By
Charles Muchiri
Thursday,
March 8, 2012
Liturgical
Year B, Cycle II
Thursday
of the Second week of Lent
Readings
for Mass
First
Reading: Jeremiah
17: 5-10
Responsorial
Psalm: Psalms
1:1-2, 3, 4, 6
Gospel:
Luke 16:19-31
Here
is the question of the day? What sin did the man mentioned in Today’s Gospel
commit?
Was
it about his luxurious mode of dressing? Was it about the sumptuous meals that
he used to take? Or was it about his affluence, or perhaps the power that went
with it?
Interestingly,
I can safely urge that this man was actually - to a good extent - quite a considerate
person! Reasons, One: He may have had the option of keeping off the poor man
named Lazarus way off his compound, but he seems to have allowed the poor man
to be.
Second:
Fast-track the Gospel to the point where this man finally lands in Hell; when
his request for a temporal reprieve of his sufferings is not heeded, he goes
further to prod Abraham to send Lazarus to his five brothers who are still alive.
He is certainly considerate about their plight.
So,
back to the question: What sin did this man – who features in Christ’s story - really
commit so as to deserve Hell and its torments?
To
answer this question, we must first of all take note whom this story is
directed; and at the very onset of this Gospel, Luke is quick to note that Christ
was addressing the Pharisees.
But
even to try and answer this question in a better way, we need to borrow from
the Church’s teachings about sin.
Now,
the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches us that “Sin is an offense against
reason, truth, and right conscience; it is failure in genuine love for God and
neighbor caused by a perverse attachment to certain goods. It wounds the nature
of man and injures human solidarity. It has been defined as "an utterance,
a deed, or a desire contrary to the eternal law” (1849)
The Catechism goes further to point out that we can classify
sin in many forms. Sin can be committed in
thought, word, deed, or omission.
And
the man in Today’s Gospel may just as well have committed sin through omission:
Omitting, neglecting, ignoring, disregarding, intentionally closing the eye to
the plight of the poor Lazarus.
Even,
allowing the situation to go to the dog, literally. Dogs
even used to come and lick (Lazarus’) sores.
And
this is quite a big lesson for us today. That even as much as we are living our
lives genuinely; even as much as our thoughts may not necessarily be straying
to sin; even as much as our words are always properly weighed; even as much as
our deeds are always honorable and pleasing to God; that we must also take note
of our oversights.
/Follow this writer on
Twitter: @muchirimuchoki/
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