RevivaLent 2018 - #16

Revive your Sensitivity to the Suffering

Thursday, 2nd week in Lent: 1st Mar, 2018

Jer 17: 5-10; Lk 16: 19-31

At times I used to wonder what mistake did that rich man do? And in what way he is responsible for Lazarus' misery? In no way is he responsible, but he is responsible for his attitude towards Lazarus. That he did not care to even see the miseries of the person right at the foot of his table, looking for the crumbs - oh, what a gross insensitivity, sheer blindness! And the worst of all, that blindness comes from his blessings, the abundance that he had for himself. The Blessings blinded him. 

Look at the situation in Syria... the world at large seems to be oblivious of the sad fact. There are stray voices that call for a global attention, but nothing seems to be working! The affluent are busy making more money. The powerful are looking out for an opportunity to demonstrate their power over the rest. The crooked are making use of every chance to reach their hidden agenda at all cost. 

The blessings should make us more grateful and more sensitive; unfortunately, it can also blind us to those in need around us - within the family, in the neighbourhood, in our workplaces, in our known circles or outside the immediate circle! We can grow so comfortable and cosy about our life that we may forget to look out, out just beside our doorsteps, out right next to us, out there in the broad day light, people suffering, struggling and stifling themselves to death. 

Let our blessings make us more aware of those in need! Let us revive our sensitivity to the suffering!