October 20, 2019
29th Sunday Ordinary C
Jesus tells us up front what will be illustrated in his parable, i.e. “necessity to pray always without becoming weary.†It is by contrast. The judge is corrupt, a non-Jew, appointed by Rome or King Herod, who has no fear of God nor respect for humans. He takes bribes to settle cases. The widow is poor and defenseless. She presses her case demanding a just settlement. After a long time, the judge finally relents because of her persistence and fearing she may do him harm. Jesus makes the point: “Pay attention. Will not God then secure the rights of his chosen ones who call out to him day and night? Will he be slow to answer them?â€
Jesus poses the question that touches upon the deeper meaning of the lesson: “But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?†When Jesus returns in glory as the Son of Man, he will judge our faithfulness.
The battle of prayer and of faith is not an easy one. In our first reading Aaron and Hur support the arms of Moses as he appeals to God for protection and victory against the Amalekites. St. Paul writes to Timothy to “remain faithful to what you have learned and believed.†It is not easy to trust that God hears and responds to our prayers when they seem to be unanswered. It is challenging to have faith in the love and providence of God whose thoughts are not always our thoughts, whose ways are not always our ways. We do not always preface our prayers like Jesus: “Thy will be done.†In the end, it is difficult to surrender ourselves to God!
Will Jesus find faith when he returns? We can be hopeful. Here we are at Mass confessing our sins, breaking open the Word, offering our petitions and gifts, celebrating the mystery of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus and receiving Holy Communion. We sing with the Psalmist: “Our help is from the Lord who made heaven and earth.â€
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28th Sunday Ordinary C
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30th Sunday Ordinary C
