Gospel of the Day

A reading from the Holy Gospel according to Saint Luke 16:19–31

At that time, Jesus said to the Pharisees:
“There was a rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and feasted sumptuously every day. At his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.
The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. In torment in Hades, he looked up and saw Abraham far away with Lazarus by his side. So he called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am tormented in these flames.’
But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received good things, while Lazarus received bad things. Now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish. And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who want to cross from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross from there to us.’
The rich man said, ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my father’s house, for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’
But Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’
‘No, father Abraham,’ he said. ‘But if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’
Then Abraham said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’”

Gifts Against You

This parable is not about the rich man suffering in hell—it is a warning to his wealthy brothers still on earth. And those brothers could be us.
God does not distribute gifts equally, but He does so intentionally, so that those who have more may share with those who have less.
That is why the law that governs this world is charity. If I have more, it is not for me to enjoy more than others, but to share what I have. If I fail to do this, there will be consequences—both in this life and the next.

Applying It to Married Life

Paco: We have the afternoon free. What do you think about going through the gifts God has given us and seeing how we are using them?
Dolores: That sounds like a good idea. For example, I like helping others, I am honest, religious, deep-thinking, hardworking, and persistent.
Paco: I am tenacious, perseverant, practical, disciplined, and very focused. Let’s see… I use my tenacity for my own goals, but not for what you ask of me; my perseverance for what I like, but not for our relationship; my focus sometimes turns into obsession over your flaws; and my discipline often makes me too demanding with you. I am not using my virtues to love you more.
Dolores: And I realise that I use my gift of helping others outside the home but not with you; my honesty sometimes turns into pointing out your faults; my religious devotion makes me compare myself to you; my depth of thought makes me complain that you are too superficial; and my hard work makes me judge you for not using your time efficiently. Instead of using my gifts to love you, I have been using them against you.
Paco: I think we have a lot to change. What if we started using our gifts to help each other, instead of to hurt each other?
Dolores: Maybe then we would truly learn how to love.

Mother,

May we use our riches for love. Praise be to the Giver of all things!