Twenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time
September 28, 2025
Amos 6:1a, 4-7, 1 Timothy 6:11-1, Luke 16:19-31
Today’s Gospel from Saint Luke, about the rich man and Lazarus the poor man, is one of many passages that highlight a major thematic issue in Luke, namely the relationship between wealth and poverty. The Gospels in general do not give a structural analysis of wealth being the cause of poverty, with a few exceptions, and wealth itself is not outright condemned, as some people in the Gospels and in Acts are portrayed as wealthy. Saint Luke’s Gospel primarily expounds on the moral obligation of those with wealth to assist the poor.
In the first reading from Amos, the prophet denounces the mindless luxury of the rich and their practice of ignoring the plight of the poor. The Psalm (146) lists the same actions as in Isaiah 61:1-2 and Luke 4:18-19, of the ways in which compassion needs to be carried out, for the oppressed, the hungry, the blind, captives, strangers, i.e., immigrants, and the widow and orphan. The Psalm adds an extra admonition: “God thwarts the way of the wicked,” referring to those with wealth who ignore the poor.
In today’s Gospel the rich man’s fault is to ignore the poor man at his gate, despite having the luxury to dine very well every day. Another illustrative contrast is presented: although the rich man ignores the plight of Lazarus the dogs come and lick his wounds. In the first century dog saliva was considered to be medicinal. The dogs are presented as being far more humane than the wealthy humans in this parable.
This parable clearly illustrates the radical role reversals already referenced in Saint Luke’s Gospel, namely the Magnificat of Mary that the lowly will be lifted up and the rich sent away empty, and the Beatitudes that state “Blessed are the poor and woe to you who are rich.” The rich man’s wealth is no indicator of divine favor. And Lazarus receives honor from God after death — honor he was denied during this lifetime.
Unfortunately, today it is not hard to find these same contradictions. Wide and growing disparities in access to the resources needed to sustain life continue to plague the international community. Oxfam reported in 2016 that one percent of the world’s population control half the wealth, and the gap may be even starker today. Just in America alone, close to 12% of the population live in poverty, around 37 to 40 million, whereas ten thousand people are called centi-millionaires, those with a net wealth of over one hundred million dollars, and in 2023 there were 879 billionaires in the United States.
Although not all millionaires and billionaires ignore the plight of the poor, many use their wealth and influence to block programs that will improve the lives of those in poverty, while at the same time promoting policies that enhance their own wealth, such as in low tax rates for the top ten percent. The budget for Medicaid has been reduced by $700 billion over ten years, which will deny millions of people assistance for essential medical care and medications, such as insulin, and it will also inexorably lead to closure of rural hospitals due to lack of funds. Ideological falsehoods are proclaimed that Medicaid is wasteful spending of tax dollars, whereas any accurate evaluation of Medicaid discovers almost no waste.
Globally, the massive cuts to the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) have resulted in the termination of financial assistance to numerous countries for health, education, agricultural and infrastructural development, food relief, water projects and, most crucially, for the program that shares antiretroviral therapies that have kept millions of HIV-positive people alive, especially in Africa.
To adequately respond to today’s gospel in the modern world is to recognize that not only philanthropy is needed but systemic change that will address the structural causes of poverty. The biblical commentator John T. Carroll states: “Jesus’ vision of the reign of God bears little resemblance to the consumer capitalism and preoccupation with wealth acquisition so dominant in modern life.” Seeing Lazarus today requires us to engage in the radical role reversal commanded by Jesus.
Maryknoll Father Frank Breen, from Boston, Massachusetts, served in Kenya for nearly 30 years, where he also served as a correspondent for Maryknoll magazine. He is currently the peace and justice coordinator for the Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns.
To read other Scripture reflections published by the Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns, click here.
Featured image: A man is pictured in a file photo carrying a bag of wheat supplied by Catholic Relief Services and USAID for emergency food assistance in a village near Shashemane, Ethiopia. (OSV News/Nancy McNally, Catholic Relief Services)
