THE DOGS LICKED HIS SORES…

Jeremiah 17:5-10 
5 Thus says the LORD: “Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his arm, whose heart turns away from the LORD.6 He is like a shrub in the desert, and shall not see any good come. He shall dwell in the parched places of the wilderness, in an uninhabited salt land.
7 “Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose trust is the LORD.
8 He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.”9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately corrupt; who can understand it?10 “I the LORD search the mind and try the heart, to give to every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings.”

Luke 16:19-31

19 “There was a rich man, who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day.20 And at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, full of sores,21 who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man’s table; moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.
22 The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried;23 and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes, and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus in his bosom.24 And he called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy upon me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am in anguish in this flame.’
25 But Abraham said, ‘Son, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner evil things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish.26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.’27 And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father’s house,28 for I have five brothers, so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment.’
29 But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.’30 And he said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if some one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’31 He said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced if some one should rise from the dead.'”

MEDITATION 

JEREMIAH THE PROPHET call upon the people who desire to be nourished, to be fearless in times of drought to place their trust in the Lord rather than in fallible men. Unlike us, the Lord do not judge man by their outward appearance, because it can be very deceptive, whereas the content of mans heart, mind and soul evidences whether he or she is charitable, virtuous, deceitful and or corrupt!

THE GOSPEL READING: Our Lord chronicle the story of a well to do lavish rich man who couldn’t care less about the needs of Lazarus, a poor man with an infectious skin disease, whom he passed on a daily basis. This story illustrate that our lack of being virtuous and charitable toward the needy, shall have devastating consequences if we look the other way! On another level this parable is an illustration of the day of judgment, when God shall replay to us a cinematic version of the story of our lives which will either damn us for all eternity or save us albeit through a process of painful purification! 

It is patently clear that our failure to be charitable, caring, loving and actively concerned about the needs of the poor, sick and downcast are devastatingly consequential! St James tells us that “Faith without works is dead”(Jm 2:17) which imply that if we scoff and could not give a tinkers damn about the needs of the; injured, hungry, incarcerated, aged, lonely and so forth, then our destiny will not be the abode of Abraham. You see, God will give to every man according to our way of living and doing! If we are taken aback, not convinced that sincere love and charity—attending, touching and proverbially like a dog gently licking the sores of the sick are necessary virtues that can positively contribute to our salvation— then hell is our destiny!

LET US PRAY: Psalms 1:1-4 1:1,6
1 Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;2 but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.
3 He is like a tree planted by streams of water, that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.4 The wicked are not so, but are like chaff which the wind drives away.
 for the LORD knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.

Commentary. Henry R SYLVESTER Note: The daily scripture readings are taken from the Roman Missal which the Catholic Church use in the daily Celebration of the Holy Eucharist throughout the world.Some weekly readings may differ because of the celebration of local feast days.