Twenty-Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time Yr C 2025

Title

Becoming Self-Focused

Outline

When the world is in chaos we tend to become self-focused

We enjoy our parish, our order, our diocese or even our part of one of those entities. We avoid issues in the world around us. We can, even in a parish or diocese, become cloistered in a negative sense in which we no longer pray for the world and for the kingdom to come, but are turned inward and walled off from the chaos outside our community, even that among the separated brethren in our parish or diocese. This is an unfortunate tendency for it separates us from Jesus who is “in the streets” seeking the lost.

Amos expresses this in in terms of leadership

The “notable men” of Israel “put far away the evil day” not realizing they “bring near the seat of violence.” They are enjoying luxurious lives, “but are not grieved over the ruin of Joseph.” Think of enjoying great liturgies but shutting out rot in the church, as did happen in the 1970’s - 1990’s. The evil day will overtake such, and they “will be the first to go into exile.”

Jesus expresses this in terms of class structure

The unnamed rich man does not “see” or have concern for the very much named “Lazarus.” The unclean dogs who do cleanup under the table are more caring than he. But both die and Lazarus ends up in paradise, in Abraham’s bosom, while the unnamed rich man is just buried and ends up.in Hades, suffering want. Yet he does not get it, for he still wants Lazarus to serve him addressing Abraham as if he were Lazarus’ master and could send him to serve. Abraham explains in terms that sound like Amos that Lazarus gets what he did not have and the rich man would not give him in life - comfort. Lazarus is seen and named by God. He will not be sent on.mission, for God has other witnesses for the five brothers already there.

1 Timothy calls us, not to turning inward, but to doing battle

This is call for, whether it be in cloistered prayer and life or in outward service. “Aim at righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness.” Fighting the good fight of the faith is the calling of our baptismal promises, says Paul. So we “keep the commandment unstained and free from reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ.” This is how we live before the world, however hostile it may be, living in the light of the future: “the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ [that] will be made manifest at the proper time by the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone has immortality and dwells in unapproachable light, whom no man has ever seen or can see.” When we keep that vision before our eyes we fight with the spiritual weapons of faith, hope, and charity alongside our king, whether it be in a pre-K classroom or a university lecture or on our knees before the Blessed Sacrament.

Sisters, there is a time for turning inward, but only a time to prepare for the outward

More of my time now is involved in prayer and worship both to draw close to my Lord so that I have his vision and know his voice and his commands and to do spiritual battle in prayer. But we do not do this simply to enjoy life close to God while we await the rapture (as I might have though in my early Protestant days), but so that we are close to God and respond expertly to his commands wherever we engage the world, whether in the letters we may write to family and friends or in the classroom or in Interactions in a grocery store or at a doctor’s office or while traveling. That is why I wear my cassock whenever and wherever I am so I am identifiable and cannot merge into the anonymous crowd.

I want, and I trust we want, to be those concerned about her ruin of Joseph and to be constantly petitioning our Lord and have ears open and practiced to hear anything he tells us to do. We want eyes open to see Lazarus as Jesus sees Lazarus and live the love of Jesus that might just also convert some who are like the rich man. And we want to be filled with the vision of God’s future that is present to us at every mass that our lifestyles reflect it and that we are thereby “fighting the good fight of the faith” whether by preaching or by practicing so that, rather than our turning inward away from the world, the world will see that there is an alternative to its chaos and that that alternative is allegiance to Jesus, who is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

And God be with you.

Amos Chapter 6 1 “Woe to those who are at ease in Zion, and to those who feel secure on the mountain of Samaria, the notable men of the first of the nations, to whom the house of Israel come! 2 Pass over to Calneh, and see; and thence go to Hamath the great; then go down to Gath of the Philistines. Are they better than these kingdoms? Or is their territory greater than your territory, 3 O you who put far away the evil day, and bring near the seat of violence? 4 “Woe to those who lie upon beds of ivory, and stretch themselves upon their couches, and eat lambs from the flock, and calves from the midst of the stall; 5 who sing idle songs to the sound of the harp, and like David invent for themselves instruments of music; 6 who drink wine in bowls, and anoint themselves with the finest oils, but are not grieved over the ruin of Joseph! 7 Therefore they shall now be the first of those to go into exile, and the revelry of those who stretch themselves shall pass away.” Catholic Biblical Association (Great Britain), The Holy Bible: Revised Standard Version, Catholic Edition (New York: National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA, 1994), Am 6.

1 Tim 6:11-16

11 But as for you, man of God, shun all this; aim at righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness. 12 Fight the good fight of the faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. 13 In the presence of God who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus who in his testimony before Pontius Pilate made the good confession, 14 I charge you to keep the commandment unstained and free from reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ; 15 and this will be made manifest at the proper time by the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords, 16 who alone has immortality and dwells in unapproachable light, whom no man has ever seen or can see. To him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen. Catholic Biblical Association (Great Britain), The Holy Bible: Revised Standard Version, Catholic Edition (New York: National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA, 1994), 1 Ti 6:11–16.

Luke 16:19-31

19 “There was a rich man, who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. 20 And at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, full of sores, 21 who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man’s table; moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. 22 The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried; 23 and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes, and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus in his bosom. 24 And he called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy upon me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am in anguish in this flame.’ 25 But Abraham said, ‘Son, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner evil things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish. 26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.’ 27 And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father’s house, 28 for I have five brothers, so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment.’ 29 But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.’ 30 And he said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if some one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ 31 He said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced if some one should rise from the dead.’ ” Catholic Biblical Association (Great Britain), The Holy Bible: Revised Standard Version, Catholic Edition (New York: National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA, 1994), Lk 16:18–31.