17th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Gospel Reflection

Luke 11:1-13

Apart from the miracles he performed there were many things about Our Lord that would have fascinated those who came to know him well. One of these was the way he spent time in prayer. Jesus was not like many of the religious      officials of this time who limited themselves to public prayers and highly      formalistic rituals. He would be caught out at times apart by himself in the open country, perhaps on the terrace of Peter’s house, or in a garden on the Mount of Olives in silent contemplation or quiet dialogue with the Father. The Gospel mentions one such occasion when some of the disciples were moved to ask him about how to pray. St. Luke gives a shorter version than Matthew of how Our Lord responded. It is Matthew who gives us what we now know as the Lord’s Prayer or the “Our Father.” However, Luke adds a delightful parable Jesus told about a man who persists in rousing his friend from sleep to get the help that he needs. In the Lord’s Prayer Jesus helps us to see that the heart of our prayer ought to move along certain lines. It is not just a prayer we can recite but a lesson about the kind of things we should seek when we pray. The principal of these, though not always the first that comes to our minds, is God Himself—God, who Jesus tells us clearly, is our Father, our most supportive friend. Prayer needs to increasingly become a way of loving God, of uniting ourselves to Him. So it is that we begin by recognising who He is, and how we want Him to be known and revered by others - “Hallowed be thy name.” In praying we ought always to bear in mind that God’s will is the good of all, their and our salvation, their and our sanctification so as to share in His happiness forever – Thy will be done.” Such should always be the “attitude” of our prayer. With this attitude we ask for what we think we or others need – our daily bread (what is needed for this day), forgiveness of our sins and readiness to forgive, strength in the face of temptation or other effects of evil . Bread stands not only for food, but also for whatever sustains us, physically or spiritually. Many great Christians have seen that this bread is also the Eucharist, the bread that is really Christ himself. Our relationship with Christ sustains us. This relationship develops through prayer in the form of conversation and dialogue with Him. Most deeply, it develops through sacramental communion. Our weekly Mass is sustenance through Christ to live out the days of the week that lie ahead. We even come to feel the need to receive Him more often by attending, whenever possible, weekday Mass.

Luke and Matthew both tell us how Jesus urged us to pray with perseverance and trust in God. “Ask and you shall receive. Seek and you shall find. Knock and the door shall be opened to you.” Prayer of petition comes rather easily for anyone with faith. But it also can die quickly enough if we do not immediately see results. There are always reasons why God delays. It is certainly not true that He simply doesn’t listen. Might it be that what we are really asking for is, in God’s sight, a stone – something that will weigh us down rather than lift us up? A father doesn’t give his children worthless stones. On the other hand, it may be that what we are asking for is of great value and needs to be appreciated as such. Then God may expect us to show our desire in a more persevering way, and with a willingness to offer little or bigger sacrifices. In the meantime, as long as we are praying we are exercising our faith in Him and this unites us to Him in a special way, contributing to our sanctification.

As a teenager, St. Josemaria felt he needed to dedicate himself to some significant task in God’s service, yet did not know what it might be. For years he prayed saying “Lord, that I might see”, “Our Lady, that it may come to be.” Praying this way led him to the priesthood and then, at the age of 26 and on a particular day, the answer came with unmistakable clarity – it was Opus Dei. If we, who are so imperfect and prone to sin, nevertheless often know what good we can do for others, “how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”