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Gospel Lesson for the
Week
September 30, 2007
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18th
Sunday after Pentecost
"There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and who
feasted sumptuously every day. And at
his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who longed to
satisfy his hunger with what fell from the rich man's table; even the dogs
would come and lick his sores.
The poor man died and was carried away by the angels to be with Abraham.
The rich man also died and was buried.
In Hades, where he was being tormented, he looked up and saw Abraham
far away with Lazarus by his side.
He called out, 'Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip
the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am in agony in
these flames.'
But Abraham said, 'Child, remember that during your lifetime you received
your good things, and Lazarus in like manner evil things; but now he is
comforted here, and you are in agony. Besides
all this, between you and us a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who
might want to pass from here to you cannot do so, and no one can cross from
there to us.'
He said, 'Then, father, I beg you to send him to my father's house-- for I
have five brothers--that he may warn them, so that they will not also come
into this place of torment.'
Abraham replied, 'They have Moses and the prophets; they should listen to
them.'
He said, 'No, father Abraham; but if someone goes to them from the dead,
they will repent.'
He said to him, 'If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither
will they be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.'"
.
Geography of the Soul
.
It occurs to me, as I read
Jesus’ story,
that what seems on the
surface
to be about the geography
of heaven and hell,
is really more about the
geography of the soul.
It still amazes me
whenever I see one of
those gadgets
that can tell me where to
go,
“Turn left onto
Lincoln Boulevard,
turn right on Main.”
But in our story, Father
Abraham is no GPS.
He’s more like Yogi Berra
who once remarked,
“You can’t get there from
here.”
That’s just what Father
Abraham says to the rich man,
“The gulf is fixed; you
can’t get there from here.”
And that may all be true,
but to our benefit,
the word of Father Abraham
is not the bottom line.
In the biblical GPS.
“G” stands for “grace,”
unmerited and underserved,
but richly, abundantly
open to us, and through
us.
There is no automated
voice
to give directions;
only the deep voice
within,
guiding us from here to
there,
from the daily hell of
selfish isolation
to the paradise of mutual
loving service.
Do you remember that old vision of heaven
and hell? According to the
story, heaven and hell are depicted as banquet halls, laden with every
sort of rich and luscious food, and in both the inhabitants are equipped
with long spoons strapped to the ends of their arms.
In
heaven, the people are well fed and happy; in hell, they were angry,
irritable, very cranky and very hungry.
The difference:
In hell the residents are doomed to constant frustration as each
tries to feed himself, only to find that the long spoons will not reach
their mouths.
In heaven, however, there is joy and
contentment as the residents, using the attached spoons, feed each
other.
---
rvc
*** D I S C L A I M E R ***
The Weekly Lessons are based on the lectionary
texts for the week – usually the Gospel lesson. They are not designed as a
formal commentary. Rather, they are the personal reflections and original
compositions of The Relay Online editor, Rev. Robin Van
Cleef, and offer a jumping off point, using the scriptures as triggers to
thought, imagination, and (we hope) empowerment. As you read them, let your own
imagination play, and let the Spirit speak to you, leading you where it will.
The Gospel Lessons reflected on this site may not be copied, reproduced or
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