Twenty-Sixth Sunday in Ordinary

Twenty-Sixth Sunday in Ordinary

Fr. Ben Riley

Pope Benedict the 16th once said, “The Church does three essential things, it evangelizes, worships God, and cares for the poor.” And simply put, that’s it. Consider any aspect of the church, any part of ecclesiastical life: preparing Catechumens for the sacraments of initiation, preparation classes for children, the liturgy, all the sacraments, visits to the sick and homebound, Catholic Hospitals, Catholic schools, adoption centers, pregnancy resource centers, and the list goes on and on. That is one of the great things about the beautiful gem that is our Church. There are so many facets that are so different, many different sides, each one more beautiful than that last, but all of them correspond to either evangelization, worship of God, or care for the poor.

And isn’t it interesting that our last three popes each focused on one of these aspects in a particular way. Saint Pope John Paul the Second, he was a great evangelizer. Of course he worked on the other two as well, but his focus was on evangelization. And Pope Benedict, he was very passionate about the worship of God, he was very concerned with the integrity of the liturgy. And Pope Francis, from the beginning of his papacy, his focus has been on the care for the poor, and his humility is a great testament of this. He doesn’t live in the papal apartment, he prefers the simple papal vestments over the more ostentatious garb. A few years ago, someone said this to me, and I think it rings true, and it stuck with me. “Pope John Paul the Second was the heart of the church, Pope Benedict was the mind of the church, and Pope Frances is the soul of the Church.” The infinite wisdom of God and the movement of the Holy Spirit has given the Church a Holy Father that it needed in a particular time and for a particular people.

So, the Pope we need now, in a society obsessed with wealth and material goods, is a humble man who has not forgotten the poor. And so, the question becomes, have we, have we forgotten the poor? The Church for centuries has championed care for the poor and this teaching, of course, comes first and foremost from scripture. We have been reading now from the prophet Amos. It is true in Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, and all the rest of them, but maybe the most profound challenges to care for the poor and the most profound condemnation for those who oppress the poor, comes from the Prophet Amos. Listen now from our reading today, and try not to be deeply challenged by the language. “Woe to the complacent in Zion!” He is speaking here of Jerusalem, of those who are in the top leadership positions in the capitol. “Woe to the complacent in Zion! Lying on beds of Ivory. Stretched comfortably of their couches. Improvising to the music of the harp, like David, they devise their own accompaniment. They drink wine from bowls and anoint themselves with the best oils.” He’s not pulling any punches. He is calling them out, and many of us, myself included, live very comfortable lives. We have so much, truly so much, compared to many millions of people all around the world.

And what did we do to deserve such comfort. Worked hard, maybe, but does hard work justify a neglect of the poor? Our prosperity has come primarily from being born in this wonderful country and not from any merit of our own. Do we find ourselves challenged by these words? Yea, I do! Are we aware of those around us and all over the world who are suffering from hunger, lack of clean water, nakedness, homelessness, and violence? Are we like the complacent in Zion, lying comfortably on our couches, anointing ourselves with lotion and oil from our medicine cabinet, drinking wine, or whatever our preferred beverage is? This language from Amos, is meant to bug us.

Last week, Deacon George had a wonderful homily about our attachment to material things, and he said something very profound. He said, “We are so concerned with our stuff, but God doesn’t want our stuff, he wants our heart.” Okay, well how then do we give Him our heart. It is by caring for His most impoverished children. Jesus said “That which you do for the least of your brothers, that you do unto me.” And we might say, “Oh, I do enough.” or maybe, “Oh, I don’t make enough to give to the poor.” But do we do enough? Even the poorest person in this country, does not look like the poorest person in Haiti, Niger, or Honduras. Poverty here does not look like poverty in other parts of the world. This reading from Amos is meant to tee up our gospel. We all know this story well. Lazarus and the rich man. The rich man dressed in purple garments and fine linen, dining sumptuously each night, and Lazarus lying outside the rich man’s door covered in soars, begging for the scraps from the rich man’s table. And then they both die. The rich man is taken to the underworld, in the Jewish tradition, but we understand, he has gone to hell. “The rich man raised his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. And he cried out, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me. Send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am suffering torment in these flames.’” But no, a great chasm is established to prevent anyone who might wish to go from one side to the other. Even if Lazarus wanted to help, it would not be possible. They had made their choices on earth, and now must accept the consequences. It’s tough stuff, yes, and it’s meant to put us on the hook, it’s meant to bother us.

And let me be clear, I am preaching to myself hear as much as I am preaching to you. I’m not going to try to sugar coat these readings. These readings are the grit in an oyster. That grit and pressure makes the formation of a pearl possible. So let us be bothered by the grit of these readings so hopefully the pressure will form a pearl of compassion that should shine forth from all of us.

So suppose your convicted, that you recognize you could be doing more for the poor. How do you get started? A simple, practical approach. Dorothy Day said that everything a baptized Catholic does should be directly or indirectly related to the spiritual or corporeal works of mercy. Start with the corporal works of mercy. Feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, clothe the naked, shelter the homeless. There are seven of these, learn them, and everyday ask yourself, “Am I doing something to realize these corporal works of mercy?” Tithe, that means giving 10% of your income every year. There is something simple and helpful about that. If I make $100,000 a year $10,000 should go to the poor, if I make $50,000, then $5,000 should go to the poor. It’s a very concrete way to measure it. Keep cash or grocery gift cards in your pocket for the homeless, especially as we are approaching colder weather. And finally, it’s not practical for us to know how to distribute our donations to those who most need it. So be aware of some of the reputable charities: Catholic Relief Services, Catholic Charities of Arkansas, House of Hope, Share and Care, Informed Choices. And care for the poor isn’t just about donating your money, it’s your time and talent as well. In many ways donating time, is far more valuable than your money every could be. In essence, our charity to the poor should not only help those less fortunate than us, but should also change us, mold us into a better likeness of Christ, create in us a new heart, and lead us to glory everlasting.