To strive for eternity in time. For those who believe in eternity, time is a treasure, because in time we determine our situation in the world to come. The parable of the rich man and the poor man, Lazarus, is not emphasizing the difference between the rich and the poor. Rather, it highlights the manner in which God will judge our attitude towards riches and poverty.

• The rich man who in this world dedicated his time to feasting and having a good time, while not showing any concern for the poor, will experience a sad change in his future life. This is what happened to the rich man of the Gospel.
• The poor man who in this life accepts his condition with serenity, without complaints or hatred, will be rewarded in eternity with true Richness, God himself. This is what happened to the poor man, Lazarus.

The former, unfortunately for him, lives as if eternity did not exist, whereas the latter is a poor man of Yahweh, who places his trust in God. The rich man is not condemned for being rich, but for being unmerciful, for not having pity for the man who lies at his gate. Lazarus is not rewarded for his poverty, but for his patience and forgiveness, like Job.The rich man puts his riches at the service of his sensuality and intemperance, while Lazarus places his poverty at the service of hope.

In the parable, Jesus Christ teaches us that in eternity – and perhaps even in the time of one’s earthly life – God will justly reward each person according to his deeds. This teaching should also enlighten our present life, so that we too may speak about living the present in light of eternity. In other words, the thought of a future life should spur us to be just and express solidarity in our present life. The opposite happens to the vulgar rich men of Samaria who, unconcerned with the future and oblivious to the fate of their country, live "lying on ivory beds and sprawling on their divans, they dine on lambs from the flock, and stall-fattened veal; they drink wine by the bowlfull, and lard themselves with the finest oils" (First Reading).

To strive for eternity in time. For those who believe in eternity, time is a treasure, because in time we determine our situation in the world to come. The parable of the rich man and the poor man, Lazarus, is not emphasizing the difference between the rich and the poor. Rather, it highlights the manner in which God will judge our attitude towards riches and poverty.

• The rich man who in this world dedicated his time to feasting and having a good time, while not showing any concern for the poor, will experience a sad change in his future life. This is what happened to the rich man of the Gospel.
• The poor man who in this life accepts his condition with serenity, without complaints or hatred, will be rewarded in eternity with true Richness, God himself. This is what happened to the poor man, Lazarus.

The former, unfortunately for him, lives as if eternity did not exist, whereas the latter is a poor man of Yahweh, who places his trust in God. The rich man is not condemned for being rich, but for being unmerciful, for not having pity for the man who lies at his gate. Lazarus is not rewarded for his poverty, but for his patience and forgiveness, like Job.The rich man puts his riches at the service of his sensuality and intemperance, while Lazarus places his poverty at the service of hope.

In the parable, Jesus Christ teaches us that in eternity – and perhaps even in the time of one’s earthly life – God will justly reward each person according to his deeds. This teaching should also enlighten our present life, so that we too may speak about living the present in light of eternity. In other words, the thought of a future life should spur us to be just and express solidarity in our present life. The opposite happens to the vulgar rich men of Samaria who, unconcerned with the future and oblivious to the fate of their country, live "lying on ivory beds and sprawling on their divans, they dine on lambs from the flock, and stall-fattened veal; they drink wine by the bowlfull, and lard themselves with the finest oils" (First Reading).

Faith – time – eternity. Paul urges Timothy, a man of God, a believer and a true Christian, to "avoid all that." Avoid all what? Avarice, greed, the hunger for money. He must avoid them because "we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it" (Cf 1 Tm 6:7). He then urges Timothy to "fight the fight of faith" in this life, so as to win eternal life where Jesus Christ rules, the King of kings and the Lord of lords.

Faith is like the home in which the Christian already lives eternity in time and time in eternity. Because he lives eternity in time, he "must aim to be upright and religious, filled with faith and love, perseverance and gentleness" (Second Reading). Because he lives time in eternity, he truly seeks to honor and give glory to God.

Amos, in turn, teaches us that there is such a thing as a wrong faith, a false confidence in worship and religion, the symbols of which are Mount Garizin and Mount Sion, as if worship on its own were enough to attain salvation. Religious faith alone will never automatically lead to salvation, when it is used to cover up all despicable forms of injustice and disorder in one’s life. In essence, eternity is assured only to those who live a life of faith, which acts by means of charity.this world and present ourselves before God’s judgment.

Riches, the object of service. In the catechism we read, "The goods of creation are destined to all of the human genre." This statement is absolute, and is not subjected to changes in historical eras or mentality, to technical progress, or economic globalization. On the other hand, throughout history there have always been differences in the amounts of goods and resources available to different people; there have always been and there will always be rich and poor people. Finally, these differences are often due to great forms of injustice that have plagued all the corners of our planet.

In the face of these three factors, as Christians we have a great mission to carry our among our brothers and sisters.

• The first task, undoubtedly, is to give the proper importance to wealth. It is not a god, which we must worship at the expense of the poor and needy. It is a good, but it is not the only or the greatest good. It is a good that is in our hands, given to each one of us by God, but not entirely ours. In other words, we cannot do whatever we want with it, because its destiny is universal.
• This leads us to the second task: "richness has been given to us so that we may serve and not prevail over others," this means that those who lack riches are less obliged than those who posses them. Man’s tendency to prevail over others is ancestral and extremely powerful. It is for this reason that wealth, among many other things, may be dangerous, because it is like a Siren that has the allure of dominion and power.

As Christians, we should be the first to live the poverty preached in the Gospel. We shall be an example for all and proclaim the truth that money either serves man or it serves no purpose at all, at least in the eyes of faith, in the eyes of God.

Greed, a sin against eternity. The greedy person only has eyes for the present, which he imagines to be never-ending. He would like to put eternity in time, but he realizes that it is impossible. And so, he reacts by ignoring it, holding on even more tightly to the hollow rock of the present. It may be said that without a doubt greediness is a passion that is harbored in every human heart. Hoarding riches, desiring more, the hunger for goods and means, and living in greater comfort are desires not unknown to mortal men, whether Christian or non-Christian, believers or atheists, priests, religious or lay. Not that this is a sin in itself, but when this tendency becomes an absorbing passion and one’s life is devoted to hoarding, owning and living comfortably, then one has become enslaved by the sin of greed.

Indeed, by taking on a greedy attitude, man sins against poverty because instead of placing his heart in God, his supreme Good, man has subjected it to the insatiable and ephemeral god of money. He sins against poverty because he does not use his riches to serve others but to satisfy his passions. He sins against the plan of God, Who gave all the goods in this world a universal destiny.

God has left it up to the men of each era and generation to achieve such a destiny. Shouldn’t many of us Christians truly convert to evangelical poverty?Shouldn’t we free ourselves of many bonds and monetary chains, which take away from us the freedom to live the authenticity of the Gospel? Will I be able to convince myself that the poverty of the heart is the heart of poverty, and that it is the crystalline spring of peace and fraternity? Poor in heart and in life, like Mother Theresa of Calcutta, so as to be a blessing of God for people!