The message today is simple enough: we must persevere in our prayer; otherwise, our faith will likely wane. In the battle against Amalek, so long as Moses kept his arms up in prayer, Joshua and his men were winning, but when Moses let up in prayer, Amalek got the upper hand. What kept Moses going was the help of Aaron and Hur and in the end, Israel prevailed. This wasn’t magic. They knew their help was from the Lord who made heaven and earth.
Paul cautions his listeners to remain faithful to what they have learned and believed, so how are we to do that? Well, that doesn’t happen from watching sports, working overtime, surfing the Internet, or being a coach potato. Remaining faithful comes from praying and Paul provides an excellent suggestion for anyone who finds prayer difficult: reflect on the sacred scriptures, for the Bible provides us with God’s tools for becoming and remaining an upright and moral person.
Often we find ourselves struggling with issues that demand a choice. What values do we use for making moral choices in our lives? When making a choice, are we seeking to be spiritually correct or politically correct?
Being spiritually correct demands that we listen to God through the different ways God communicates with us. One, as I just mentioned, is sacred scripture, which is capable of giving us wisdom for salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. Another would be the teachings of the Church handed on to us by her bishops and its catechism.
I presume you belong to the Church because you believe in what the Church stands for. Historically, we believe Jesus founded this Church and for 2000 years it has endeavored to keep his message of salvation visible for all to see. Granted, like any human institution, the Church has had its ups and downs and its share of good leaders and bad. But through the power of prayer and the tireless energy of countless missionaries and evangelists, the Church has stood the test of time, proclaiming the Good News and upholding the moral values conveyed to us in the Sacred Scriptures.
Being politically correct sometimes means hiding one’s convictions lest you offend others. Consequently the values we hold publicly as a society do not always reflect what we believe privately. Seeking to be politically correct, the Supreme Court has ruled that public prayer is not allowed in our schools yet prayer is what has drawn us together as a nation, especially in challenging times.
On our currency, we proclaim our country’s motto, “In God we trust.” We adopted this motto because our nation was founded on Christian principles. Today, do we trust that God will care for us or is our confidence lacking? Thrusting in God implies that we believe what help we need comes from the Lord.
But if the Lord is to help us, we must do our share as well. Like Moses and the widow in the Gospel, we must persist in prayer. We must pray without growing weary, as though our lives depend on it for indeed our eternal lives do.
St. John Henry Newman, our newest saint, noted, “Going often to prayer is an act of faith…Trying to be attentive in your prayers is an act of faith…These are acts of faith, because they are acts that you would accomplish if you saw and understood that God is present, though your eyes and ears neither see nor hear him.”
In this parable, Jesus has good reason for using a widow as the star. In biblical times, widows were quite powerless. To support themselves, they usually had to beg. Like a widow, how often do we feel powerless or intimidated before God? Or overwhelmed? Or inclined to think that God doesn’t care?
The fact is God very much cares about you. Even though God knows us intimately, we must continually articulate our needs along with gratitude. Jesus assures us that justice will be done for those who call upon God day and night. That demands persistence on our part, something we aren’t likely to do if we are inclined to be politically correct, forgetting that this nation owes its origins and success to the many immigrants who came yearning to be spiritually correct.
I suspect most of us feel deep down that we ought to do more in our prayer life so we promise to do more. Yet, with so much else demanding our attention, finding time to pray can be challenging. Consequently, we could be denying ourselves the real experience of intimately getting to know Jesus and experience his love. Heed Paul’s advice and find quiet time daily to read the Bible and ponder its message. Meditate on a sentence that catches your eye.
In the cemetery of St. John’s Abbey in Minnesota there stands a simple solid massive majestic wooden cross. What is so unusual about this cross is that two granite pillars hold up its arms. They are like Aaron and Hur whom we met in the first reading holding up Moses’ arms as he prayed. As one monk noted, the visual power of this cross is a reminder that we Christians need to uphold each other in faith. Or else, we might despair or lose heart.
To me, the pillars of this cemetery cross also suggest that through prayer and the sacraments, God sustains us through our trials and tribulations, giving us the peace of mind that being politically correct could never provide.