"Happy the man who hopes in the Lord." The Response to the Psalm today is taken from the first reading, (Jer 17:7) .Through positive and negative statements, the Psalm teaches us that hope in not a passive virtue, but, like faith and love, it is a virtue which demands very positive activities and attitudes on our part. Christian hope expresses itself in avoiding all types of false hope and in following divine wisdom, which teaches us to "delight in the law of the Lord." The Psalm also calls upon us to "meditate on his law day and night." Such an engagement sounds excessive, but let us reflect that apart from keeping the commandments, we would benefit spiritually if, at least sometimes, we reflected on their meaning and importance. In the Gospel story, Dives was, in human terms, a wise man: he had made his fortune and was able to enjoy it. Unfortunately, as a rich man he failed to care for the needs of other people, and so it became difficult for him to get to heaven (Mt 19:23-24; Mk 10:23). But it was not impossible. If he had learned to "delight in the law of the Lord" he would have been able to see Lazarus and do something to help him and thus earn for himself a possible reward.