Then Jesus told them a parable about their need to pray always and not to lose heart. He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor had respect for people. In that city there was a widow who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Grant me justice against my opponent.’ For a while he refused; but later he said to himself, ‘Though I have no fear of God and no respect for anyone, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will grant her justice, so that she may not wear me out by continually coming.’”
And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. And will not God grant justice to his chosen ones who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long in helping them? I tell you, he will quickly grant justice to them. And yet, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”
New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989, by the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. USCCB approved http://www.usccb.org/bible/approved-translations
In Luke’s gospel, Jesus preaches several parables about persistence in prayer.The one we hear today, the parable of the unjust judge, is definitely the strangest. With images that border on the irreverent, he compares our prayers to a widow’s tireless petitioning of a corrupt judge. Some scholars say that Luke’s gospel records vestiges of Jesus’ sense of humor. They think he sometimes used lighthearted images to reveal deep truths or address burning anxieties. This is one of the passages scholars often cite as an example of Jesus’ humor.
In it, Jesus strikes at the heart of a deep anxiety. Why does it take God so long to answer prayer? Why do the innocent suffer, the just encounter misfortune, and the meek endure continuous humiliation? Why does it take God so long to set things right?
Jesus offers no comforting answer. Instead, he gives a plan of action: pray. Pray like a poor widow who has nothing left to lose. Pray like a woman whose sense of justice compels her to fight on. Pray like a person who believes that God is operating in unseen ways to undo the damage sin has done to the world.
Like athletes who grow stronger by pushing themselves harder every day persistent prayer pushes us to deeper faith, especially when God’s answer is delayed. Today Jesus challenges us to ask ourselves: How can we strengthen our faith through persistent prayer? Is there an abandoned dream or a forsaken relationship that we can take up anew, and with persistence like today’s widow, storm heaven with our prayers for its fulfillment?
—Fr. Michael Simone, S.J. is beginning his ministry as instructor in Old Testament Studies at the Boston College School of Theology and Ministry
Lord, you tell us to “pray always and not to lose heart.” Sometimes when our prayers go unanswered and we simply cannot see the dawn of hope, we question the value of prayer. Yet if we persist in prayer, we discover that the ultimate answer to all prayer is relationship with you.
Lord, we trust that prayer transforms us for that which weighs us down becomes the impetus for drawing us closer to you. And in this unity of Spirit we know that at the most elemental level, all will be well. And so we pray the words you spoke from the cross, “Into your hands I commend my Spirit.”
—The Jesuit Prayer Team
On the way to Jerusalem Jesus was going through the region between Samaria and Galilee. As he entered a village, ten lepers approached him. Keeping their distance, they called out, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” When he saw them, he said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were made clean.
Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice. He prostrated himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him. And he was a Samaritan. Then Jesus asked, “Were not ten made clean? But the other nine, where are they? Was none of them found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?” Then he said to him, “Get up and go on your way; your faith has made you well.”
New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989, by the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. USCCB approved http://www.usccb.org/bible/approved-translations
It is significant that the Samaritan returned “glorifying God in a loud voice.” The Samaritan thanked Jesus, but gave his glory to Christ’s Father. Jesus recognizes this as an expression of the very faith that healed the man. The Samaritan’s thanks go to Christ for his healing power, but the glory goes to the loving God who sent Christ to us.
The Samaritan recognized a very important truth: we are utterly dependent on God, who works through everyday channels of grace to provide us everything we need. This realization contains a challenge. God’s gifts come to us everyday in large and small ways; we are rightly grateful for them, but do they strengthen our faith? And when we give God thanks, do we give glory as well? Do we see in God’s gifts a reminder of our dependence and his care for us?
More importantly, as we spread our own gifts and talents into the world, do we do so for God’s glory or our own? Likely we cannot heal leprosy; nonetheless, God has given us all abilities that save and uphold our brothers and sisters. When people thank us for our work, do we remember to give God the glory? Do we encourage them to do the same?
Pope Francis says, “In every age of history, humans try to understand and express themselves better.” The Samaritan alone expressed his faith in words of thanks and glory. In our own age of sophisticated self-promotion, may we find words of thanks and glory to express our own faith, and help our brothers and sisters deepen their trust in God’s providential love.
—Fr. Michael Simone, S.J. is beginning his ministry as instructor in Old Testament Studies at the Boston College School of Theology and Ministry
In the comfort of your love, I pour out to you, my Savior, the memories that haunt me, the fears that stifle me, the sickness that prevails upon me, and the frustration of all the pain that weaves about within me. Lord, help me to see your peace in my turmoil,
your compassion in my sorrow,your forgiveness in my weakness, and your love in my need. Touch me, O Lord, with your healing and strength. To you, dear God, be all thanks and glory!
—Prayer to Christ the Healer
The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” The Lord replied, “If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.“ Who among you would say to your slave who has just come in from plowing or tending sheep in the field, ‘Come here at once and take your place at the table’?
Would you not rather say to him, ‘Prepare supper for me, put on your apron and serve me while I eat and drink; later you may eat and drink’? Do you thank the slave for doing what was commanded? So you also, when you have done all that you were ordered to do, say, ‘We are worthless slaves; we have done only what we ought to have done!’”
New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989, by the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. USCCB approved http://www.usccb.org/bible/approved-translations
This week we see Jesus making his final journey, to Jerusalem, where he will receive his cross. The ten chapters Luke dedicates to this journey make up over one third of his gospel. This part of Jesus’ life grabs Luke’s imagination; it contains some of the evangelist’s most vivid writing, and includes the parables of the Good Samaritan, the Lost Sheep, and the Prodigal Son. It also contains a number of short sayings only very loosely tied together, like the ones we have this Sunday.
In these passages, Luke gives the impression that Jesus and his disciples are having a conversation that meanders from one topic to another while they travel along the road. Each turn reveals a different side to what Pope Francis calls “the proclamation of salvation,” the bedrock gospel principle that God is working hard to save every human being.
Can an incorrigible sinner be saved? The first part of this week’s gospel comes right after Jesus’ command to forgive a sinner every time he or she repents. The disciples’ plea for faith here is plea to believe in such a person’s conversion. Every one of us likely knows people whose habits, addictions, personality quirks, or life choices cause pain to others. They might ask our forgiveness again and again, but they make little effort to change. Jesus tells us if we had even the tiniest bit of real faith, we would know God was working hard for their salvation. The conversion of such a sinner will be every bit as dramatic as a tree pulling itself up and walking from a forested hillside to the open ocean. Even when no evidence tells us this is possible, Jesus reveals that such salvation is God’s plan.
What of our own salvation? The conversation turns to the difference between obligations and gifts. If we forget that we are saved as well, then our relationship with God becomes one of mutual obligations, like those between masters and slaves. Instead of feeling relief and gratitude at our deliverance, our baptismal call to serve will be only a dispiriting list of obligations to fulfill. God’s grace, meanwhile, will seem nothing more than a grudging subsistence paid by a stingy boss.
Luke follows this passage with the healing of the ten lepers. Only one returned to thank Christ for his deliverance. He was the one who realized God saved him not out of obligation, but out of love. The gratitude the healed leper expressed was his own love, given in return. Jesus’ words this week challenge us to ask ourselves: Do we believe in God’s ability to save? Do we remember God saves us out of love?
—Fr. Michael Simone, S.J. is beginning his ministry as instructor in Old Testament Studies at the Boston College School of Theology and Ministry
Dear Lord, you have no hands but our hands to do your work today; You have no feet but our feet to lead us in your way. You have no tongue but our tongues to tell all you lived and died; You have no help but our help to bring us to your side.
—Jack Campbell, S.J.
“There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. And at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who longed to satisfy his hunger with what fell from the rich man’s table; even the dogs would come and lick his sores. The poor man died and was carried away by the angels to be with Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was being tormented, he looked up and saw Abraham far away with Lazarus by his side. He called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am in agony in these flames.’
But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that during your lifetime you received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner evil things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in agony. Besides all this, between you and us a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who might want to pass from here to you cannot do so, and no one can cross from there to us.’ He said, ‘Then, father, I beg you to send him to my father’s house—for I have five brothers—that he may warn them, so that they will not also come into this place of torment.’
Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; they should listen to them.’ He said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’”
New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989, by the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. USCCB approved http://www.usccb.org/bible/approved-translations
Usually Jesus gives his parables a very short introduction. For example, one of his longest parables, the Good Samaritan, gets to the point very quickly: A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. Today’s parable, however, has a lengthy wind-up pitch. Jesus wants to make sure we see the rich man and Lazarus very clearly in our mind’s eye.
He is trying to tug at our hearts; he wants us to feel compassion for Lazarus, even as he shows us clearly how the rich man (traditionally nicknamed “Divēs”) lived his life. And when Jesus points out that Lazarus spent his days begging at Divēs’ front door, I think he is hoping we feel a little shocked at the close proximity of two people we would normally view so differently.
It is clear that Jesus – at least Luke’s Jesus – believes the afterlife to be a place a reversal (Woe to you who eat your fill now! You will be hungry!! Luke 6:25). Lazarus, who lived in friendless torment, is now surrounded by love. Divēs, who on earth had everything he wanted, now lives in hell. This is why Jesus, especially in Luke’s gospel, emphasizes simplicity and repentance. If we can break our self-indulgent habits in this life, then we will be welcome at a magnificent feast in the next.
If Divēs committed any sin, it was that of indifference to the tormented man lying at his door. I remember in a previous job walking past a homeless man every day. The problems he had seemed far beyond anything I could help with, and so every day I walked right by him. Then one Lent I decided I would at least introduce myself and we started to chat a little every morning after that. I never gave him any money, but my chat with him became one of the bright points in my morning. My relationship with him helped me understand the problem of homelessness in my city, and helped me find ways I could actually help him and others.
As we read this week’s gospel, then, let us take up Jesus’ twofold challenge, first to live lives of humble simplicity, and second to overcome the temptation to indifference.
–Fr. Michael Simone, S.J. is beginning his ministry as instructor in Old Testament Studies at the Boston College School of Theology and Ministry
Lord, give us the grace to embrace the truth that God is in every person’s life. Even if that life has been a disaster – destroyed by vices, drugs, or anything else. Help us to remember that although a person’s life is a land full of thorns and weeds, there is always a space in which the good seed can grow. Above all increase our trust in this promise: While we can forget about you, your Spirit never, ever forgets about us.
–America, adapted from an interview with Pope Francis, September 30, 2013
Then Jesus said to the disciples, “There was a rich man who had a manager, and charges were brought to him that this man was squandering his property. So he summoned him and said to him, ‘What is this that I hear about you? Give me an accounting of your management, because you cannot be my manager any longer.’ Then the manager said to himself, ‘What will I do, now that my master is taking the position away from me? I am not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg. I have decided what to do so that, when I am dismissed as manager, people may welcome me into their homes.’
So, summoning his master’s debtors one by one, he asked the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ He answered, ‘A hundred jugs of olive oil.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it fifty.’ Then he asked another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ He replied, ‘A hundred containers of wheat.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill and make it eighty.’
And his master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly; for the children of this age are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light. And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of dishonest wealth so that when it is gone, they may welcome you into the eternal homes.“
Whoever is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much; and whoever is dishonest in a very little is dishonest also in much. If then you have not been faithful with the dishonest wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? And if you have not been faithful with what belongs to another, who will give you what is your own? No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.
New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989, by the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. USCCB approved http://www.usccb.org/bible/approved-translations
In the ancient world, few people owned all the tools necessary to accomplish their daily tasks. Instead, they rented tools from wealthier members of the community. People paid a share of whatever the tool helped them produce as rent. When a manager ran an estate for an absent landlord, as in today’s gospel reading, that manager received a portion of the rent as a commission for arranging the loan. Jesus called the manager in today’s gospel prudent because he freely sacrificed his short-term enrichment (even in the face of unemployment!) for the long-term security he hoped would come from his grateful borrowers.
In teaching us about the right use of possessions, Jesus is also teaching us about forgiveness. None of us created our own prosperity. All of us are dependent on gifts from God and the hard work of others. This is what the dishonest steward realized. His commissions, although legal, had nothing to do with his own labor; they were entirely dependent on his master’s wealth and his clients’ hard work. If he should forego such “dishonest wealth” now, he knew he would find treasure in the future. Had he clung to the pittance owed to him, he would have never found the security he desired.
Clinging to anything is dangerous business; when we cling, we rehearse a habit that can affect all parts of our life. People who are stingy with their wealth are often also stingy with forgiveness and generosity. We cannot serve both greed and God. We must choose to trust one or the other. Can we learn to trust God and forgive our debtors, so that in return God may trust us to transform the world through love?
—Fr. Michael Simone, S.J. is beginning his ministry as instructor in Old Testament Studies at the Boston College School of Theology and Ministry
Prayer for Managers
I want what you want, O Lord. By asking you for guidance, with complete faith and confidence that you are helping me, nothing that I am called upon to do becomes ‘too much’ or ‘too bothersome.’ Nor is there any room for worry. I will find it easy to ask you each day to be a partner in my work…to help me get things done…to weigh my actions and decisions in the light of ‘ is this right?’ ‘is this just?’ ‘is this doing your will?’
With your help I will make decisions better and faster, confident that you will not lead me astray. I will live my life each day knowing that it is your will I accomplish. Amen.
—National Conference of Christian Employers and Managers
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Ignatian spirituality reminds us that God pursues us in the routines of our home and work life, and in the hopes and fears of life's challenges. The founder of the Jesuits, Saint Ignatius of Loyola, created the Spiritual Exercises to deepen our relationship with Christ and to move our contemplation into service. May this prayer site anchor your day and strengthen your resolve to remember what truly matters.
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