The Persistent Widow
Lk 18: 1 – 8
29th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Introduction
Today’s reading is a parable
about a widow who got her demands for justice from a judge because of her
persistence. This parable teaches us how we should pray. Like the widow, we
should be persistent and never lose hope.
The Gospel
Then
Jesus told them a parable about their need to pray always and not to lose
heart. 2 He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who
neither feared God nor had respect for people. 3 In that city
there was a widow who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Grant me justice against
my opponent.’ 4 For a while he refused; but later he said to
himself, ‘Though I have no fear of God and no respect for anyone, 5 yet
because this widow keeps bothering me, I will grant her justice, so that she
may not wear me out by continually coming.’” 6 And the Lord
said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. 7 And will not God
grant justice to his chosen ones who cry to him day and night? Will he delay
long in helping them? 8 I tell you, he will quickly grant
justice to them. And yet, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on
earth?”
Reflection
In
today’s reading, Jesus narrates a parable that serves as a template for prayer.
We all pray and we all have the need to pray. Very often, our prayers are in
the form of a petition where we ask the Lord to help and grant us something we
need. In today’s parable, we see a widow begging a judge to grant her the
justice she demands against her opponents.
It
is interesting that the main character of this parable is a widow. Widows, in
Israel were considered to be some of the weakest members of society. First,
they were women. In a patriarchal society such as Israel, women did not have
equal status with men. Second, she was a widow. The absence of her husband made
her vulnerable and poor. She could not have someone to defend herself; she also
could not earn a living as women were left in the confines of the home.
In
the parable, the case she brings to the judge somehow tells us that she had
opponents who probably trampled on her basic rights; and so here, we see her
addressing this issue to a judge. Her status as a widow immediately makes one
imagine how difficult it would have been for her to get the justice she sought
as she was an insignificant member of society who probably was poor and
defenseless.
But
behind her apparent weakness and vulnerability, the widow in the story showed
some strength of character. This strength manifested itself in her persistence and
temerity to face a judge who apparently was not too keen in dispensing swift
justice to her appeal. Her persistence
must have been such that the judge in the parable began to weigh in on her
persistence.
The
judge in the parable, on the other hand, was portrayed by Jesus as one who “ had no
fear of God or had respect for people.” He must have been a stern and
incorruptible judge, as he feared no one – including God. Apparently, he had
already made up his mind regarding the widow’s case, as he had already refused
to grant her request. But as Jesus points out, the widow’s perseverance and
persistence changed all that. The incorruptible and immovable judge began to
reconsider his decision. And as he began to muse over the widow’s persistence,
he thought it best to change his mind and give in to her request. Even an
incorruptible judge, Jesus says, could turn into a corrupt one because of the
persistence of one single poor widow.
This
simple parable tells us something about prayer.
First,
Jesus points out that we must persevere and be persistent in prayer. We should
not stop asking the Lord for what we ask for. We should not feel discouraged
when we feel that our prayers are not immediately answered or granted.
Persistence and perseverance mean that we do not cease praying.
Second,
we must believe in the power of prayer. It is persistence that eventually
changed the mind of the judge and made him relent. It will also be persistence
in prayer that will eventually change the mind of God. Persistent prayer has
the power to change the mind of God. Could we even imagine that we can change
God’s mind? But this parable tells us so. When we beg the Lord unceasingly, he
eventually grants the things we ask for, even if at first, he might have
decided not to grant our request. Prayer has the power to change God’s mind – and
we should remember that.
Third,
at the end of the parable Jesus tells us: “And will not God grant justice to
his chosen ones who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long in helping
them? “ By saying this, Jesus wants to assure us, that God listens; that he
hears our cry and will not delay in helping us. God listens to us and hears the
cry of our hearts. We should have that calm confidence that whenever we pray,
God always listens.
Prayer
gives us this wonderful and immediate link to God. Whenever we pray, God
listens. God listens to everyone; he chooses to listen not only to those who are
good; he also listens to the bad and the evil; he listens to those who believe in
him and perhaps even to those who doubt him. In whatever state we are in,
prayer opens up a door to God’s heart. There is no prayer that is left unheard;
no prayer that doesn’t touch the heart of God who listens to his children and
wishes only what is best for them.
Prayer
Dear
Lord, I do pray. But I am not persistent. I am not persistent enough perhaps
because I do not feel that my prayers are immediately answered. I tend to give
up immediately and want a quick response from you. Grant me dear Lord always the
confidence to believe that you listen to me. Grant me the strength never to
give up on asking you, knowing that you always listen to every prayer uttered by
those who call on you. Amen.
“Rejoice always, pray
without ceasing, give thanks in all
circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” – 1
Thessalonians 5: 16 - 18
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