Giovanni Guaita
YouTube
Hieromonk John (Guaita) on the Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus
14:03
The post shares a sermon by Hieromonk John (Guaita) delivered on 8 November 2026 on the parable of the rich man and Lazarus from Luke 16:19-31. The sermon reads the Gospel passage and divides it into three sections. The first contrasts the rich man, clothed in purple and fine linen and feasting daily, with Lazarus, a named beggar covered in sores who lies at the gate longing for crumbs while dogs lick his wounds.
The second section describes their deaths: angels carry Lazarus to Abraham's side, while the rich man is buried and suffers in Hades. Abraham explains the reversal of fortunes and a fixed chasm that prevents crossing, which the speaker identifies as the chasm of the rich man's lifelong indifference to Lazarus. The third section shows the rich man asking Abraham to send Lazarus to warn his five brothers, but Abraham replies that if they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets they will not be convinced even by a resurrection, an allusion to Christ's own rising.
The speaker applies the parable to the Church: the rich man is condemned not for wealth but for indifference, and Lazarus appears at our doorstep in the homeless and needy we ignore. The five brothers represent those still alive who can still change; Luke does not tell us what they did, but we see ourselves in them and it is not too late for us.
The post provides the sermon text in Russian, Italian, French, English, and Spanish, along with a video link on Boosty and the daily Scripture reading from Azbyka.
Key moments
- The rich man was dressed in purple and fine linen and feasted every day, while Lazarus lay at his gate covered with sores, longing for crumbs, and dogs licked his sores.
- Lazarus has a name and therefore a face, a personality, and a story, but the rich man has no name at all.
- When they die, the angels carry Lazarus to Abraham's side, but the rich man is only said to have been buried, likely with a lavish funeral.
- In Hades the rich man sees Abraham and Lazarus and asks for water, but Abraham replies that a great chasm has been fixed so that no one can cross from either side.
- The chasm is the rich man's own indifference, he did not see Lazarus during his life, and now that indifference makes it impossible to cross.
- The rich man then asks Abraham to send Lazarus to warn his five brothers, but Abraham says they have Moses and the Prophets and will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.
- The parable is addressed to us in the Church: the rich man is condemned not for his wealth but for his indifference, and Lazarus is at our doorstep in the homeless and the needy we ignore.
- The five brothers are still alive and can still change; Luke does not tell us what they did, but we see ourselves in them and it is not too late for us.