Monday 30 April 2007

A bit of a delay today - but we still continue with the parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus.

"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. (Luke 16:19-21) The poor man died and was carried away by the angels to be with Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried. (Luke 16:22)

It was not my intention to stop at this point in the story for today. Then, it struck me. The poor man died and was carried away by the angels to be with Abraham...the rich man died and was buried. Hum. Is this the difference between one who is known and has means to provide for proper burial and one who has nothing. What happens to the poor - the homeless - the forgotten when life finally comes to an end? I remember taking part in a funeral in Detroit in which one of the young men who had been a part of our congregation was killed. There was no money for a "proper burial" and so when we went to the graveside, it was a long trench in which two or three levels of caskets were placed. There was no special place, well-marked, and available for the family to visit in the future. His casket would sit on top of another, and then another would be placed on top of his. Everything would be covered over and the graves would be noted by numbers posted on the fence at the edge of the graveyard - a paupers field. What a contrast to a funeral in which the deceased was placed in what was the most expensive of caskets and the most well-sealed vault. Lazarus is taken up because - as is the case of the poor - no one is there to oversee a burial. What a powerful picture of how God remembers and keep close the poor even as they are again forgotten - at death. As far as the rich man - well, we all know that burial...we all are a part of that scene...much to be done and said on behalf of the loved one now gone.

Connection: There are people all around us without an identity - they have one...but we are not aware of it. These do not have to be strangers. They can be people with whom we walk through life...they can be in our congregations. Eyes open can create a new world.

We give you thanks, O God, for you alone keep us within your loving embrace even when we are forgotten and ignored by the world. You keep your promise...you hold us...you remember us...you treat us to the wonder and kindness of your Reign - forever. Amen.