One of the readings for the Feast of St. Michael and All Angels last month was Luke 16:19-31. That's not the reading from the lectionary, but it's an appropriate text because after Lazarus died, he "was carried by the angels to Abraham's side."
This reading reminded me of the song "Dives and Lazarus" (drawn from this text), which I wrote about here. After writing that, I kept thinking about the Biblical text, and I realized that while the song provides a fitting name for the rich man, it's significant that he's not named in the text.
In John 10, Jesus says that the Good Shepherd "calls his own sheep by name" and that "I know my own and my own know me," and in Matthew 10, He says, "So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven." Because of his faith, Lazarus' name is known; because of his lack of faith, the rich man's name isn't.
