20220317 THE HEART OF THE PROBLEM
17 March, 2022, Thursday, 2nd Week of Lent
First reading |
Jeremiah 17:5-10 © |
A curse on the man who puts his trust in man and turns from the Lord
The Lord says this:
‘A curse on the man who puts his trust in man,
who relies on things of flesh,
whose heart turns from the Lord.
He is like dry scrub in the wastelands:
if good comes, he has no eyes for it,
he settles in the parched places of the wilderness,
a salt land, uninhabited.
‘A blessing on the man who puts his trust in the Lord,
with the Lord for his hope.
He is like a tree by the waterside
that thrusts its roots to the stream:
when the heat comes it feels no alarm,
its foliage stays green;
it has no worries in a year of drought,
and never ceases to bear fruit.
‘The heart is more devious than any other thing,
perverse too: who can pierce its secrets?
I, the Lord, search to the heart,
I probe the loins,
to give each man what his conduct
and his actions deserve.’
Responsorial Psalm | Psalm 1:1-4,6 © |
Happy the man who has placed his trust in the Lord.
Happy indeed is the man
who follows not the counsel of the wicked;
nor lingers in the way of sinners
nor sits in the company of scorners,
but whose delight is the law of the Lord
and who ponders his law day and night.
Happy the man who has placed his trust in the Lord.
He is like a tree that is planted
beside the flowing waters,
that yields its fruit in due season
and whose leaves shall never fade;
and all that he does shall prosper.
Happy the man who has placed his trust in the Lord.
Not so are the wicked, not so!
For they like winnowed chaff
shall be driven away by the wind:
for the Lord guards the way of the just
but the way of the wicked leads to doom.
Happy the man who has placed his trust in the Lord.
Gospel Acclamation | Lk15:18 |
Praise to you, O Christ, king of eternal glory!
I will leave this place and go to my father and say:
‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.’
Praise to you, O Christ, king of eternal glory!
Or: | cf.Lk8:15 |
Praise to you, O Christ, king of eternal glory!
Blessed are those who,
with a noble and generous heart,
take the word of God to themselves
and yield a harvest through their perseverance.
Praise to you, O Christ, king of eternal glory!
Gospel | Luke 16:19-31 © |
Dives and Lazarus
Jesus said to the Pharisees: ‘There was a rich man who used to dress in purple and fine linen and feast magnificently every day. And at his gate there lay a poor man called Lazarus, covered with sores, who longed to fill himself with the scraps that fell from the rich man’s table. Dogs even came and licked his sores. Now the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to the bosom of Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried.
‘In his torment in Hades he looked up and saw Abraham a long way off with Lazarus in his bosom. So he cried out, “Father Abraham, pity me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in agony in these flames.” “My son,” Abraham replied “remember that during your life good things came your way, just as bad things came the way of Lazarus. Now he is being comforted here while you are in agony. But that is not all: between us and you a great gulf has been fixed, to stop anyone, if he wanted to, crossing from our side to yours, and to stop any crossing from your side to ours.”
‘The rich man replied, “Father, I beg you then to send Lazarus to my father’s house, since I have five brothers, to give them warning so that they do not come to this place of torment too.” “They have Moses and the prophets,” said Abraham “let them listen to them.” “Ah no, father Abraham,” said the rich man “but if someone comes to them from the dead, they will repent.” Then Abraham said to him, “If they will not listen either to Moses or to the prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone should rise from the dead.”’
THE HEART OF THE PROBLEM
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [JER 17:5-10; PS 1:1-4,6; LUKE 16:19-31]
In the first reading, the Lord said, “‘The heart is more devious than any other thing, perverse too: who can pierce its secrets? I, the Lord, search the heart; I probe the loins to give man what his conduct and action deserve.” Indeed, the heart of all problems is the human heart. When the heart stops, the man dies. When the heart stops, all organs will fail and collapse. They cannot function. The heart is the final cause of man’s death. But the heart is also the cause of man’s spiritual death. The Lord said in the gospel, “it is from within, from the human heart, that evil intentions come: fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.” (Mk 7:22f)
The heart, as Jeremiah says, “is more devious than any other thing.” It is very complex. It can twist and turn good to evil, truth to falsehood. It can do good in life and also to commit evil, treachery, dishonesty, crimes and violence. The way to put the world in order is to put the human heart upright, walking in the way of the Lord. The question we need to ask is, where do we put our trust? Jesus in the gospel said, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Mt 6:21) This is the theme of today’s scripture readings. Both scripture texts illustrate what will happen to those who put their trust in man and those who put their trust in God.
The reality is that it is not just unbelievers but believers as well who put their trust in man more than in God. The difference between believers and unbelievers is that for the former, they put their trust in man, with God as a back-up in case man fails. It is not quite right therefore that today’s society distinguishes those organizations that are religiously affiliated as “faith-based” organizations. In truth, we all need faith to survive, even non-believers. Those who do not believe in God put faith in themselves, their ingenuity, their intellect, in science and technology. All of us, including non-believers, know that life is unpredictable. There is no guarantee that what we plan will materialize. So it is a question of where do we put our faith and our trust in? God or man?
The Lord warns us through Jeremiah, “A curse on the man who puts his trust in man, who relies on things of the flesh, whose heart turns from the Lord.” Indeed, those of us who trust only in ourselves, in the riches, glory and power of this world, in selfish pleasures will find their lives empty and meaningless. “He is like dry scrub in the wastelands.’ Pleasures in life can only satisfy us to some extent. We are not merely just animals but we are human beings with a heart and a soul seeking for fulfilment in love, meaning and purpose. If life is just about eating, drinking and merry- making, then we are mere animals without a soul. We will not able to see the greater things of life beyond pleasures. We think this is all that life has to offer. Truly, as Jeremiah said, “If good comes, he has no eyes for it, he settles in the parched places of the wilderness, a salt land, uninhabited.”
A case in point is the rich man in today’s gospel. He relied on no one except himself because he was rich and self-sufficient. He cared only for himself and enjoyed the good things in life. He had no heart for others, for the poor and the suffering. He was oblivious to Lazarus who was in pain, hungry, sick with sores on his body, homeless and abandoned. He did not even notice him when he went in and out of his house every day. He was not even given a name because such a person did not matter to anyone since he lived only for himself. Who would be bothered with a rich man who only thinks of himself and takes care of himself? He might be oblivious to the suffering in the world but the world also does not take notice of him. Hence, the bible says that a man who relies on himself, on the flesh will be like a dry scrub in the wastelands. He has no relationships, no sincere friendship with God or with his fellowmen.
But that is not all. Because the rich man placed his trust in his riches only, he would suffer a miserable end. The psalmist says, “Not so are the wicked, not so! For they like winnowed chaff shall be driven away by the wind for the Lord guards the way of the just but the way of the wicked leads to doom.” This was what happened to him after death. He might have a life of plenty, a luxurious life, but upon death, he could not take even a cent or one of his magnificent attire with him. As the Lord told the rich farmer, who said to himself, “‘Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.’ But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life is being demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich toward God.” (Lk 12:19-21)
It is tragic that it was only in Hades that the man came to some realization. On earth, he did not even recognize Lazarus, much less know his name. But now “in his torment in Hades he looked up and saw Abraham a long way off with Lazarus in his bosom.” How true it is in life, that those of us who are rich and blessed with many things often take them for granted until they are taken away. We do not cherish our loved ones until they are suddenly taken away by the Lord. So too for the rich man. Only now, does he understand what it like being hungry and thirsty, just as Lazarus was thirsty, naked and hungry. He had the audacity to cry out, “‘Father Abraham, pity me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his fingers in water and cool my tongue, for I am in agony in these flames.’ ‘My son’, Abraham replied ‘remember that during your life good things came your way, just as bad things came the way of Lazarus. Now he is being comforted here while you are in agony.'”
The most tragic words in life are, “It is too late!” That was what Abraham regretfully told the rich man. “That is not all: between us and you a great gulf has been fixed, to stop anyone, if he wanted to, crossing from our side to yours, and to stop any crossing from your side to ours.” Whilst on earth, he had all the time and resources to do good as he was wealthy, but he did not. He was absorbed in himself. Too late! How sad! How tragic to have those words uttered to us. This is why, the Lord is asking us to think carefully how we use our riches and where we put our trust ultimately, in man, in this world, or in eternity where God is. Otherwise, the doors of heaven will shut on our face, and there is no second chance! It is too late!
But we have been given many opportunities on earth. We cannot say that we do not know or that we never had that grace to recognize Him or His presence in others, especially in the faces of the poor. There is no excuse. This was why the rich man now no longer just thought of himself, but of the well-being of his brothers who had the same lifestyle as he did. He said to Abraham, “Father, I beg you then to send Lazarus to my father’s house, since I have five brothers, to give them warning, so that they do not come to this place of torment too.” “They have Moses and the prophets,” said Abraham “let them listen to them.” This is true, we have plenty of prophets in our days too, appealing to us to trust in God, to turn back to Him and to exercise mercy and compassion for the suffering and those in want. Yet, we still do not listen or are moved. Indeed, what we need is humility to listen to God’s word. This explains why Abraham said, “If they will not listen either to Moses or to the prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone should rise from the dead.” What we need is humility and faith, otherwise even the resurrection of Christ cannot convince anyone.
So today, let learn from the mistakes of the rich man. Let Lazarus give us the inspiration to place our total trust in God. On earth, he was hungry and had nothing on his back. But in heaven, he rejoiced. He was brought in a grand funeral procession by the angels to the bosom of Abraham. His suffering was not in vain. God has no respect for man’s riches or power or glory or possessions. In the eyes of God, it is the man with a humble heart, a heart of faith and trust in Him, a heart that is compassionate and forgiving, who will receive the rewards of the kingdom. As Jeremiah said, “A blessing on the man who puts his trust in the Lord. With the Lord for his hope. He is like a tree by the waterside that thrusts its roots to the stream: when the heat comes it feels no alarm, its foliage stays green.”
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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