XVII SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
PRAYER: INTIMACY WITH GOD
By our Pastor, Fr. Carmelo Jiménez
Each Sunday I have insisted in the continuity of the readings and this Sunday is no different. I have invited reflection on being chosen, sent, living the Christian life, the commandments, and the acceptance of our neighbor. But the world contradicts every Christian ideal. Who will help me? And the readings from this Sunday remind us of the value of prayer: ask and you shall receive!
The first reading is a living example of petition and intercession. Abraham, in an eloquent dialogue with God, petitions for the life of those from Sodom, the town where his nephew Lot lived. That is why he didn’t tire of doing it and he kept insisting and insisting: “Then Abraham said, ‘Let not my Lord grow impatient if I go on. What if only thirty are found there?’ He replied, ‘I will forbear doing it if I can find but thirty there.’” (Gen 18:30) And he continued his intercession. God is a flawless judge who cannot violate justice destroying the innocent along with the guilty. God does not want the sinner to die, rather that he convert and live. And so he invites us, calls us and gives us the opportunity of conversion. And the end of the reading God is willing to forgive the entire city if only there were ten innocent people found there. Today we continue to need this closeness to God that Abraham had for the same or at least similar reasons that he did.
The second reading is taken from the precious letter of Saint Paul to the Colossians and it tells us: “And even when you were dead in transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, he brought you to life along with him, having forgiven us all our transgressions.” (Col 2:13) In baptism men become the property of the one in whose name they are baptized, in other words God the Father, Jesus Christ and the Spirit. Baptism is a participation and a true communion in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. In the resurrection of Jesus Christ all of humanity is called to the resurrection and the life. This is the central message of the entire New Testament which we need to proclaim tirelessly because it is the surest basis for our hope in eternal life.
“Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, ‘Lord, teach us to pray just as John taught his disciples.’” (Lk 11:1) The reading includes a beautiful catechesis about prayer, putting the Our Father prayer at the center. St. Like offers a catechesis to those who don’t know how to pray, with the goal of teaching them how to do it. I have heard many times: I think God is tired of me, he doesn’t hear me anymore. Then we could ask ourselves: How is our prayer? How often do we pray? Does our prayer actually influence our behavior? Prayer has many aspects and it can be done in many ways but this requires learning. In ancient times there were many schools of prayer, or rather many models of prayer. Even today there are many “schools of prayer.” I put it in quotation marks because we would need to follow the example of Jesus Christ, but there are some who follow models that distance us from what Jesus teaches us.
The Our Father summarizes the ideals for which Jesus lived and died. These are the values that Jesus was passionate about and that inspired his evangelizing ministry and drove him to give his live completely: the Father, holiness, the Kingdom, to do the holy will, nourishment, mercy, strength in the face of evil. And so we call the Our Father the prayer of excellence. And by teaching his disciples, Jesus wants to introduce the intimacy he has with the Father to all disciples including us as well.
Prayer is not a chore reserved for certain times and places. Saint Benedict said: “Ora et labora, labora et ora” – pray and work, work and pray. Prayer is an intimate dialogue with a friend, with the Father and with the Guest of our soul, and so it can be done anytime and anywhere. In the end prayer is always fruitful. In order to live our life well as a Christian we have the help of prayer to be the intimate moment with God. Let us give ourselves time for intimate dialogue with God!