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Contents: Volume 2 26th SUNDAY (C) September 28, 2025
1. -- Lanie LeBlanc OP -2. -- Dennis Keller OP - 3. --
4. --
****************************************************** The word “chasm” in our Gospel reading for this Sunday sank deep into my soul. In my opinion, it connects to the deeper meaning of all of the readings. It encouraged me to consider the “chasms” of everyday life, mine and every human being’s.
I think there is a basic chasm between what people want to do and what they actually do. There is a chasm between the ideal relationship, family, work place, parish, community, and political situation vs. the reality of how people in them interact. There is basically a multi-dimensional chasm between the haves and the have-nots that surface in these situations.
Whether we are talking about the rich vs. the poor, the virtuous vs. the scandalous, or those who listen/reflect vs. those who continue to ignore, the remedy is the same. Will the words of Abraham and Jesus who was raised from the dead and spoke to us persuade us NOW to listen/reflect/change? We must all DO something to allow the Holy Spirit to bring us closer to the ideal, which is the Divine Plan. What is the next best thing we (you and I individually) can do? Come, Holy Spirit!
Blessings, Dr. Lanie LeBlanc OP Southern Dominican Laity
****************************************************** Twenty Sixth Sunday of Ordered TimeSeptember 28, 2025
This week we focus first on Paul’s first letter to Timothy. That reading is striking because it begins with Paul addressing Timothy as “O Man of God.” It is rare, indeed, in Catholic writings, to call anyone a Man/Woman of God. A frequent reaction to this is that Timothy was special, beyond committing sin. Is Timothy a sinless person? Does that put Timothy’s experience in living beyond our experiences? When we put saints on pedestals, we tend to define ourselves as the dirt that supports the pedestal. That’s not an appropriate place for anyone whose life has been enlivened by the Blood of Jesus. His two natures in his one person gives us stature. His presence among us, even now, has the purpose Jesus himself stated: “that you may have life and have it more fully.” When we focus on avoidance of sin, we miss the point of Jesus’ ministry, his death, resurrection, and ascension to the Father.
Has anyone attempted to lose weight? For many of us, losing weight consists in “not eating sweets, denying taking a second helping.” These are ‘not’s.’ How does a person “not?” Our human psyches are geared to doing. ‘Not to do’ is impossible. The object is nothing. How are we able to not do?
When we read the commandments in Deuteronomy we tend to stop reading after the tenth commandment. Following the tenth we learn the reason for keeping the commandments. Take a look again. Restate in your hearts the commandments in a positive, doing sense. They become about dignity, respect, appreciation, not mere prohibitions.
Paul continues in his first sentence about virtues for a person behaves as a Man/Woman of God. The term ‘man of God’ is first attributed to Moses and then to prophets and messengers of God. Paul’s view of Timothy is that he is indeed a man of God, like Moses whose dialogue with God brought about a guide to successful living in community. Paul’s amplification of “Man/Woman of God” is not a review of faults and failures. It is a guide, a set of strengths, known as virtues, for a well lived life. The first virtue is righteousness. It means giving God, humanity, and nature what is their due.
The next three virtues relate to God. Devotion is mankind being mindful of God in creation, in humans, and in events of history. Faith is faithfulness to God with a loving loyalty in all life’s events, joy, suffering, and even death. Love is not erotic love; it is not brotherly love. It is the unconditional love that is agape, that recognizes the presence of God in creation and others. Patience is not a passive watching of events or enduring pain with a waiting for it to pass. It is more an endurance that gains strength knowing God can turn bad into good – but it takes patience to know that.
The fourth virtue looks toward humanity. Gentleness is the spirit of forgiveness. This is achieved when we walk in humility and yet with joy and exuberance called to share God’s eternal life.
The first reading from Amos, the shepherd and trimmer of sycamores from Judea, is a call to repentance in the then prosperous Northern Kingdom. In 800 BC that kingdom was called Israel. That nation was terribly successful. Its elite and merchants were rolling in money. Money took precedence over the welfare of the people, especially those on the margins. When the tribe of Joseph was obliterated by conquest, they were not moved to mourn the destruction of the tribe of a son of Jacob.
The Gospel for the Sunday is a familiar story. It is a parallel to the reading from Amos. The first part of this story is omitted. It is a set-up to understanding the story of Lazarus and Dives – the name given to the billionaire. The beginning verses of this section of Luke begins: “The Pharisees were money lovers. They heard these things and mocked him. He said to them, ‘you justify yourselves in people’s eyes.’ But God knows your hearts. What is exalted in human sight is an abomination in God’s eyes.” Following this introduction Jesus reviews the Law of Moses regarding divorce. That law allowed divorce for sexual immorality. The Torah forbade adultery with emphasis, but never connecting divorce to adultery. One rabbinic school allowed divorce on the grounds of fornication adultery. Yet another prominent rabbinic school allowed it simply if the husband found another woman more attractive. Luke reminds the Pharisees on something as important as man and woman becoming one as Genesis taught, they overlooked marital relationships in favor of wealth. The Mishnah, a commentary on the Law, has a great volume of legal discussion about divorce..
The parable of the rich man and Lazarus is meant to recast wealth as a lesser object of love than human relationships. The opulence of Dives is a careless opulence where crumbs and meats that fall off serving platters are not collected but scarfed up by pet dogs. Those dogs lick the postulants sores of Lazarus, providing him his only relief. Is this level of wealth a form of idolatry? Idolatry in Hebrew tradition is compared to adultery. The People of Israel were compared to a marriage, in which the nation was the bride of God. Idolatry was adultery.
Luke is fond of emphasizing Jesus’ teaching by a reversal of fortune of persons. Lazarus comes to rest with Abraham, who welcomes him and entertains him. It is Dives who, for his lack of kindness, of mercy, of compassion, of awareness of others, is cast into the pains of Hades. Dives remains in his self-centered attitude in which he lived. In a desperate move he remembers his brothers. Dives pleads for a warning for them. Abraham contests the brothers wouldn’t believe even if a dead person returned to speak with them. That is what happened to many sons and daughters of Abraham when Jesus, once dead, was raised up into newness of life. Can this lesson apply to us?
Dennis Keller Dennis@PreacherExchange.com
****************************************************** ****************************************************** ****************************************************** 4. ****************************************************** ****************************************************** 5. ****************************************************** Volume 2 is for you. These reflections follow the Liturgical Calendar and appear here about mid week each week. They are written by various guest authors. If you would like to submit a reflection of your own, then click here to send an email request to post to the Webmaster. Deadline is Monday of each week for the upcoming Sunday.
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The Dominicans. (form revised 9/9/2025) |
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