THE DANGER OF INDIFFERENCE

Homily for the Twenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C

Fr. Ugochukwu Ugwoke, ISch

Bible Texts: Amos 6:1a, 4-7; 1 Timothy 6:11-16; Luke 16:19-31

A man once told the story of how he was driving late at night and passed by a man stranded at the roadside with a broken-down car. He considered stopping but thought, “Someone else will surely help him.” The next morning, he discovered the stranded man had died from exposure. That story haunted him for years. It taught him that sometimes, indifference can kill just as much as cruelty.

This is the central message of today’s Gospel (Luke 16:19-31). Jesus presents us with the striking contrast between the unnamed rich man, clothed in purple and feasting daily, and Lazarus, a poor beggar covered with sores. Notice carefully - Jesus does not accuse the rich man of actively persecuting Lazarus. His sin was indifference. He saw the poor man at his gate every single day and did nothing. The tragedy of the rich man was not his wealth but his refusal to let compassion cross the threshold of his abundance.

The prophet Amos had already denounced this kind of false security centuries before Christ. He condemned those reclining on ivory couches, drinking wine in bowls, and anointing themselves with oils while the nation of Israel was collapsing. Their sin was not simply comfort but the blindness that comes when luxury makes us deaf to the cries of the suffering. The prophet warns: “They shall now be the first to go into exile.” Prosperity without solidarity leads only to ruin.

St. Paul, in his letter to Timothy (1 Tim 6:11-16), shows us the opposite path: the way of discipleship. Instead of complacency, the Christian is called to “pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, and gentleness.” This is not passive piety. It is active striving. To be a Christian is to fight the good fight of faith, to live in such a way that our wealth, power, or comfort never close our eyes to the needs of others.

When we put these readings together, a clear lesson emerges: the danger of spiritual blindness caused by comfort, and the call to active compassion rooted in faith. The Gospel parable shocks us with a reversal - Lazarus, who had nothing in life, is comforted in the bosom of Abraham, while the rich man, who had everything, finds himself in torment. The great chasm fixed between them in eternity was first dug by the walls of indifference in life.

Abraham’s response is striking: “They have Moses and the prophets; let them listen to them.” In other words, we already have the Scriptures, the teachings, the sacraments. If we ignore them, even the most spectacular miracle will not change us. This is a sober reminder: it is not visions or wonders that save us but daily obedience to the Word of God and acts of love toward the least among us (cf. Matthew 25:31-46).

Dear friend, the lesson is simple but demanding. To ignore the Lazarus at our gate is to risk eternal separation from God. To share what we have - our time, our presence, our resources - with those who suffer is to store up treasures in heaven. As Psalm 146 reminds us, “The Lord upholds the widow and the orphan, but the way of the wicked He brings to ruin.”

So let us ask ourselves today: who is the Lazarus lying at the gate of my life? Is it the neighbor struggling to pay school fees? The colleague weighed down by depression? The stranger I am too busy to notice? Heaven and hell are decided by how we answer that question.