Proper 21 / Pentecost 19 / Ordinary Time 26
Devotional
Water From the Rock
Lectionary Devotional for Cycle C
Object:
There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen ... And at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus....
-- Luke 16:19-20a
Right away we know that something is different here. In the normal world it is the rich who have names and the poor that are nameless. In the soup lines, we do not need to ask for names, but in the world of the rich, we bear a name with pride. The church was so uncomfortable with the nameless rich man that they have given him the proper name "Dives" derived from the Latin word for rich man. The rich man, though nameless in the story, dressed in purple and fine linen and ate sumptuously every day. The poor man battled with stray dogs for the crumbs that fell from the table, but he was given the name Lazarus.
When Lazarus died, he already had an identity and was carried to Abraham. The rich man, however, floated in the netherworld of Hades. Apparently there was visual and verbal contact between Hades and the place where Abraham was because the rich man saw Abraham and Lazarus together. Note that he called out to Abraham and not to Lazarus. It was not as if he was a stranger, for Abraham addressed him with a term of endearment by calling him child. The lesson of the parable was voiced in declaring that his prior life was seen as full of blessings and that his wealth gave him many opportunities to do good. We are not told that he was an evil man. The only clue is that he had the opportunity to care for Lazarus and did not even recognize his existence.
The gulf between the rich man and Lazarus was emphasized in the story as the rich man spoke only to Abraham and asked him to send Lazarus, like a servant, to bring him a cup of water. The fixed gulf between them may well have been a gulf of attitude, but it was not one that could be changed after death. The rich man was not without some measure of compassion. When he was told that he could not be helped, he immediately turned his attention to his five brothers that were still alive. It is significant that he still treated Lazarus as a servant. He asked Abraham to send Lazarus to warn his brothers before it was too late for them as well. The warning was that the power of wealth to blind one to simple human realities is so powerful that it is almost impossible to overcome.
-- Luke 16:19-20a
Right away we know that something is different here. In the normal world it is the rich who have names and the poor that are nameless. In the soup lines, we do not need to ask for names, but in the world of the rich, we bear a name with pride. The church was so uncomfortable with the nameless rich man that they have given him the proper name "Dives" derived from the Latin word for rich man. The rich man, though nameless in the story, dressed in purple and fine linen and ate sumptuously every day. The poor man battled with stray dogs for the crumbs that fell from the table, but he was given the name Lazarus.
When Lazarus died, he already had an identity and was carried to Abraham. The rich man, however, floated in the netherworld of Hades. Apparently there was visual and verbal contact between Hades and the place where Abraham was because the rich man saw Abraham and Lazarus together. Note that he called out to Abraham and not to Lazarus. It was not as if he was a stranger, for Abraham addressed him with a term of endearment by calling him child. The lesson of the parable was voiced in declaring that his prior life was seen as full of blessings and that his wealth gave him many opportunities to do good. We are not told that he was an evil man. The only clue is that he had the opportunity to care for Lazarus and did not even recognize his existence.
The gulf between the rich man and Lazarus was emphasized in the story as the rich man spoke only to Abraham and asked him to send Lazarus, like a servant, to bring him a cup of water. The fixed gulf between them may well have been a gulf of attitude, but it was not one that could be changed after death. The rich man was not without some measure of compassion. When he was told that he could not be helped, he immediately turned his attention to his five brothers that were still alive. It is significant that he still treated Lazarus as a servant. He asked Abraham to send Lazarus to warn his brothers before it was too late for them as well. The warning was that the power of wealth to blind one to simple human realities is so powerful that it is almost impossible to overcome.
