Every so often it is good to “check in” with the Patriarchs of the early Church to see their reflections on the parable of the Rich Man and Poor Lazarus.  Here is a sample of their thought

St. John Chrysostom (late 4th century AD) – often used this parable to warn that failing to aid the poor is itself a form of robbery. “Not to share our own wealth with the poor is theft from the poor and deprivation of their means of life; we do not possess our own wealth, but theirs.” (Homily on Lazarus and the Rich Man,  1) Chrysostom He stresses that the rich man’s sin was not that he had wealth, but that wealth without mercy leads to condemnation

St. Augustine (late 4th and early 5th century AD) focused on the end of the parable: “They have Moses and the prophets. Let them listen to them.” (Luke 16:29). In his Sermon 115, Augustine warns that waiting for miraculous signs is foolish when the Word of God is already sufficient: “If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they believe if one rises from the dead.” (v. 31). For Augustine the matter that has always plagued humankind in our relationship to God is hardness of heart. The hardness of heart we display for those around has its own measure in the hardness of our hearts to follow the Word of God.

This coming Sunday we continue in the Gospel of Luke with Jesus’ parable of the Rich Man and Poor Lazarus. We are describing the parable as a drama told in three acts. We are in midst of Act 3.

 The Second Exchange. ²⁷ He said, ‘Then I beg you, father, send him to my father’s house, ²⁸ for I have five brothers, so that he may warn them, lest they too come to this place of torment.’ ²⁹ But Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the prophets. Let them listen to them.’”

Here the rich man asks that Lazarus (again as servant) be sent back to warn the rich man’s surviving brothers. Seemingly accepting his fate, he at least gives evidence of thinking of another person. “But Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the prophets. Let them listen to them’” (v.29). Indeed, let us listen to them:

“If one of your kinsmen in any community is in need in the land which the LORD, your God, is giving you, you shall not harden your heart nor close your hand to him in his need. Instead, you shall open your hand to him and freely lend him enough to meet his need” (Dt 15:7-8)

This coming Sunday we continue in the Gospel of Luke with Jesus’ parable of the Rich Man and Poor Lazarus. We are describing the parable as a drama told in three acts. This is Act 3. To a first century hearer of the parable, the fates of the two would have been surprising for it went against the grain of the common wisdom: blessings in this life were a sign of God’s favor while illness, poverty, and hardship were a sign of God’s curses. Yet the one well “blessed” in his lifetime is now tormented in the netherworld (see the Note on 16:23 below) where he can see Lazarus and Abraham across the great chasm that divides them (v.26).

The First Exchange. ²⁴ 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.’ ²⁵ Abraham replied, ‘My child, remember that you received what was good during your lifetime while Lazarus likewise received what was bad; but now he is comforted here, whereas you are tormented. ²⁶ Moreover, between us and you a great chasm is established to prevent anyone from crossing who might wish to go from our side to yours or from your side to ours.’

This coming Sunday we continue in the Gospel of Luke with Jesus’ parable of the Rich Man and Poor Lazarus. We are describing the parable as a drama told in three acts. This is Act 2. The Act is briefly told and simply describes the fate of our two characters. “When the poor man died, he was carried away by angels to the bosom of Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried, ²³ and from the netherworld, where he was in torment…” (vv.22-23a). We are not told how Lazarus died. Was it starvation? Again we are reminded of Jesus’ admonition to the Pharisees. “Then he said to the host who invited him, “When you hold a lunch or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or your wealthy neighbors, in case they may invite you back and you have repayment. Rather, when you hold a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind; blessed indeed will you be because of their inability to repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.” (14:12-14).  Was it exposure and hypothermia while the rich man slept nearby? Infected sores while the rich enjoyed baths and healing ointments? Perhaps weakened and unable to defend himself, the dogs took his life.

However his life ends, Lazarus is taken by the angels to the bosom of Abraham. Nothing is said of a burial which brings to mind the bodily translations of Enoch (Gen 5:24), Elijah (2 Kings 2:11) and Moses (Jewish legends) to their eternal rewards. Neglected by others, Lazarus is prized in the sight of God.

The rich man also died – again we are left to speculate by what cause – but notably, he is buried, perhaps “thrown” into his grave as was Lazarus at the gate. 

The Poor Lazarus at the Rich Man’s Door | James Tissot, 1886–1894 | Brooklyn Museum | PD-US

This coming Sunday we continue in the Gospel of Luke with Jesus’ parable of the Rich Man and Poor Lazarus. Culpepper well describes this parable as a drama in three acts (Luke, 316):

• Act 1 – a tableau during which the characters are introduced and their way of life is described, but nothing happens
• Act 2 – a reversal: the rich become poor and the poor become rich as each character has died and received their eternal reward
• Act 3 – narration give way to dialogue, but between the rich man and Abraham, in three exchanges: about the finality of judgment, about the witness of Moses and the prophets, and about the blindness that prevents even the Resurrection from leading to conversion