The Abyss Which God Cannot Cross

One day, a man went to fetch water from the well so he could store water before winter. On his way home, he saw his neighbor lying in bed. His neighbor was sick and was unable to fetch water for storage. So he went to his house and offered to fill his water jar.

He went on and off the well so he could fill his sick neighbor’s jar.

When he finished filling the neighbor’s jar, the man went off to start filling his. Unfortunately, winter has started and the water in the well has turned into ice. He was so frustrated and mad as looked on his water jar. There was nothing for him to drink for the whole winter.

The jar was nothing but an abyss.

When the sick neighbor got well, he noticed the man shivering from his window. He went off to his house in the middle of winter tempest and food out that the man was not able to store water for himself because he spent his time helping him before winter.

The neighbor then invited him to his house where they can live together for the winter season and share the water that the man stored for him. The man and the neighbor survived the winter.

LESSON: The abyss on the jar of the man was not an abyss at all. In fact, while he missed out to store water for himself, he gained a treasure of friendship. The act of compassion has earned him not an abyss in his jar but a deeper ground of friendship and security.

In our Gospel this Sunday, here is a particular phrase that seemingly made no sense at first glance. It is the line “between us and you a great chasm is established to prevent anyone from crossing who might wish to go from our side to yours or from your side to ours.” (Luke 16:26)

If we ask the right questions around these scene, we could ask the question Why could Abraham not cross the chasm or at least permit it? In the actual judgment scene of every human person, the role Abraham played in this story is a foretelling of the role which will be played by God himself. He will be the ultimate judge. He will have mercy on the poor for the poor people are close to his heart. But one things will be left unclear. Why could God not cross the abyss? What is the abyss on the first place?

God who is omnipresent and all powerful has set the boundaries. The abyss which God cannot cross is the endless space for human freedom which was wasted when we do not use the freedoms given to us to help the needy. Wasted freedoms, unused opportunities, untaken paths for charity, unmoved hearts in the face of misery of others, all these become voids…or chasms.

Therefore, the chasm which God cannot cross is the chasm of human greed and indecision for charity. The same chasm separates us from God and our brothers and sisters in need.

But why can’t God cross it if he is all powerful and omnipresent?

God cannot cross the abyss because it is a place that has rejected God. It is called hell. The voice of God can no longer enter it. Love can no longer enter hell.

While we are still here in this life, let us devote our lives to search where there is misery in our common home and commit ourselves to pursue opportunities for charity and generosity. If we are still eating 3 times a day, it only means God has put us in the position of freedom and power to make a change: to help the needy and to close the gap between ourselves and God.

The poor people encounter the abyss while still alive. They encounter it in the form of empty ears, empty hearts, false empathy, empty promises. The unsympathetic rich people encounter it after the present life. Poverty exists because of indifference. Wealth is a responsibility for those who possess it.