Concern brings security

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' … [and Abraham said, No]

The Gospel story of the rich man and Lazarus is well known to all of us. We could even recount it by memory. We can picture the scene easily. I suspect also, because we live the reality of this contrast between rich and poor every day, we see it in the news and our neighborhoods or from our backgrounds.

The question for our reflection is: on a scale of one to ten (ten being Lazarus and one being the rich man) where do you see yourself? Why and what disqualifies the rich man from heaven? What did he miss?

Fr. Perdo Arrupe S.J.,  who died in 1991, the 28 Superior General of the Society of Jesus and a very revered and holy man, tells the story of taking a long trip on a train when 3 young fellows around 18 years old entered into his compartment. They were accompanied by an older man who after a bit he learned was the director of physical education at their school.

They were tired and after some remarks on their winning a soccer game, they dropped off to sleep one after the other. A couple of hours later they began to speak again and take down a good number of cokes and orange sodas.

Their conversation became lively and they looked at Fr. Pedro with a certain curiosity as if they were asking themselves - "Who in the world is this priest?" Fr. Pedro didn’t join in their conservation since he had to prepare a conference he was going to give as soon as he reached his destination.

At one point when their talk seemed to be dying down, the teacher asked: "Now that you have finished school, what do you plan to do?" One of the boys answered without much thought, "I don’t know, I suspect my father will tell me; I have not thought about anything, who knows, it is a tough problem. It is better they tell what to do. Besides I don’t care to be bothered."

The second one broke in: "I have thought a lot about it and I don’t know whether I should go into business or work for the stock market. I don’t know which pays better without much work. What I want is an easy and peaceful life, I don’t care for much more."

The third one seemed a bit ashamed. He said nothing and it looked as if he wanted to avoid giving an answer. The two others looked at him with some perplexity and after a few seconds the teacher asked him, "And you Frank. What are you going to do?"

"To tell the truth, I am not sure myself. I have been thinking a lot for some time about going to some spot in the third world to see their greatest need. I could be a help to many who are suffering." Frank responded.

The eyes of the other two started to pop out as if to ask: ‘Frank are you crazy?’ The teacher queried him: "How do you get that idea?"  "I don’t know", Frank replied, a bit embarrassed.  "The idea has been floating in my head for some months now. Do you think it is a crazy idea?" "No, not crazy, just a bit strange. Still, Frank I really admire you." the teacher said.

At this, Fr. Pedro was no longer able to keep quiet. In a low voice he said: "What you are thinking [of doing] Frank is great. Follow that tugging of your heart, since it must be the heart of gold."

These 3 young fellows clearly manifest different attitudes shared by many youths, young people, and adults today.

There are those who are not thinking much. They let themselves be carried away by circumstances. They don’t want to be bothered and why? You live well if you have no worries!

What was the rich man missing? On a scale of one to ten, where do you see yourself?

There are those who have no other ambition than to make money and this with the least effort possible. They are self-centered at heart. I go my way and others can think what they want. They believe that they can find happiness in money. They let themselves be carried off by appearances (the purple clothes), by what they see in ads and the world of entertainment and in self-satisfaction.

What was the rich man missing? On a scale of one to ten, where do you see yourself?

But there are those also of noble heart who are moved by the desire to be of help to others, to console those who are afflicted, to be of service to others even at the cost of personal sacrifices.

What is the rich man missing? The rich man lived a life of ‘no concern’ for others. He didn’t see in Lazarus a fellow Child of Abraham and he didn’t care.

What the rich man is missing in the Gospel is what the unjust wealthy in the first reading of Amos are missing too. They have built their lives around a false sense of security. They think that true human security is found only in a greedy pursuit of ‘self-care’. They have built up a world of taking care of only their own interests. They focus only on their own concerns. Their perception of need can only entertain their own interests. They seek security in isolation. They refuse to be involved.

The challenge of the readings is to cultivate ‘concern’. To put into practice the greatest command – ‘The Love of God and love of neighbor as oneself’ (Deus caritas est). Overcome isolation by the consolation of visiting the sick. Comfort the sorrowful and encourage the despairing. You will then close the gap that divides people. To reach deeply into our hearts and pocketbooks to help the known poor escape the hell of anonymity is to discover and see Lazarus, a fellow human, in our world.

The Eucharist is a source of security for us, we meet our need for food and drink. It is nourishment which sustains us in view of others. All who share at the table are summoned to overcome all barriers that cause isolation and anonymity of others. To live a Eucharistic life is to live a life of ‘concern’ of others.