Jesus was a master of the story form known as parables.  One of the most memorable parables can be found in Luke: the story of Lazarus and the Rich man (Luke 16:19-31).  The parable starts simply enough: “There was a rich man who dressed in purple garments and fine linen and dined sumptuously each day.  And lying at his door was a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores.”  Very quickly in the parable the two men die.  The unnamed rich man goes to a fiery afterlife of torment while Lazarus rests in the arms of Abraham, awaiting the day when Jesus will open the gates of Heaven for the faithful. Continue reading →