Thursday of Second Week in Lent, March 8,2007

Scripture: Jeremiah 17:5-10. Psalm 1. Luke 16:19-31. Lectionary #234

Both Jesus and Luke are such good teachers that we almost take some of the
story examples as real and historical. Today we have such a teaching
example given by Jesus and narrated by Luke. Lazarus is in Luke an
imaginary person who is a beggar. The rich man who ignores and is totally
unaware of him is also a character that Jesus creates. The story, however,
is very compelling and we imagine it as real. Its theological and pastoral
point of view is what is real and it deals with faith and good works! This
is timely during this season of Lent for the story captures our attention
and helps us to understand what faith of the heart is and how through God's
revelation in the Torah and the Prophets speaks to us in the present moment
and then helps us to understand through believing that there is a
resurrection. That too is the goal of our Lent to lead us to the glorious
day of Easter when Jesus rose from the dead. I was led to connect this
story to what our sainted founder Blessed William Joseph Chaminade called
"faith of the heart." I believe such faith is to be the background and
inspiration of every moment we enjoy. Another learned Marianist priest
calls it the sacrament of the present moment. After all, the only
"moments" that are under our awareness are the present ones. The past is
no longer able to be experienced as we lived it nor is the future really
under our control. We can only prepare for the future through what we are
conscious of in the present; we can only evaluate and learn from the past
through the present sacramental moment. Faith of the heart needs to
permeate the present moment if we are to live out the Revelation of the
Torah and the Prophets and believe strongly in the reality of Jesus'
personal resurrection and ours. This gives the present moment an eternal
perspective and this is possible only through faith of the heart and belief
in God and belief in Jesus for us Christians. I think that is what Jesus
is teaching us in this powerful example of Lazarus and "Dives" (Rich One).
Dives has five brothers who are slipping into the same loss of the present
moment when it comes to seeing the poor ones of God--those who need our
help in many ways besides just financial. The brothers will not believe
Moses nor the prophets so how could they ever hope to believe in the
resurrection? They are lost in themselves and not the real present moment.
They could be helped if they had faith of the heart but their world
revolves around them and they are unaware of God's presence and God in the
poor ones. So both you and I need to sacramentalize the present moment if
we are to understand this story and make it happen in a positive outcome in
our lives. Search first the kingdom of God and all the rest will fall into
place. Amen.