Distant yet Together

Rembrandt's "Raising of Lazarus"

The “distancing” to avoid the spread of the coronavirus has an unintended good effect: it can bring out the best in people. Relatives are checking in on one another more frequently via social media. Neighbors are looking after neighbors via telephone.  People are seeking prayer opportunities via the internet. Pope Francis, e..g., is providing online greetings and “gatherings” for the faithful and the weary worldwide. Seeing images of the Holy Father in a  virtually empty St. Peter’s Square tugs at our hearts and calls us to a deeper unity.

Sunday's Gospel features Lazarus.  At Oxford University, in the lobby of a chapel, there's a statue of Lazarus bound from head to foot.  The image could symbolize who we are and what we should be about:  asking God to untie us from the many things that undermine our relationship with God and one another.  A powerful prayer whenever we enter a church: untie me, God, from attitudes and behaviors that hinder me from becoming my true self.

The word of God this Sunday first carries us back to the sixth century before Jesus. The Hebrews are despondent; Babylonians conquered them, demolished their temple and deported many of them. But Ezekiel proclaims that God will breathe his spirit into the “bones” of the demoralized Hebrews. And the spirit of God will breathe new life into them. They will become new creatures.

That is our destiny and our challenge: to live as new creatures, called to become like God in our attitudes and behaviors.

Paul in his letter to the Christian community at Rome declares that the spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, dwells within us. That spirit can energize us so that we will manifest the fruits of the spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Paul reminds us to pray that the spirit of God transforms us.

In the Gospel according to John, Jesus cries out, “Lazarus, come out of the tomb!” And out comes Lazarus, bound with burial wrappings. Jesus emphasized the raising of Lazarus as a threshold sign in the unfolding of our own salvation history, a sign of his power to give us eternal life; and a promise to put the imperishable on our perishable selves, to put the immortal on our mortal selves.Also, “Jesus wept.” Probably tears of friendship and solidarity.

Jesus gave Lazarus a “second chance.” I always wondered: did Lazarus ever describe what he experienced? Did the “second chance” change Lazarus? We have been given second chances. Are we doing anything differently with the opportunity?

Nothing will separate us from the love of God, to paraphrase Paul's words to the Romans. The triune God lives within us and we live within the triune God.

The Holy Spirit equips us with his gifts so that we can be our best selves: we possess the gifts of wisdom to focus on what truly matters; understanding and knowledge, to probe more deeply into the mysteries of God; counsel to make good moral decisions; fortitude to stand up for what is right; piety to give God praise and worship; and fear of the Lord: a healthy concern never to lose that relationship with God.

In light of Sunday's gospel, we might “shout out” to Jesus: untie me from the attitudes and behaviors that prevent me from becoming my true self: the likeness of God. In this sign and wonder, I pray that God will empower us to leap out of our own death into new life, eternal life within the triune God and one another. Amen.

Seize the Day

Luca Giordano's Dives and Lazarus 

Today’s Gospel parable describes two contrasting lifestyles. One guy “has everything.” Outside a poor man has nothing. But then there’s a dramatic reversal. Lazarus is in the embrace of Abraham. A happy man! Where do we find the rich man? In the netherworld, tormented! He’s condemned not because he’s wealthy. He is condemned because he neglected Lazarus.

The rich man committed a sin of omission. He didn’t listen to the prophets of ancient Israel—for example, Amos, in today’s first reading—who advised that the rich and famous pampered themselves at the expense of those lacking basic necessities. The rich man forgot the prophets who said, Only do the right thing, love goodness, walk humbly with God.

Sometimes we don’t listen to what St. Paul in his letter to Timothy tells us to do: practice virtue so that we may have eternal life through Jesus Christ. A blueprint can be found in the seven “corporal works of mercy”:

Feed the hungry. Millions of people are hungry. Countless children suffer malnutrition, and thousands die each day. In feeding the hungry, we feed Jesus himself. We might contribute to Catholic Relief Services. We might feed the intellectually hungry by mentoring them, or volunteer in religious education.

Give drink to the thirsty. When we pollute the air, when waste makes water undrinkable, we put lives at risk. Pope Francis in his letter, “Laudato Si”(Praise Be To You)  urges us to care for our common home.

Clothe the naked. What about a “closet cleaning?” Do we need all those clothes? Why not donate them to St. Vincent de Paul or Goodwill?

Shelter the homeless. Government should provide systemic solutions, e.g., meaningful work incentives. We also can volunteer, e.g. with St. Vincent de Paul or Habitat for Humanity.

Visit the sick. Yes, the sick, especially the terminally ill, need our presence, which allows them to talk about their anxieties, and to transcend loneliness.

Ransom the captive. Connected to this are human rights: political and religious freedom, economic conditions that foster dignity and an environment conducive to raising a family. We need to stand up for the right of the unborn to life, and the right of the elderly to die with dignity. We can visit people in our prisons, and victims, to share faith, to teach, to pray, to give hope.

Finally, Bury the dead. Franciscans celebrate annually the Transitus of St. Francis of Assisi. It is about our pilgrimage from this earth through the mystery of death into eternal life. It is natural to mourn someone’s passing. We might reach out to mourners, not just at the wake and funeral, but through the grieving.

We can think of a hundred and one ways to practice mercy in our daily lives. On the day of judgment, our prayer is to hear God say to us: Come, inherit the kingdom. For I was hungry and you gave me food; thirsty and you gave me drink; a stranger and you welcomed me; naked and you clothed me; ill and you cared for me.
Yes, how we live today has eternal consequences. Seize the day. Seize the opportunity to do good for others today.