Sin is something we don’t like to talk about much. It makes us uncomfortable. It makes us squirm. It isn’t socially acceptable. Many people find it easier to talk about other people’s sin deflecting attention from their own sin (which, by the way, is a sin). So, what exactly is sin? The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) teaches us that,
1849 Sin is an offense against reason, truth, and right conscience; it is failure in genuine love for God and neighbor caused by a perverse attachment to certain goods. It wounds the nature of man and injures human solidarity. It has been defined as “an utterance, a deed, or a desire contrary to the eternal law.”
1850 Sin is an offense against God: “Against you, you alone, have I sinned, and done that which is evil in your sight.” Sin sets itself against God's love for us and turns our hearts away from it. Like the first sin, it is disobedience, a revolt against God through the will to become “like gods,” knowing and determining good and evil. Sin is thus “love of oneself even to contempt of God.” In this proud self- exaltation, sin is diametrically opposed to the obedience of Jesus, which achieves our salvation.
The parable in today’s gospel from Luke 16:19-31 (the Rich man and Lazarus) is a stark reminder of the consequences of sin – even sins of omission. To ignore the needs of others has dire significance for anyone who follows Jesus Christ. The rich man had many opportunities to reach out to Lazarus and help him. But he didn’t. He was so self-absorbed and complacent that he never noticed Lazarus starving at his door. Sadly, for the rich man his selfishness landed him in hell while Lazarus was carried by angels to the bosom of Abraham for eternity.
All of us are sinners. Sin is part of the human condition that we inherited from the Fall of Adam and Eve. But we do not need to become prisoners to sin. Jesus Christ through his passion vanquished sin. His sacrifice “becomes the source from which the forgiveness of our sins will pour forth inexhaustibly” (CCC 1851).
In the First letter to Timothy (6:17-19) St. Paul provides a practical guide for those of us living a Christ centered life in a prosperous age: “Tell the rich in the present age not to be proud and not to rely on so uncertain a thing as wealth but rather on God, who richly provides us with all things for our enjoyment. Tell them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous, ready to share, thus accumulating as treasure a good foundation for the future, so as to win the life that is true life.”
God of the poor and the powerless,
you reach out to us,
in every empty hand, in every hungry person.
Teach us to understand sin
not only as doing evil
but also as failing to do good.
Open our eyes to see you,
and our hands to serve you
in everyone we meet.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God for ever and ever.
AMEN
