family.
The gospel today shows a different way of thinking by telling the story of a person who is sick and destitute in life receiving glory in heaven and a person with great privilege in life having difficulty in the next. It’s those who are truly in need and marginalized by society that recognize that they need God. Having the mentality that we earned or inherited our privilege separates us from God and from others. The idea that we are better than others or more deserving than others has us lose sight that we are all in this together.
In this gospel too, we learn that the poor man with sores is named Lazarus. We don’t learn of the name of the rich man. How often is this the case? We focus more on the names of celebrities, athletes, and the extremely wealthy. Jesus is showing us to shift our way of thinking. We should know those most in need more personally. We should be elevating those in need, not revering those of great achievement.
Being grateful for the gifts that God has given us is to freely share them with others. As God is generous, we are called to be generous. We should seek the glory of all with what we have to give. With every gift, there is a responsibility to share, but it is so easy for us to look at our possessions as ours because we’ve earned them. This doesn’t just apply to our possessions, but our health, our relationships, our reputation, our role in society, etc. It applies to anything that we can use to say that we are better than someone else or more deserving than someone else. It is too easy to fall trap to the rich man mentality and overlook the Lazarus in society.
Who may be a Lazarus in your life that you overlook that needs your presence and attention? How can we create a world that doesn’t overlook the marginalized in society? We are all deserving of God’s love as we should all share God’s love with others.
