The Plight & Blessing of Lazarus

09-28-2025Weekly ReflectionFr. Bing Colasito

The Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus offers contrasting life situations, with the rich man as the central character and the recipient of a speaking role. In contrast, the poor Lazarus character serves only as a point of reference for the rich man to draw a lesson from, for him and His listeners during that era. In effect, Jesus warns all the filthy rich of their fate at the end of their lives, like the rich man tormented in the netherworld because he was already comforted in this life.

The Lord gives hope to the poor, oppressed in this life, but will be comforted in the life to come. The Word of God disturbs those who are comfortable and comforts those who are troubled. In a way, we can say some people travel first or business class, while others travel economy class throughout their lives. Or, some people enjoy life, while others endure it. The good news is that in heaven, there is a chance for an upgrade and a change in seating arrangements. Yes! Even though Divine justice may be slow now, it will catch up with everyone, sooner or later.

Lessons for Insensitive (Filthy) Rich: Lazarus is a Gift - The Gospel portrays Lazarus as invisible to the rich man; it does not diminish his being. He is a person whom God views as precious. The proper way to relate to people is by acknowledging the value of every person. A poor person in the streets, the homeless people, and those who go around begging for scraps of food to survive are not a nuisance, but a reminder for us to change the way we see them, a challenge for conversion. Be aware of the many people like Lazarus in our lives. Focus not on our treasure but on being generous, whether we are rich or poor.

Sin can blind us - The rich man can be a symbol of the corruption of sin, in three stages: 1. LOVE of Money, 2. VANITY, and 3. PRIDE. The Gospel reminds us of the folly of money; it can dominate us and lead us into idolatry. They said that money is not the root of evil, but the love of money. Use money as an instrument to serve, by doing good and alleviating the poor from the miseries and sufferings. - How do we use our wealth the Christian way? By recognizing that God is the sole and absolute owner of everything that we have, we use it as a tool for His purposes, rather than as an end in itself. The biblical principle that best describes it is STEWARD- SHIP. Life is about stewardship. The rich man ended up being condemned, not because of his wealth but because he chose to ignore Lazarus.

Listen to God - When the rich man was in torment in the netherworld, he asked Abraham to warn his brothers, lest they end up in hell also. Abraham responded that if they would not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither would they be convinced by someone who came back from the dead. You see, the problem is that they would not listen to God's words. Jesus said: Blessed are those who hear the word of God and follow it. The rich man did not heed the warning of scripture and came to despise God in his neighbor. When we close our hearts to God's words, we also close our hearts to the gift of our brothers and sisters. We are all mere stewards; we will all give an accounting of all our possessions, talents, and even our lives.

Lord, help us to endure now for a while and enjoy later than we enjoy now and suffer later, forever.