26th Sunday in Ordinary Time ©

INTRO:

A while ago,

I had a meeting for lunch in downtown Cleveland…

It is typically crowded…always difficult to find a parking spot, but in this one area…I have always been lucky. Lo and behold that famous day…WOW spots all over the place waiting for MY parked car!
I park.
Get into my lunch meeting.
I finish up and come out to come home and there it is …
A TOW truck with my car on it!!!!

I NEGLECTED TO SEE THE NEWLY POSTED NO PARKING SIGNS!

I DIDN’T OBSERVE WHAT WAS RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME!

So how does that fit for TODAY’S Gospel of the RICH MAN and LAZARUS?

(A little activity:
-look around the church, can you see anybody with RED HAIR?
-can you see someone who came to church ALONE?
I BET ALL OF YOU CAN ANSWER THOSE QUESTIONS.
Now try
-look around the church, can you see someone who needs help?

This may be a bit difficult, but this is our call …. To develop a way in us to do just that!

Everybody wants to accuse the RICH MAN of BEING RICH and EVIL! The RICH man’s sin was not that he was rich, but that during his earthly life:

HE DID NOT SEE THE LAZARUS’S OF SOCIETY, RIGHT IN FRONT OF HIM AND DO SOMETHING FOR THEM, just as I did not see the posted signs! I was in a hurry NOT WATCHING!!

I can almost hear Jesus say:

“Hey everybody, walk with your heads UP…look around and see someone that needs HELP!!! There are people all around you who need YOU.”
Many of you DO THIS Beautifully.
Many of you do PAY ATTENTION as to where you can HELP another.

That is what this church is about.

CONCLUSION:

In a few moments I will hold up the consecrated host and wine and say BEHOLD the Lamb of God. You will look up and it is that posture of life, looking up and seeing the need in our brothers and sisters.