29th Sunday of the Year—Cycle C—2016

FIRST READING            Exodus 17:8-13

In those days, Amalek came and waged war against Israel.  Moses, therefore, said to Joshua, “Pick out certain men, and tomorrow go out and engage Amalek in battle.  I will be standing on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand.”  So Joshua did as Moses told him:  he engaged Amalek in battle after Moses had climbed to the top of the hill with Aaron and Hur.  As long as Moses kept his hands raised up, Israel had the better of the fight, but when he let his hands rest, Amalek had the better of the fight.  Moses’ hands, however, grew tired; so they put a rock in place for him to sit on.  Meanwhile Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side and one on the other, so that his hands remained steady till sunset.  And Joshua mowed down Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword.

SECOND READING                  2 Timothy 3:14-4:2

Beloved:  Remain faithful to what you have learned and believed, because you know from whom you learned it, and that from infancy you have known the sacred Scriptures, which are capable of giving you wisdom for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.  All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for refutation, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that one who belongs to God may be competent, equipped for every good work.  I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingly power:  proclaim the word; be persistent whether it is convenient or inconvenient; convince, reprimand, encourage through all patience and teaching.

GOSPEL                Luke 18:1-8

Jesus told his disciples a parable about the necessity for them to pray always without becoming weary.  He said, “There was a judge in a certain town who neither feared God nor respected any human being.  And a widow in that town used to come to him and say, ‘Render a just decision for me against my adversary.’  For a long time the judge was unwilling, but eventually he thought, ‘While it is true that I neither fear God nor respect any human being, because this widow keeps bothering me I shall deliver a just decision for her lest she finally come and strike me.'”  The Lord said, “Pay attention to what the dishonest judge says.  Will not God then secure the rights of his chosen ones who call out to him day and night?  Will he be slow to answer them?  I tell you, he will see to it that justice is done for them speedily.  But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”

My sisters and brothers in Christ Jesus,

The Second Letter to Timothy, from which our second reading comes today, tells us this piece of wisdom:  “You have known the sacred Scriptures, which are capable of giving you wisdom for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.”  Clearly the lesson today is to seek wisdom and to listen attentively to the Lord and others as we seek God’s wisdom.

The first reading is from the Book of Exodus and that wonderful story of Moses holding up his hands in prayer.  As long as his hands are held up, the army of Israel wins in battle.  When Moses tires and lowers his hands, the other armies begin to win.  This is a story that is repeated in the Gospel:  never weary of praying because, in truth, it is only prayer than can change the world.

The Gospel today is from Saint Luke and tells the story of a widow dealing with an unjust judge.  As we hear the details of this judge, we understand why the widow is upset.  The judge does not fear God and does not respect any human being!  There really is no hope for the widow.  We don’t know the details of the widow’s case which she brings before the judge.  She is not asking that the judge favor her, only that he render a just decision.  This widow is relentless!  She just keeps pestering the judge until he says to himself:  I better give a just decision lest she finally come and strike me.

This is almost a comic situation:  a strong and unjust judge who fears a widow who might come and beat him up!  Luke’s Gospel tells us that “Jesus told his disciples a parable about the necessity for them to pray always without becoming weary.”

How often we get weary of praying when God does not answer our prayers the way we want Him to answer them!  How slow we are to recognize that God knows better than we what is truly good for us!  How difficult it is to remain praying for what we think is right when nothing good seems to happen to us and when we sense that God has abandoned us!

God never abandons any of us but instead is always with us, seeking to form us as wonderful and loving human beings who have the strength to do what is right and good.  To form anyone requires that we learn how to persevere, how to keep going in the midst of any difficulties, how to accept that if we persevere and keep trying, eventually we see the hand of God present and his loving presence beside us.

My sisters and brothers, let us not be spoiled children who only want our own desires!  Let us grow into women and men who are strong and seek only what God wants and who are willing to suffer for the love of God and the love of others.

Your brother in the Lord,

Abbot Philip