Penance Prayer Perseverance

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today invite us to be open to the promptings of the Spirit to pray about our desires and seek openness to surrender to the will of God calling us into communities of Love.

Seeking Reconciliation

In the reading from the Book of Genesis, Abraham intercedes for Sodom.

* [18:20] The immorality of the cities was already hinted at in 13:13, when Lot made his choice to live there. The “outcry” comes from the victims of the injustice and violence rampant in the city, which will shortly be illustrated in the treatment of the visitors. The outcry of the Hebrews under the harsh treatment of Pharaoh (Ex 3:7) came up to God who reacts in anger at mistreatment of the poor (cf. Ex 22:21–23; Is 5:7). Sodom and Gomorrah became types of sinful cities in biblical literature. Is 1:9–10; 3:9 sees their sin as lack of social justice, Ez 16:46–51, as disregard for the poor, and Jer 23:14, as general immorality. In the Genesis story, the sin is violation of the sacred duty of hospitality by the threatened rape of Lot’s guests. (Genesis, CHAPTER 18, n.d.)

Psalm 138 is a prayer of thanksgiving and praise.

* [Psalm 138] A thanksgiving to God, who came to the rescue of the psalmist. Divine rescue was not the result of the psalmist’s virtues but of God’s loving fidelity (Ps 138:1–3). The act is not a private transaction but a public act that stirs the surrounding nations to praise God’s greatness and care for the people (Ps 138:4–6). The psalmist, having experienced salvation, trusts that God will always be there in moments of danger (Ps 138:7–8). (Psalms, PSALM 138, n.d.)

The reading from the Letter to the Colossians declares the sovereign tole of Christ.

* [2:14] The elaborate metaphor here about how God canceled the legal claims against us through Christ’s cross depicts not Christ being nailed to the cross by men but the bond…with its legal claims being nailed to the cross by God. (Colossians, CHAPTER 2, n.d.)

The Gospel of Luke shares the Lord’s Prayer and a metaphor about perseverance in prayer.

* [11:13] The holy Spirit: this is a Lucan editorial alteration of a traditional saying of Jesus (see Mt 7:11). Luke presents the gift of the holy Spirit as the response of the Father to the prayer of the Christian disciple. (Luke, CHAPTER 11, n.d.)

Molly Mattingly comments that remembering Jesus’ words within the context of teaching us how to pray helps bring them into focus. In Ignatian spirituality, we know God speaks to us through our deepest desires. Naming our desires before God is an honest prayer. God wants us to ask, seek, and knock about those desires! Honesty like that is the foundation of good discernment, a collaboration with God, a participation in the abundant life God wants to give us. “Even when you were dead,” writes Paul, “[Christ] brought you to life along with him.” God draws us close through our desires. Abraham “drew nearer” to God to pray centuries before Jesus taught his disciples.

So who is this God to whom Jesus teaches us to pray? A loving parent, a generous friend, a just king, and a compassionate teacher who is with us amid our struggles (Jesus himself). This God is not a trickster, a miser, or cruel. If we are skeptical that God could be that good to us, Jesus holds up a mirror to help us out. If we know how to be loving parents, generous friends, fair judges, and compassionate, encouraging teachers – and most of us have a pretty good idea of how to do those things, even if we don’t always do them perfectly – how much more does God know how to love us? Then Jesus teaches us to ask for what draws us closer to God: for forgiveness, for what we need, for the coming of the Kingdom. If we seek the coming of the Kingdom, we can begin to see it and participate in it. If we knock on the door of abundant life, it opens. Indeed, we may find we were holding it closed to begin with, and it opens easily once we let go of the handle to knock. (Creighton U. Daily Reflection, n.d.)

Don Schwager quotes “The privilege and responsibility of calling God Father”, by Cyril of Alexandria (376-444 AD).

"For the Savior said, 'When you pray, say, 'Our Father.' And another of the holy Evangelists adds, 'who art in heaven' (Matthew 6:9)... He gives his own glory to us. He raises slaves to the dignity of freedom. He crowns the human condition with such honor as surpasses the power of nature. He brings to pass what was spoken of old by the voice of the psalmist: 'I said, you are gods, and all of you children of the Most High' (Psalm 82:6). He rescues us from the measure of slavery, giving us by his grace what we did not possess by nature, and permits us to call God 'Father,' as being admitted to the rank of sons. We received this, together with all our other privileges, from him. One of these privileges is the dignity of freedom, a gift peculiarly befitting those who have been called to be sons. He commands us, therefore, to take boldness and say in our prayers, 'Our Father.'"(excerpt from COMMENTARY ON LUKE, HOMILY 71) (Schwager, n.d.)

The Word Among Us Meditation on Luke 11:1-13 comments that boldness didn’t come naturally to the disciples—and it doesn’t come naturally to us. So Jesus gives all of us an insider’s view of the kind of Father we have. He is more merciful and generous than the best human father (Luke 6:36; 11:13). He is attentive to our needs and always ready to hear and answer our prayers (12:30; 11:10). He will not give us a scorpion when we ask for an egg (11:12). He is rich in kindness and forgiveness (23:34). How awesome that he welcomes us as his children!

Jesus wants to give you the courage to pray, “Father.” So at Mass today, pray the Lord’s Prayer with gratitude and awe that God is your loving Father.

“Father! Thank you for making me your child.” (Meditation on Luke 11:1-13, n.d.)

Friar Jude Winkler comments on the chutzpah of the prayer conversation of Abraham with God in Genesis. The author of Colossians shares how God responds to our transgressions calling us to rise with Christ in Baptism. Luke notes Jesus' prayer for discernment eleven times in his Gospel. Friar Jude connects our persistence in prayer to communicating with chutzpah our desire to accept the Will of God.

Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, notes that this year’s Daily Meditations theme is “Nothing Stands Alone,” a truth revealed in God as Trinity and throughout all of creation. This week we explore how listening with depth, respect, and even reverence is key to building and maintaining loving relationships. In this homily, Father Richard speaks of Jesus’ desire for us to remain connected.

Everybody seems to be trying to prove that they are right. We have almost a collective incapacity to admit failure, to ever admit that we are wrong, which makes us liars most of the time. Jesus is calling forth a very different kind of human being.

Jesus says people who live the vulnerable life of connection and relationship will bear much fruit. These are the people we trust, like, and admire. And yet so many of us are afraid to be the very thing that we admire the most. How foolish human beings are! But again, Jesus has told us the way: he is the vine. We are the branches. None of us can be or need to be correct, but we can always be connected. (Rohr, 2022)

We pray and explore our relationship with God through which the Spirit encourages us to knock and receive our family in the Body of Christ.

References

Colossians, CHAPTER 2. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved July 24, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/colossians/2?12 

Creighton U. Daily Reflection. (n.d.). Online Ministries. Retrieved July 24, 2022, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/072422.html 

Genesis, CHAPTER 18. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved July 24, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/genesis/18?20 

Luke, CHAPTER 11. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved July 24, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/luke/11?1 

Meditation on Luke 11:1-13. (n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved July 24, 2022, from https://wau.org/meditations/2022/07/24/447868/ 

Psalms, PSALM 138. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved July 24, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/138?1 

Rohr, R. (2022, July 24). Remain in Relationship — Center for Action and Contemplation. Daily Meditations Archive: 2022. Retrieved July 24, 2022, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/remain-in-relationship-2022-07-24/ 

Schwager, D. (n.d.). Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture ... Retrieved July 24, 2022, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2022&date=jul24 

Seeking the Good

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today encourage us to trust Providence as we seek the best lives for ourselves and others.

Door Opened

The reading from the Book of Esther is Esther’s Prayer.

The Greek version of the book dates from ca. 116 to 48 B.C. (see note on F:11). In the present translation, the Greek additions are indicated by the letters A through F. The regular chapter numbers apply to the Hebrew text.1

 

Psalm 138 offers Thanksgiving and Praise to God.

* [Psalm 138] A thanksgiving to God, who came to the rescue of the psalmist. Divine rescue was not the result of the psalmist’s virtues but of God’s loving fidelity (Ps 138:1–3). The act is not a private transaction but a public act that stirs the surrounding nations to praise God’s greatness and care for the people (Ps 138:4–6). The psalmist, having experienced salvation, trusts that God will always be there in moments of danger (Ps 138:7–8).2

 

In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus teaches about Asking, Searching, Knocking, and The Golden Rule.

* [7:9–10] There is a resemblance between a stone and a round loaf of bread and between a serpent and the scaleless fish called barbut. * [7:12] See Lk 6:31. This saying, known since the eighteenth century as the “Golden Rule,” is found in both positive and negative form in pagan and Jewish sources, both earlier and later than the gospel. This is the law and the prophets is an addition probably due to the evangelist.3

 

Maureen McCann Waldron comments that in speaking of this gospel Pope Francis noted, “That’s an almost incredible guarantee that our prayers will always be heard.”  But, Francis continued, “He doesn’t tell us ‘Ask and you’ll get whatever you ask for.’ He instructs us to seek but he doesn’t tell us exactly what we’ll find. He tells us to knock but he doesn’t say what will be waiting for us on the other side of the opened door. But he promises us that our prayers will be heard and God will respond.”

I can knock on the door, I can seek and ask for the help to love more generously.  If I can pray with that every day in Lent and make that my Lent commitment, that will deepen my experience of Lent and my own relationship with Jesus. Loving God, I want to do everything myself, but like Esther, I realize I have no help but you. Please give me the strength and courage to be more loving and open in all of my relationships this Lent.  Give me a listening heart to hear you speak to me when I knock.4

 

Don Schwager quotes “The gift of being good,” by Augustine, Bishop of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.

"He who has given us the gift of being gives us also the gift of being good. He gives to those who have turned back to Him. He even sought them out before they were converted and when they were far from his ways!" (Commentary on Psalm 103, 2)5

 

The Word Among Us Meditation on Matthew 7:7-12 comments that maybe we set out to find peace or fulfillment on our own when we might do better to wait for God to guide us. Later we realize that if we had taken time out to ask, seek, and knock, we would have found something far deeper, something that doesn’t ebb and flow with our circumstances.

What do you need the Lord to help you with? Go ahead and ask him for it. Tell him that you’re willing to wait for his wisdom and his timing. As you do, you’ll find him eager to fulfill your needs and to further the plan he has for you in just the way he has intended. He really does want to bless you! “Lord, open my eyes to your wisdom and generosity. Thank you for being not just a good provider but a Father who wants the very best for me and for those I love.”6

 

Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, writes about the role of prophets and priests in the process of collective transformation. Prophets remove our illusions and help us see reality clearly, which for those of us in settled institutions often feels like a loss of security. Priests lead us on a path of returning to meaning and transcendence. Religious scholar Diana Butler Bass writes of Christianity’s tension between the pastoral and the prophetic when it comes to upholding the institutional status quo.

The history of Christianity can be told as a story of the tension between order and prophecy. Jesus came as a prophet, one who challenged and transformed Judaism. A charismatic community grew up around his teachings and eventually formed into the church. The church organized, and then became an institution. The institution provided guidance and meaning for many millions. And then it became guarded, protective of the power and wealth it garnered, the influence it wielded, and [the] salvation it alone provided. Many of the people in the church did not seem to notice, but some did. What the church taught seemed at odds with their experience of life or God. . . . They questioned the way things were done. They experimented with new ideas and spiritual practices. . . . They bent the rules and often broke them. The established church typically ignored them, sometimes tolerated them, often branded them heretics, tried to control them, and occasionally killed them. When enough people joined the ranks of the discontented, the institutional church had to pay attention. In the process, and sometimes unintentionally, the church opened itself up for genuine change and renewal.7

 

As we journey with the Spirit, our needs are addressed as God opens doors for us to invite us to the fullness of life.

 

References

1	(n.d.). Esther, THE BOOK OF ESTHER | USCCB. Retrieved March 10, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/esther/0
2	(n.d.). Psalms, PSALM 138 | USCCB. Retrieved March 10, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/138
3	(n.d.). Matthew, CHAPTER 7 | USCCB. Retrieved March 10, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/matthew/7
4	(n.d.). Creighton U Daily Reflections - Online Ministries. Retrieved March 10, 2022, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/031022.html
5	(n.d.). Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved March 10, 2022, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2022&date=mar10
6	(n.d.). Meditation: Matthew 7:7-12 - The Word Among Us. Retrieved March 10, 2022, from https://wau.org/meditations/2021
7	(n.d.). Daily Meditations — Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved March 10, 2022, from https://cac.org/change-is-never-comfortable-2022-03-10/

 

Addressing Our Need

 

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today challenge us to ponder the way in which God answers prayer and invites us to break free of the constraints of conventional wisdom.

Ponder our needs

 

The reading from the Book of Esther is Esther’s Prayer for deliverance.

 

Esther’s character matures over the course of the narrative. As a girl she is recruited for the king’s harem because of her physical beauty. But at a key moment in the book (chap. 4), she rises to the challenge to risk her life for the salvation of her people. At that point, she transforms her status as queen from a position of personal privilege to one of power and public responsibility.1

Psalm 138 offers thanksgiving and praise to God.

 

* [Psalm 138] A thanksgiving to God, who came to the rescue of the psalmist. Divine rescue was not the result of the psalmist’s virtues but of God’s loving fidelity (Ps 138:1–3). The act is not a private transaction but a public act that stirs the surrounding nations to praise God’s greatness and care for the people (Ps 138:4–6). The psalmist, having experienced salvation, trusts that God will always be there in moments of danger (Ps 138:7–8).2

In the Sermon on the Mount from the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus urges us to ask, search, and knock as He reminds us of The Golden Rule.

 * [7:9–10] There is a resemblance between a stone and a round loaf of bread and between a serpent and the scaleless fish called barbut. * [7:12] See Lk 6:31. This saying, known since the eighteenth century as the “Golden Rule,” is found in both positive and negative form in pagan and Jewish sources, both earlier and later than the gospel. This is the law and the prophets is an addition probably due to the evangelist.3

Joan Blandin Howard (from 2004)  shares that what I dare to ask of God depends upon who/what I experience God to be. Is God the healing force who I turn to in times of illness, begging for physical relief for me or someone I love? Is God the source of joy I turn to in gratitude when I am feeling so richly blessed? Is God the pillar of strength in times of struggle, pain and vulnerability? Is God the career counselor in times of unemployment? Is it my experience that God says “no” as often as “yes” – or more so? Is God the puppeteer who can make things happen, if God wants? “Who do you say I am?” asks Jesus. There is a note of longing and maybe a hint of incredulity. You have no idea who I am or maybe, How can you not know who I am!

 

In the scriptures we read that Jesus most certainly did cure many  - deaf to hear, lame to walk, blind to see. Jesus most certainly did feed the hungry and brought comfort to many.  But most assuredly, Jesus did not cure all the ill, nor did Jesus feed all the hungry, nor did Jesus alter the social, psychological, or physical situations of all in need.  What Jesus did do was invite all to “come to me.”  He offered himself as a source of companionship, solace to those in need.  He offered himself as a model to those who would follow him. He offered himself as faithful companion for the journey. The mystery of God is just that – a mystery. The irony in the person of Jesus is that in calling and encouraging me to ask, seek, & knock, God also asks, seeks and knocks on my heart.4

Don Schwager quotes “The gift of being good,” by Augustine, Bishop of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.

 

"He who has given us the gift of being gives us also the gift of being good. He gives to those who have turned back to Him. He even sought them out before they were converted and when they were far from his ways!" (Commentary on Psalm 103, 2)5

The Word Among Us Meditation on Matthew 7:7-12 comments that just as every parent wants to instill confidence in their child, God wants to instill confidence in us as we pray. Not just self-confidence, of course, but “God-confidence” as well—the confidence that comes from faith in our heavenly Father. As we pray, we see that the One we’re asking is good. We see that he is trustworthy. We see that we can rely on him.

 

Jesus tells us that to develop this faith, we need to “ask,” “seek,” and “knock” in prayer (Matthew 7:7). The original language implies a continual asking, seeking, knocking. In other words, we’re to be persistent. Whatever happens, don’t give up. As we ask and keep asking, we open our hearts to a deeper experience of God’s goodness because we begin to see how much he cares for our every need. As we seek and keep seeking, we learn that he is trustworthy because we discover that he won’t abandon us. As we knock and keep knocking, we begin to understand his justice and generosity because we find him giving us not necessarily what we want but exactly what we need. In all of this, our relationship with our heavenly Father grows deeper and deeper.6

Friar Jude Winkler explains that there are various versions of the Book of Esther that were never consolidated into a critical edition. More gracious than our parents, God knows our needs in depth. Friar Jude reminds us that Christians are called to treat others with exaggerated respect, more than they think they deserve.

 

Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, shares three further “ways of knowing” that can allow us to access greater wisdom.

 

Images: Imaginal knowing is the only way that the unconscious can move into consciousness. It happens through fantasy, through dreams, through symbols, where all is “thrown together” (sym-ballein in Greek). It happens through pictures, events, and well-told stories… Aesthetic: In some ways, aesthetic knowing is the most attractive, but I think it’s often the least converting. Art in all its forms so engages us and satisfies us that many go no deeper. Still, aesthetic knowing is a central and profound way of knowing. I’ve seen art lead to true changes of consciousness… Epiphany: The last way of knowing, which I’d think religion would prefer and encourage, is epiphanic knowing. An epiphany is a parting of the veil, a life-changing manifestation of meaning, the eureka of awareness of self and the Other. Scholar Christopher Pramuk describes how Jesus engaged his listeners and followers in ways far beyond their minds. He writes: When Jesus of Nazareth prefaced his enigmatic sayings with the words, “let those with eyes to see, see, let those with ears to hear, hear,” scholars tell us he was speaking as a teacher of Jewish wisdom, appealing not just to the head but to the whole person of his listener: heart, body, mind, senses, imagination. Like a lure darting and flashing before a fish, Jesus’s words dance and play before the imagination, breaking open our habitual assumptions about “the way things are.”. . . To be “born again” is to break free of the stultifying womb of conventional wisdom. . . . [1]7

The mystery of God calls us to faith that trusts that our needs to be more intimately connected to the Divine are always the root of the response we receive from our prayer.

 

References

1	(n.d.). Esther, THE BOOK OF ESTHER | USCCB. Retrieved February 25, 2021, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/esther/0
2	(n.d.). Psalms, PSALM 138 | USCCB. Retrieved February 25, 2021, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/138
3	(n.d.). Matthew, CHAPTER 7 | USCCB. Retrieved February 25, 2021, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/matthew/7
4	(n.d.). Creighton U Daily Reflections - Online .... Retrieved February 25, 2021, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/022521.html
5	(n.d.). Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved February 25, 2021, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2021&date=feb25
6	(n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved February 25, 2021, from https://wau.org/meditations/2021/02/25/180984/
7	(n.d.). Moving beyond Conventional Wisdom — Center for Action and .... Retrieved February 25, 2021, from https://cac.org/moving-beyond-conventional-wisdom-2021-02-25/