Care and Martyria

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today challenge us to assess our role as followers of Christ in the face of the great divisions between the “haves” and the “have nots” in our modern society.

“haves” and the “have nots”

The Reading from the Prophet Amos declares a Third Woe for those pursuing a luxurious lifestyle.

* [6:2] Calneh…Hamath…Gath: city-states overcome by the Assyrians in the eighth century B.C., whose fate should be a lesson to the Israelites. The prophet castigates the leaders for being more intent on pursuing a luxurious lifestyle (vv. 1, 4–6) than reading the signs of the times. (Amos, CHAPTER 6, n.d.)

Psalm 146 declares there is no other source of strength except the merciful God.

* [Psalm 146] A hymn of someone who has learned there is no other source of strength except the merciful God. Only God, not mortal human beings (Ps 146:3–4), can help vulnerable and oppressed people (Ps 146:5–9). The first of the five hymns that conclude the Psalter. (Psalms, PSALM 146, n.d.)

The Reading from the First Letter to Timothy consists of Exhortations to Timothy.

* [6:11–16] Timothy’s position demands total dedication to God and faultless witness to Christ (1 Tm 6:11–14) operating from an awareness, through faith, of the coming revelation in Jesus of the invisible God (1 Tm 6:15–16).

* [6:11] Man of God: a title applied to Moses and the prophets (Dt 33:1; 1 Sm 2:27; 1 Kgs 12:22; 13:1; etc.). (1 Timothy, CHAPTER 6, n.d.)

The Gospel of Luke shares 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).

* [16:19] The oldest Greek manuscript of Luke dating from ca. A.D. 175–225 records the name of the rich man as an abbreviated form of “Nineveh,” but there is very little textual support in other manuscripts for this reading. “Dives” of popular tradition is the Latin Vulgate’s translation for “rich man” (Lk 16:19–31).

* [16:23] The netherworld: see note on Lk 10:15.

* [16:30–31] A foreshadowing in Luke’s gospel of the rejection of the call to repentance even after Jesus’ resurrection. (Amos, CHAPTER 6, n.d.)

Rev. Jim Caime, SJ, presents a question for us: “Who is Lazarus at our gate? And will we have eyes to see them?”

When I worked in New Orleans I once sang with a choir at a men’s shelter on Martin Luther King Day. Our choir was part of a group of area choirs. We sang Janèt Sullivan Whitaker’s song “The Least of These” (Link attached ). At first, I worried we had chosen the wrong song. While the gospel choirs had the men clapping and cheering, our song left them sitting in silence. It was only a few moments later, as I looked more closely, that I saw they weren’t unmoved. They were in tears. The men told me it was the first time they had felt seen. There was even a song about them that moved their hearts. Someone had captured the pain in their hearts and gave voice to it so others might see. For once, they were not invisible. They were seen. (Caime, n.d.)

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) (Schwager, n.d.)

Friar Jude Winkler notes that Amos preached about social injustice. He chastised gluttons while the people were starving. He declared a terrible calamity will come! Timothy, in the name of Paul,  exhorts us to live holy lives of witness. He uses the Greek word “martyria” that means “martyr.” to advise us to die to ourselves while awaiting Jesus' return. Luke introduces the rich man with no name indicating that Lazarus is much more important. The purple robes were only able to be worn by the very rich. Lazarus is in the Bosom of Abraham, a special place and a seat of honour The rich man is punished for lack of charity. He seeks a few drops of water but the impassable chasm makes it impossible. His brothers have Moses the prophets and even someone rising from the dead. The tenor of the parable, from Jesus Himself, asks: “Do we reach out to those who need our help?”

The Word Among Us Meditation on Luke 16:19-31 notes that Jesus is telling us that the word of God can change even the hardest of hearts. Through the commandments God gave to Moses, he told us to be kind and generous toward those in need. And through the words of the prophets, he revealed his own heart for those who are vulnerable and neglected. Now he tells us that if we sit with these words and let them sink into our hearts, his Spirit will draw us out of our own selfishness. He will help us reach out of ourselves and share his love and generosity with anyone who is hurting.

What is Jesus saying to you today? Is there a word or phrase from one of today’s Mass readings that is standing out to you? Take that word and ponder it, even if you’re not sure what has drawn you to it. Be patient. Be open. Let almighty God speak to you.

“Lord, open my ears to your word! Open my heart to your call!” (Meditation on Luke 16:19-31, n.d.)

Father Richard Rohr, OFM, describes how the teachings of Francis of Assisi (1182–1226) became the foundation of Franciscan spirituality. 

As a result, Franciscan spirituality has never been an abstraction. It is grounded in Jesus’ specific instructions to his disciples, not ideology or denominational certitudes. Francis’ living of the gospel was just that: a simple lifestyle. It was the incarnation of Jesus Christ continuing in space and time. It was the presence of the Spirit taken as if it were true. It was being Jesus more than just worshiping Jesus. At its best, Franciscan life is not words or even ethics. It is flesh—naked, vulnerable flesh—unable to deny its limitations, unable to cover its wounds. Francis called this inner nakedness “poverty.”  

This pure vision of life attracted thousands to a new freedom in the church and in ministry. Religious communities had become more and more entangled with stipends and rich land holdings. Members lived individually simple lives but were corporately secure and even comfortable. Mendicant (begging) orders like the Franciscans were created to break that dangerous marriage between ministry and money. Francis didn’t want his friars to preach salvation (although they did that, too) as much as he wanted them to be salvation. He wanted them to model and mirror the life of Jesus in the world, with all of the vulnerability that would entail. That is why many people often attribute the saying “preach the gospel at all times, and when absolutely necessary use words” to describe Francis’ desire to live the gospel in every moment. [5] (Rohr, n.d.)

We seek the guidance of the Spirit to be responsive to the needs presented to us to be healing and help to the “Lazarus” we encounter on our journey.

References

Amos, CHAPTER 6. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved September 28, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/amos/6?1 

Caime, J. (n.d.). Creighton Online Ministries: Home. Retrieved September 28, 2025, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/daily-reflections/daily-reflection-september-28-2025 

Luke, CHAPTER 16. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved September 28, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/luke/16?19 

Meditation on Luke 16:19-31. (n.d.). Retrieved September 28, 2025, from https://wau.org/meditations/2025/09/28/1392146/ 

1 Timothy, CHAPTER 6. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved September 28, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/1timothy/6?11 

Psalms, PSALM 146. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved September 28, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/146?7 

Rohr, R. (n.d.). Daily Meditations — Center for Action and Contemplation. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved September 28, 2025, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/francis-and-the-gospel/ 

Schwager, D. (n.d.). Lazarus Was Carried to Abraham's Bosom. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved September 28, 2025, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2025&date=sep28 

Christians and Critics

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today resonate with our modern tendency to be free with criticism, especially in social media, even as we reflect on Jesus' response to critics of His lifestyle and the company He kept.

Christian Community

The Reading from the First Letter to Timothy shares The Mystery of Our Religion.

* [3:14–16] In case there is some delay in the visit to Timothy at Ephesus planned for the near future, the present letter is being sent on ahead to arm and enlighten him in his task of preserving sound Christian conduct in the Ephesian church. The care he must exercise over this community is required by the profound nature of Christianity. It centers in Christ, appearing in human flesh, vindicated by the holy Spirit; the mystery of his person was revealed to the angels, announced to the Gentiles, and accepted by them in faith. He himself was taken up (through his resurrection and ascension) to the divine glory (1 Tm 3:16). This passage apparently includes part of a liturgical hymn used among the Christian communities in and around Ephesus. It consists of three couplets in typical Hebrew balance: flesh-spirit (contrast), seen-proclaimed (complementary), world-glory (contrast).

* [3:16] Who: the reference is to Christ, who is himself “the mystery of our devotion.” Some predominantly Western manuscripts read “which,” harmonizing the gender of the pronoun with that of the Greek word for mystery; many later (eighth/ninth century on), predominantly Byzantine manuscripts read “God,” possibly for theological reasons. (1 Timothy, CHAPTER 3, n.d.)

Psalm 111 proclaims how God is revealed in Israel’s history.

* [Psalm 111] A Temple singer (Ps 111:1) tells how God is revealed in Israel’s history (Ps 111:2–10). The deeds reveal God’s very self, powerful, merciful, faithful. The poem is an acrostic, each verse beginning with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. (Psalms, PSALM 111, n.d.)

The Reading from the Gospel of Luke notes this parable (Mt 11:16–17) and its explanation (Mt 11:18–19b) is much disputed.

* [7:31–35] See note on Mt 11:16–19 (Luke, CHAPTER 7, n.d.)

* [11:16–19] See Lk 7:31–35. The meaning of the parable (Mt 11:16–17) and its explanation (Mt 11:18–19b) is much disputed. A plausible view is that the children of the parable are two groups, one of which proposes different entertainments to the other that will not agree with either proposal. The first represents John, Jesus, and their disciples; the second those who reject John for his asceticism and Jesus for his table association with those despised by the religiously observant. Mt 11:19c (her works) forms an inclusion with Mt 11:2 (“the works of the Messiah”). The original form of the saying is better preserved in Lk 7:35 “…wisdom is vindicated by all her children.” There John and Jesus are the children of Wisdom; here the works of Jesus the Messiah are those of divine Wisdom, of which he is the embodiment. Some important textual witnesses, however, have essentially the same reading as in Luke. (Matthew, CHAPTER 11, n.d.)

Eileen Wirth relates to the mere fact that like most of us, Jesus was peeved by unfair criticism. Like us, He was human and responded as such and would likely understand our annoyance in similar situations.

Today’s reading reminds us that while Jesus apparently didn’t like unreasonable criticism any more than we do, he lived with it, just as we must as we stumble through life. Jesus understands that most of the time we are doing the best we can as we stumble through life. 

That’s what I did with the student complaint of unfairness.  What I saw as cura personalis won out but I told future classes that I knew they had crazy schedules that I’d try to accommodate them if they asked. It was the best I could do and I never again got such a complaint. So maybe that critique did  some good after all.

Cura personalis is a Latin phrase meaning "care of the whole person," a fundamental Jesuit principle that emphasizes individualized and holistic care for students, faculty, and colleagues. (Wirth, n.d.)

Don Schwager quotes “The song and dances of the prophets,” by Ambrose of Milan, 339-397 A.D.

"'Therefore, wisdom is justified by all her children.' He fittingly says 'by all,' because justice is preserved around all. In order that an acceptance of the faithful may happen, a rejection of the unbelieving must occur. Very many Greeks say this, "Wisdom is justified by all her works," because the duty of justice is to preserve the measure around the merit of each. It aptly says, "We have piped to you, and you have not danced." Moses sang a song when he stopped the flow in the Red Sea for the crossing of the Jews (Exodus 15:1-18), and the same waves encircled the horses of the Egyptians and, falling back, drowned their riders. Isaiah sang a song of his beloved's vineyard (Isaiah 5:1-7), signifying that the people who before had been fruitful with abundant virtues would be desolate through shameful acts. The Hebrews sang a song when the soles of their feet grew moist at the touch of the bedewing flame, and while all burned within and without, the harmless fire caressed them alone and did not scorch (Daniel 3:19-25). Habakkuk also learned to assuage universal grief with a song and prophesied that the sweet passion of the Lord would happen for the faithful (Habakkuk 3:13). The prophets sang songs with spiritual measures, resounding with prophecies of universal salvation. The prophets wept, softening the hard hearts of the Jews with sorrowful lamentations" (Isaiah 46:12). (excerpt from EXPOSITION OF THE GOSPEL OF LUKE 6.6-7) (Schwager, n.d.)

The Word Among Us Meditation on Luke 7:31-35 comments that these critics missed the point of both John and Jesus’ ministries. John wasn’t being harsh; he was pleading with his fellow Israelites to turn away from their sins so that they could welcome the Messiah and embrace the kingdom of God. As for Jesus, he wasn’t playing fast and loose with the Law of Moses. He was spending time with the “sinful” so that he could win them over. He was showing them his Father’s love by treating them with respect, listening to them, and sharing his heart with them.

It’s easy to be like the detractors in today’s Gospel who focused on other people’s supposed failings so that they could ignore their own faults. But Jesus wants us to be children of wisdom. He wants us to embrace the wisdom of repenting for our sins that John taught and the wisdom of showing mercy to everyone else that he taught. He knows that as we do, we’ll become attractive to others, just as he was, and we will show them the wisdom of following him.

“Jesus, help me to live as a child of your wisdom and not the wisdom of the world!” (Meditation on Luke 7:31-35, n.d.)

Friar Jude Winkler comments on the message in 1 Timothy to live a dignified life with Christ as the centre. At the end of the passage is a short canticle about Jesus, perhaps from an early liturgy, as a lot of the important theology of the early Church. We are reminded of an invitation to celebrate our Eucharist to see the eternal truth. Jesus is a bit frustrated. It seems John and Jesus are both criticized. The people were not ready to accept either. Friar Jude reminds that we can let our ideas blind us to the “God of Surprises” that we should be prepared to embrace.

Father Richard Rohr, OFM, notes that in his sermon “Loving Your Enemies,” Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (1929–1968) insists that agape love is the path to justice and peace.

When I speak of love I am not speaking of some sentimental and weak response. I am speaking of that force which all of the great religions have seen as the supreme unifying principle of life. Love is somehow the key that unlocks the door which leads to ultimate reality…. 

Far from being the pious injunction of a Utopian dreamer, the command to love one’s enemy is an absolute necessity for our survival. Love even for enemies is the key to the solution of the problems of our world. Jesus is not an impractical idealist: he is the practical realist. 

I am certain that Jesus understood the difficulty inherent in the act of loving one’s enemy. He never joined the ranks of those who talk glibly about the easiness of the moral life. He realized that every genuine expression of love grows out of a consistent and total surrender to God. So when Jesus said “Love your enemy,” he was not unmindful of its stringent qualities. Yet he meant every word of it. Our responsibility as Christians is to discover the meaning of this command and seek passionately to live it out in our daily lives…. 

When Jesus bids us to love our enemies, he is speaking neither of eros [romantic love] nor philia [reciprocal love of friends]; he is speaking of agape, understanding and creative, redemptive goodwill for all people. Only by following this way and responding with this type of love are we able to be children of our Father who is in heaven. [1] (Rohr, n.d.) 

We seek the Wisdom of the Spirit when we feel the need to respond to ourself or others when we deal with criticism that we feel is unjustified or alternately reveals some truth that we would best address for our own growth and benefit.

References

Luke, CHAPTER 7. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved September 17, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/luke/7?31 

Matthew, CHAPTER 11. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved September 17, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/matthew/11? 

Meditation on Luke 7:31-35. (n.d.). Word Among Us. Retrieved September 17, 2025, from https://wau.org/meditations/2025/09/17/1384295/ 

1 Timothy, CHAPTER 3. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved September 17, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/1timothy/3?14 

Psalms, PSALM 111. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved September 17, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/111?1 

Rohr, R. (n.d.). Daily Meditations — Center for Action and Contemplation. CAC.org. Retrieved September 17, 2025, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/love-and-nonviolence/ 

Schwager, D. (n.d.). How Shall I Compare This Generation? Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved September 17, 2025, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2025&date=sep17 

Wirth, E. (n.d.). Daily Reflection. Creighton Online Ministries: Home. Retrieved September 17, 2025, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/daily-reflections/daily-reflection-september-17-2025