Gospel: Luke 6: 20-26
Today's Gospel portion highlights what is clear throughout the teaching of Jesus: that the poor have preference in the sight of God. This message is also evident throughout the Old Testament, and the fact that it constantly needs repeating in every age is because the great heresy of every age is prosperity Gospel, the idea that God prefers the rich. Jesus does heal rich people, but his primary mission is to the poor of Israel and to bring healing, liberation, and nourishment to them in body and soul.
The great heresy has found a home in our times too in the denigration of the poor, immigrants, migrants, and refugees. It is found in the preference given to affluent communities in church resources and token support our outright abandonment of poor communities in ministerial priorities. City after city are rife with abandoned churches in urban areas, entire peoples neglected by churches chasing after the suburban dollar.
Today's Gospel portion will find concrete application later in the Gospel in the parable of the rich man and Lazarus. The neglect of the poor will have consequences for the unnamed rich man, while the poor man with no status on earth has a name - Lazarus, which means "God has helped." God helps the poor; God prefers the poor. We cannot claim to be godly people and do otherwise.
No comments:
Post a Comment