Disturbing is the selfishness of the rich man who in Hades can only think of himself again and dares asking Abraham to have his anguish cooled by the very same human being he left to die at his gate. The comforting related reflection is that it is up to us: we CAN HOPE to leave the Gate open if we leave ours open to the ones in need. Also disturbingly striking is when, at the request of the rich man to send a dead one to call his family to repentance, how Abraham reminds the rich man of the OT Fathers and not of Jesus rising from the dead. A powerfully comforting gap. What do we do here?: do we forget like him or do we remember Jesus? Finally an extremely comforting element is the concreteness of the image of Lazarus in the bosom of Abraham. By: Alessandra Parrini - November 24, 2006 - Public Category: The Rich Man and Lazarus
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The selfisness of the rich man. By: Alessandra Parrini - November 24, 2006 - Public Category: The Rich Man and Lazarus
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Disturbed by the rich man selfishness - his blindness to the needs of Lazarus whom he left dying at his gate and now he can only think of asking to have him sent to cool his anguish. But he closed the gate between hades and Heaven which is powerfully comforting to realise. Its` up to us to close it or leave it open: do we open or close our gate to the ones in need? Also struck by the fact that when the rich man asks a dead one to be sent to his family for their repentance Abraham refers him back to Moses and the prophets. But he doesn`t mention Jesus - who rose from the dead. Think intentionally done. At that point of the account what do we do? do we forget like the rich man or do we remember him? a disturbing gap that can bring a very comforting realisation. Then we feel comforted at the hope to be in Abraham`s bosom too one day - a very comforting image. By: Alessandra Parrini - November 24, 2006 - Public Category: The Rich Man and Lazarus
"Now there was a certain
rich man, and he was clothed in purple and fine linen, living in luxury
every day. A certain
beggar, named Lazarus, was laid at his gate, full of sores, and desiring to be fed with the
crumbs that fell from the rich man's table. Yes, even the dogs came and
licked his sores. It
happened that the beggar died, and that he was carried away by the angels
to Abraham's bosom. The rich man also died, and was buried. In Hades, he
lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and saw Abraham far off, and Lazarus
at his bosom. He cried
and said, 'Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may
dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue! For I am in
anguish in this flame.'
"But Abraham said, 'Son,
remember that you, in your lifetime, received your good things, and
Lazarus, in like manner, bad things. But now here he is comforted and you
are in anguish. Besides
all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, that those who
want to pass from here to you are not able, and that none may cross over
from there to us.'
"He said, 'I ask you
therefore, father, that you would send him to my father's house; for I have five brothers, that
he may testify to them, so they won't also come into this place of
torment.'
"But Abraham said to him,
'They have Moses and the prophets. Let them listen to them.'
"He said, 'No, father
Abraham, but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.'
"He said to him, 'If they
don't listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded if
one rises from the dead.'"
