The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today challenge us to examine how the environment in which we live impacts our trust in God and our actions to address the needs of others.
Fruit of our lives
The reading from the Prophet Jeremiah presents True Wisdom.
They are like a tree planted beside the waters that stretches out its roots to the stream:1
Psalm 1 describes the Two Ways.
* [Psalm 1] A preface to the whole Book of Psalms, contrasting with striking similes the destiny of the good and the wicked. The Psalm views life as activity, as choosing either the good or the bad. Each “way” brings its inevitable consequences. The wise through their good actions will experience rootedness and life, and the wicked, rootlessness and death.2
The Gospel of Luke is the parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus.
* [16:19–31] The parable of the rich man and Lazarus again illustrates Luke’s concern with Jesus’ attitude toward the rich and the poor. The reversal of the fates of the rich man and Lazarus (Lk 16:22–23) illustrates the teachings of Jesus in Luke’s “Sermon on the Plain” (Lk 6:20–21, 24–25).3
Mirielle Mason comments that while it may be clear that the rich man should have helped financially or perhaps brought Lazarus to a doctor, it is oftentimes less clear how we are supposed to provide assistance to others. The first step is identifying a situation in which our actions could have an impact.
Therefore, I believe a lot can be gained by examining what gifts we have been given. What have we been blessed with in our lives? Can we share that with others? What are we being called on to give? I am reminded of the widow in Mark 12:41-44 who gives only two small copper coins to the temple. Jesus teaches that the widow gave more that day than the rich, in order to prove the power of giving, and how it looks different for everyone.4
Don Schwager quotes “Creator of both rich and poor,” by Augustine of Hippo, 3540-430 A.D.
"God made both the rich and the poor. So the rich and the poor are born alike. You meet one another as you walk on the way together. Do not oppress or defraud anyone. One may be needy and another may have plenty. But the Lord is the maker of them both. Through the person who has, He helps the one who needs - and through the person who does not have, He tests the one who has." (excerpt from Sermon 35, 7)5
The Word Among Us Meditation on Jeremiah 17:5-10 asks how do we stretch our roots to the Lord when we feel dry and thirsty? As difficult as it can sometimes be in those times, we need to keep looking to the Lord and seeking his grace in regular daily prayer, in the Scriptures, and in the sacraments. Though the Lord might seem to be far away, in truth he is very near to us; we just can’t sense him at that moment.
Jeremiah’s wisdom reminds us that we are indeed blessed if we trust in the Lord and place all our hope in him. That hope will never disappoint, for the dryness and spiritual drought that we may feel will last only for a time. We know that we can count on the goodness and faithfulness of our God. He will strengthen our faith during the drought and give us great joy when he sends us his life-giving water once again. “Lord, water our ‘roots’ with the life-giving water of your Spirit so that we might draw closer to you.”6
Friar Jude Winkler comments that the tree by the water in Jeremiah calls us to trust in God as human motivations can be self serving. In the Gospel, Lazarus is named but the name of the rich man is not mentioned. Friar Jude reminds us that our call to charity is a theme for Lent.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, introduces Christena Cleveland. Her research of Black Madonnas was not simply an intellectual project; it changed her entire perspective of God and how God loves the world.
Within seconds of viewing photos of the Black Madonnas, my gut shifted from terror to hope. Before I even read a word about the Black Madonna, my soul immediately recognized that these photos and drawings of ancient Black Madonnas declared a truth about my own sacredness and gave birth to a new understanding of God. I call Her the Sacred Black Feminine. She is the God who is with and for Black women because She is a Black woman. She is the God who definitively declares that Black women—who exist below Black men and white women at the bottom of the white male God’s social pecking order—not only matter but are sacred. And in doing so, She declares that all living beings are sacred.7
We seek to be open to the Spirit leading us to see, love, and care for people outside our comfortable pew.
References
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