March 5: Parables / Parábolas

The parables of Jesus are intended to make us think and reflect. In fact, they are intended to make us think in a new way and reflect on Jesus’ way. In Luke 16, 19-31, for example, two people lived side by side: a rich man in his great house and a poor man at the gate of the house. Yet there was a chasm between them – and the distance of such chasms is typically not a matter of feet, yards, or miles. Jesus is talking about a vast gap between good and evil, truth and lies, and beauty and ugliness. Verse 26 of the Gospel says, “Moreover, between us and you a great chasm is established to prevent anyone from crossing….”

Whereas the poor man in the Gospel looked toward the rich man for scraps, the rich man did not look toward the poor man at all, but ignored him. An important Lenten lesson is to not let a chasm develop between us and those who, although physically close to us, live in a very different world from the one we inhabit.

On Ash Wednesday, we heard, “Now is the acceptable time, now is the day of salvation.” There seems to be some urgency about looking for the chasms and gaps we have created or are creating. For example, is there a gap between our hearing the Word of God and actually living it? Is there a gap between our thinking and Jesus’ thinking? Is there a gap between our original Lenten resolutions and how seriously we are actually living this holy season?

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La Cuaresma nos está enseñando que lo que todos grandemente necesitamos son ojos para ver las necesidades de nuestros hermanos y hermanas, oídos para escuchar su estruendoso clamor que reclama justicia, misericordia, y una participación equitativa de los bienes de la tierra – tanto materiales como espirituales. (Lucas 16, 19-31) 

Que el Dios de bondad sea bueno, nos dé un corazón grande y compasivo, y lleve a cabo todo ese bello sueño en nosotros.