In the parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus, Jesus paints a stark picture that continues to challenge us today. The rich man - clothed in purple and fine linen, feasting lavishly every day - represents the epitome of worldly success. Yet at his very gate lies Lazarus, covered in sores, longing for even the scraps from the rich man's table. The physical proximity yet vast spiritual distance between these two men serves as a mirror for our own lives.
How easily we become the rich man without realizing it. Our attention becomes consumed by career success, financial security, social media engagement, world travel, and endless entertainment options. These things aren't inherently wrong, but they create a dangerous bubble that blinds us to the suffering at our own gates. The rich man's sin wasn't his wealth itself, but his failure to see Lazarus as a fellow human being deserving of dignity and compassion.
The chasm that separated the rich man from Lazarus in the afterlife began as an invisible gap he created in life - a gap of indifference. This parable isn't simply about material giving but about spiritual vision. Do we truly see the poor in our communities? Some people literally live week to week, barely surviving - more horribly just about existing, what about the homeless person we pass on our commute, the struggling coworker whose troubles we ignore, the elderly neighbor living in isolation - these are today's Lazarus figures, waiting at our gates.
Jesus warns us about the consuming nature of greed - it doesn't just affect our bank accounts but transforms our hearts. Greed makes us takers, constantly asking "What more can I acquire for myself?" Charity, by contrast, makes us givers, asking "How can my abundance serve others?" The rich man's tragedy wasn't just that he had much, but that he failed to understand that his abundance was meant to flow outward in service to others. His possessions possessed him.
The parable ends with a sobering thought: if we cannot be moved by the gospel teachings we already have - the example of Christ, the wisdom of the Church, the prompting of our conscience - then nothing will convince us. Today, let this parable shake us from complacency. Let us look around with new eyes to see who might be lying at our gate, invisible to our busy lives but precious in God's sight. For in the divine economy, our salvation is mysteriously linked to how we respond to the Lazarus figures in our lives - and whether we choose the path of the taker or the giver. Who can you help? Who's life can you change magnificently?
©2025 James Dacey Jr.
