Together

Charlotte Collins Reed
Christ Church Episcopal
September 25, 2022

21 Proper C 

          The parish that I served in Springfield, Ohio runs a substantial food pantry on the 4th Wednesday of each month.  Because there is no room for the line inside the building, the clients line up in the parking lot starting several hours before the pantry opens.  In the summer, parishioners set out lemonade and ice water for the clients along with goodies of various kinds.  In the winter, coffee and hot chocolate are available for the clients as they wait.  Parishioners and clergy work the line, chatting with the clients, offering lemonade or water, and praying with the clients if requested.  Over the years, relationships have formed as the church works to meet a need in the community. 

One afternoon, a man passed out while in line and the emergency squad was called.  At the end of the afternoon, there was one car left in the parking lot and we figured the car must belong to the man who left in the ambulance.  The windows were down and we had no way to secure the car, so we called a police officer with whom we had a relationship.  Officer Tom came, got the license plate number, ran a check, got the name of the owner, and left to see if he could find the owner at the hospital.  He found the owner, got the keys, came back and secured the car, took the keys back, and told the owner to give him a call if he needed a ride when he got out of the hospital.  Such is the kingdom of God!

          In our gospel reading this morning, we hear about the first century version of a food pantry.  In the first century, the custom was for the poor and hungry to go to the gate of the wealthy and wait to be brought leftovers.* That is what Lazarus is doing this morning.  He is lying at the gate, waiting for the rich man, or someone in the household, to see him and bring him something to eat.  This was as reasonable of an expectation then as lining up at a food pantry is now.  The problem is that the rich man does not seem to have gotten the food pantry memo and never sees Lazarus or notices Lazarus’s hunger.  Only the dog seems to care about Lazarus, providing comfort and relief by licking Lazarus’s sores. 

          Finally Lazarus dies, presumably still at the rich man’s gate, and is taken away by the angels to be with Abraham.  In his death, Lazarus gets the comfort he never received in his life.  The rich man dies, lands in Hades, where much to his surprise, he finds himself tormented.  While he does see Lazarus now, he sees Lazarus only as someone available to meet his needs. But even if Lazarus wanted to, and we are not told whether he does or not, tending to the rich man is impossible because of the deep chasm between them.  The rich man is flat out of luck.  But he is not completely without concern for others, as he begs Abraham to send Lazarus to his brothers so they do not find themselves in the same predicament.  Abraham refuses, since the brothers have Moses and the prophets and if they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, they won’t be convinced by someone rising from the dead. 

          What are we to make of this?  Is the message that once we die there is a great role reversal and those who have abundance in this life will suffer in the next, and those who have nothing in this life will gain in the next?  That seems a bit simplistic.  Is the message that if we don’t listen to what Moses and the prophets say about how we are to care for the poor we won’t be able to hear that message from Jesus either?  Quite possibly.  Or is the message that of I Timothy to those who are rich where we hear “Do good, be rich in good works, generous and ready to share, thus storing up the treasure of a good foundation for the future?”  I think that is closer.  But why?

          Today we kick off our “Better Together” theme for the fall.  Among the many things we have learned over the past two and a half years, we have learned that we are better together.  We missed each other during the time we could not be together.  As we began to regather, we missed those who could not yet be with us for a variety of reasons.  We had a joyous Jubilee celebration back in May.  We have a great pancake brunch ahead of us this morning.  We have another event planned for October.  We gather for worship each Sunday with energy, beautiful music and people of all ages gathered at the altar many Sundays.  When we pool our resources, whether time, talent, or treasure, or simply our presence, we are better together.  Together, we can do more and are better than anything we can do alone.

          But Jesus reminds us this morning to have an inclusive and encompassing understanding of what “together” means.  “Better together” is not just about those of us who gather in this building to worship, pray, learn, and enjoy each other’s company.  Jesus reminds us that “together” includes people very different from ourselves.  Together includes all who gather in this building, from boy and girl scouts, to AA and Al-Anon, to Music from the Western Reserve, Job Search, and the Hudson Garden Club.  Together includes all those we serve through Habitat for Humanity, the Domestic Violence Shelter, the Akron and Hudson Food Pantries, the International Institute of Akron, and on and on.  

          Amos cautions against those who revel in fine things and do not grieve the ruin of Joseph.  Scripture is clear over and over again that all of humanity is connected, that when one person suffers we all suffer and when one rejoices we all rejoice, and that we are to care for those in any need or trouble.  At Christ Church, we are most certainly “Better Together.”  But today Jesus reminds us that we are best when we believe and live like there are no boundaries around what we mean by “together.”

                                                                                      Amen.

 

*www.workingpreacher.org  Commentary on Luke 16:19-31 for September 25, 2022