Blessed are they who hope/trust in the Lord. We once again find ourselves staring at one of those Gospel stories that can be misinterpreted in a manner that exalts the poor and suffering while trashing those with wealth. The parable of Lazarus and the rich man is a very popular one, and for a good reason. No one enjoys a story or a movie in which the underdog never gets his/her revenge. And nothing makes a sports tournament as memorable as an underdog team upsetting a top seeded team. The parable of Lazarus and the rich man fits perfectly in this scenario.
The parable of Lazarus and the rich man is among the many teachings in the Gospel according to Luke that illustrate the universality of the kingdom/salvation which Jesus inaugurated. Though slightly biased towards those who were hitherto considered unworthy of salvation (the poor and sick, women, aliens), the evangelist Luke preaches a salvation that is accessible to all. Lazarus and the rich man could not have been more different. They lived their lives on earth as was dictated by their different fortunes – the rich man enjoying all the best things that wealth could buy while Lazarus languished in poverty. However, after their earthly lives, the two experienced a reversal of fortunes. The rich man found himself in torment while Lazarus got comforted at the bosom of Abraham.
Even though no reason is given us for the rich man's torment in the abode of the dead vis-à-vis Lazarus' comfort at Abraham's side, we always hypothesize that the rich man is punished because he had a good time while on earth, and that Lazarus is now enjoying the things he was not fortunate enough to have in life. Abraham's response can even be seen to be supporting such a conclusion ( my child, remember that you received what was good in life while Lazarus received the bad, but now he is comforted here). The rich man just lived his life. He might not even have noticed Lazarus eating scraps that fell from his table. And this might have been his undoing.
The rich man was so much buried in his wealth and good life that he failed to notice the human being Lazarus who needed his help. He was blinded by his wealth so much so that he failed to listen to Moses reminding him of the greatest commandment . Wealth became his strength, and his stomach became his God (cf. Philippians 3:19b). He found himself tormented because once separated from his wealth, he had nothing to lean on. He was in agony because separated from his wealth, he had become a barren bush in the desert. He was being tormented, not because of his wealth, but because he did not trust in God.