Pastor's Spiritual Reflections |
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By Fr. Leo Schneider (10/21/2007)Dear People of Holy Name,
The moral of today’s gospel is if the unjust judge delivers justice to a persistent widow, will not God so much more answer the prayers of those who call out to him. From the logic of this worldly story we are to bolster our faith that yes, God hears and will answer our prayers speedily.
What then do we make of those times when it seems God isn’t answering our prayers? How does the person sitting unjustly in prison feel about God’s presence and his ‘speedy’ answer to his prayers? If we are honest there are times when it seems God’s ears must have a big wax buildup, or that he doesn’t care.
I choose to believe God is always with us and hears our prayers even when there are grave injustices lingering in people’s lives. Not only did Jesus experience the same on the cross, he prepares us by his example for a sharing in that same sense of abandonment, in which we are left to commend our spirit into the hand of God. Sharing in Christ’s passion is painful and can function as the refiner’s fire in our lives. While this cannot be an excuse for letting injustice continue, it may be a reality we need to deal with. Sometimes it takes time for the wisdom of our experience to emerge.
At other times I think we need to recognize that no answer from God is an answer. When a person prays for inner healing and then proceeds to hold everything in, what chance is there of healing? Healing isn’t magic; it is a process of coming to peace with our experience, with the help of those who will hear us. We may have been hurt, but not to trust others and find our healing isn’t taking the risk God is encouraging us to take. At this point our prayer needs to be for the courage and strength to trust the right people in our lives and admit we need to talk.
Sometimes we pray for what isn’t God’s will, but may be our own. This is something many a committed athlete of a more fundamentalist persuasion doesn’t want to hear. They pray that they will win the game, and when they do they claim it as a sign that God is with them. Please! I can see praying that one would use their gifts and talents well and play a good game, but as to winning. God doesn’t care! That’s not his game, that’s ours.
A young person may pray that the person they love will love them as deeply. They may pray hard that it works out, but may be deeply disappointed when it doesn’t. Does that mean God doesn’t love them, or that something is wrong with them? No, it is a painful lesson of the human heart, from which much is gained, such as realizing that our self worth is not dependent on others and that vulnerability, though necessary, is risky. There are many examples we can come up with where we may be praying to make our will God’s will. Then there are also those times we may not be sure and we pray and pray, waiting for the day of God’s justice. It is then we are encouraged to hang in there, not just alone but with the people of God. God will answer us and lead us to his wisdom, though we may not know it at the time. A prayer that may be most helpful at these times is the Prayer for Serenity that follows:
God grant me
In Christ’s peace, Fr. Leo |