Today’s Gospel, Luke 16:19-31, presents us with the stark parable of the rich man and Lazarus. We have the rich man, dressed in purple and fine linen, feasting sumptuously every day. Outside his gate lies Lazarus, a poor man covered with sores, who longs for the scraps that fall from the rich man’s table. Dogs even come to lick his sores. Both men die. Lazarus is carried by angels to the bosom of Abraham, while the rich man finds himself in torment.

This parable is not a simple story about a rich man going to hell and a poor man going to heaven. It’s a profound challenge to our priorities and our responsibilities. The rich man’s sin was not his wealth itself, but his indifference. He saw Lazarus every day. He knew his suffering. Yet, he did nothing. Lazarus was not a person to him; he was part of the scenery, a problem he chose to ignore.

How does this apply to us today? We live in a world of unprecedented wealth and connectivity. We are surrounded by information about suffering, both near and far. The modern-day Lazarus is not just a person at our gate. He is the person sleeping on the street corner we drive past, the family struggling with food insecurity in our own community, the victims of natural disasters and war we see on our screens every day.

The parable calls us to see. To move from a state of indifference to one of compassion and action. It’s about recognizing the dignity of every human being, especially those who are suffering, and understanding that their well-being is our responsibility. We are called to be our brother’s and sister’s keeper, not just through prayer, but through tangible acts of charity and justice.

The rich man’s plea for Lazarus to dip his finger in water to cool his tongue, and later to warn his brothers, shows a final, desperate recognition of the reality he ignored in life. But it’s too late. The message from Abraham is clear: “They have Moses and the prophets; let them listen to them.” This means the truth is already available to us. We have the Gospel. We have the teachings of the Church. We have the call to love God and love our neighbor as ourselves. We don’t need a sign from the dead to tell us what we already know.

As Dominicans, our mission is to preach the truth. The truth of this parable is that our salvation is tied to our charity. Let us not be so preoccupied with our own lives that we fail to see the Lazarus at our gate. Let us open our hearts and our hands to those in need, so that when our time comes, we may be found worthy to be carried by the angels to the bosom of Abraham.