Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, cycle C

LUKE 11:1- 13
THEY SAY THAT GOD ALWAYS ANSWERS OUR PRAYERS. THE ANSWERS ARE YES, NO, NOT RIGHT NOW, AND YOU'VE GOT TO BE KIDDING.
OUR GOSPEL TODAY INVITES US TO THINK ABOUT PRAYER. WHILE I AM SURE THAT GOD HEARS MY PRAYERS, MY OWN EXPERIENCE, WHICH IS PROBABLY YOURS AS WELL, IS THAT GOD DOESN'T USUALLY SAY YES. AND YET, WE ARE ASSURED BY JESUS THAT WHATEVER WE ASK THE FATHER IN HIS NAME WILL BE GRANTED; AND IF WE KNOCK, IT WILL BE OPENED; MANY PASSAGES IN THE GOSPELS AND IN FACT THROUGHOUT SCRIPTURE, INSIST THAT GOD WILL ANSWER OUR PRAYERS.
BUT I THINK IT DEPENDS ON THE PRAYER. FIRST OF ALL, WE CAN'T EXPECT GOD TO CHANGE NATURAL LAW. IF HE CHANGED THE LAWS OF NATURE OR SUSPENDED THEM, EVERY TIME ONE OF US ASKS HIM SOMETHING, THE WORLD WOULD BE PRETTY CHAOTIC. WE'D HAVE RAIN ON THE FARMS AND SUNNY DAYS IN THE CITIES, ALL AT THE SAME TIME. SKIERS WOULD HAVE SNOW AND GOLFERS WOULD HAVE SPRING ALL AT THE SAME TIME. AND THESE EXAMPLES ARE SORT OF SILLY, BUT WE COULD SAY THE SAME THING ABOUT LIFE AND DEATH, ABOUT BEING SPARED FROM HURRICANES AND OTHER NATURAL DISASTERS. GOD WON'T USUALLY SUSPEND HIS OWN LAWS.
SECOND, GOD WON'T TAKE AWAY OUR NATURE AS FREE BEINGS. IF WE ARE FREE TO MAKE CHOICES, THEN THE FREEDOM IS ONLY REAL IF THE CONSEQUENCES OF OUR CHOICES ARE REAL. IF I CHOOSE TO EXERCISE AND EAT RIGHT, I CAN EXPECT MY BODY TO BECOME HEALTHIER. MY CHOICE HAS CONSEQUENCES. BUT IF I CHOOSE TO SMOKE, I CAN EXPECT A HIGHER LIKELIHOOD OF CANCER, HEART DISEASE, EMPHYSEMA, ULCERS, AND BAD COMPLEXION. MY CHOICE HAS CONSEQUENCES. AND IF I PRAY THAT MY CHOICES NOT HAVE THE CONSEQUENCES THAT FOLLOW, THEN I AM PRAYING THAT GOD WILL TAKE AWAY MY FREEDOM, AND HE WON'T. IT'S ONE OF THE GIFTS THAT MAKE US IN HIS IMAGE AND LIKENESS.
SO IF GOD WON'T USUALLY SUSPEND NATURAL LAW, AND WON'T USUALLY SPARE US FROM THE CONSEQUENCES OF OUR FREEDOM, WHAT GOOD IS PRAYER? ARE WE JUST WASTING OUR BREATH? ARE WE JUST GOING THROUGH THE MOTIONS? IN HIGH SCHOOL I WENT TO A CATHOLIC SCHOOL, AND BEFORE PLAYING A FOOTBALL GAME WE USED TO GET IN THE HUDDLE AND PRAY THAT WE WOULD WIN, AND THAT NO ONE WOULD GET HURT. GOD HAD ABOUT A 50% RESPONSE RATE TO THAT PRAYER, IF I REMEMBER CORRECTLY, EVEN WHEN WE WERE PLAYING AGAINST A PUBLIC SCHOOL TEAM.
THE APOSTLES HAVE WITNESSED THAT JESUS SPENDS A LOT OF TIME PRAYING. IT WASN'T UNUSUAL FOR DISCIPLES OF A RABBI TO ASK THEIR TEACHER TO GIVE THEM A PRAYER TO SAY, AND THE DISCIPLES ASK JESUS THE SAME THING – TEACH US TO PRAY. IF WE WERE READING A MORE ACCURATE TRANSLATION OF THIS GOSPEL, WE WOULD HEAR JESUS SAYING, “PRAY IN THIS WAY,” BEFORE HE GIVES THEM THE LORD'S PRAYER. WE SHOULD REMEMBER THAT THE LORD'S PRAYER IS A MODEL OF PRAYER, NOT PRIMARILY MEANT BY JESUS TO BE OUR PRAYER.
AND WE CAN LEARN MORE ABOUT PRAYER BY LOOKING AT THE LORD'S PRAYER. THE FIRST SET OF PETITIONS HAVE TO DO WITH GIVING GOD HIS RIGHTFUL PLACE IN OUR HEARTS AND IN OUR WORLD. BEING HUMAN, OUR FIRST IMPULSE IS TO ASK FOR SOMETHING FOR OURSELVES. BUT JESUS SAYS, PRAY THAT GOD IS PROPERLY HONORED, THAT THE WORLD GO ALONG WITH HIS WILL, AND THAT ALL PEOPLE WILL SUBMIT TO HIS RULE. THAT'S WHAT IS REALLY IMPORTANT. AND HAVING PRAYED FOR THIS, IF WE PRAY SINCERELY, WE PUT OURSELVES IN THE RIGHT FRAME OF MIND AND THE RIGHT RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD. THE NEXT SET OF PETITIONS ARE FOR OURSELVES. NOTICE THAT WE DON'T SAY “I” OR “ME”. WE SAY “GIVE US WHAT WE NEED TODAY FOR OUR BODY AND SPIRIT”; WE PRAY THAT WE WILL BE FORGIVEN – FORGIVEN AS WE FORGIVE OTHERS, BUT FORGIVEN FOR ALL THOSE TIMES THAT WE HAVE GONE AGAINST GOD'S WILL. WE PRAY THAT WE WILL BE KEPT FROM FURTHER SIN, AND THAT THINGS THAT WILL TRULY HARM US WILL BE KEPT FROM US. REMEMBER THAT JESUS TOLD US NOT TO FEAR WHAT CAN KILL THE BODY, BUT WHAT DESTROYS THE SOUL. THAT'S WHAT WE WANT TO AVOID.
YOU'LL NOTICE THAT THE LORD'S PRAYER IS FIRST OF ALL, ABOUT GOD AND GOD'S WILL; AND ABOUT US LIVING IN CONFORMITY TO GOD'S WILL, WHICH IN THE END IS THE ONLY WAY THAT WE CAN EVER HOPE TO BE HAPPY, AND THE ONLY WAY WE CAN HOPE TO BE HAPPY FOREVER. SO THAT'S THE MODEL PRAYER.
JESUS TELLS A PARABLE ABOUT PRAYER. A MAN NEEDS SOME BREAD FOR HIS GUEST, AND GOES NEXT DOOR TO BORROW IT. BUT IT'S NIGHT, AND THE HOUSEHOLDER DOESN'T WANT TO GET UP AND OPEN THE DOOR. BUT IF THE MAN KEEPS BANGING ON THE DOOR, HE'LL EVENTUALLY GET HIS WAY, EVEN IF THE HOUSEHOLDER DOESN'T WANT TO GIVE HIM THE BREAD, BECAUSE HE'LL NEVER GET TO SLEEP OTHERWISE. I DON'T THINK THAT IS PRIMARILY ABOUT BANGING ON GOD'S DOOR TO GET OUR WAY. I DO THINK THAT IT TELLS US SOMETHING ABOUT REAL PRAYER.
GOD TAKES OUR PRAYER SERIOUSLY IF WE DO. GOD DOESN'T PAY MUCH ATTENTION IF WE DON'T. ANYONE WHO IS A PARENT KNOWS THAT SOMETIMES YOUR CHILD ASKS FOR THINGS HE DOESN'T REALLY CARE WHETHER HE GETS OR NOT. YOU CAN TELL. AND YOU DON'T STIR YOURSELF MUCH TO ANSWER THOSE REQUESTS.
HOW DOES GOD TELL WHETHER YOU ARE SERIOUS? IT'S NOT HARD. IF YOU PRAY FOR AN END TO ABORTION BUT VOTE FOR CANDIDATES WHO ARE PRO-ABORTION, GOD KNOWS YOU AREN'T SERIOUS ABOUT THAT PRAYER. IF YOU PRAY THAT YOUR CHILD WILL BE GUIDED TO MAKE GOOD CHOICES BUT YOU MAKE NO EFFORT TO EDUCATE HIM IN WISDOM BY YOUR EXAMPLE AND YOUR WORDS, YOU AREN'T SERIOUS. IF YOU PRAY FOR AN END TO POVERTY BUT GIVE NOTHING OF YOUR GOODS TO END POVERTY, WELL, YOU GET THE POINT. THE MAN WHO WANTED BREAD DIDN'T SIT IN HIS HOUSE AND HOPE THAT HE WOULD GET BREAD; HE WENT NEXT DOOR AND BANGED ON THE DOOR UNTIL HE GOT IT. THE HOUSEHOLDER KNEW HE WAS SERIOUS. GOD DOES NOT FORGIVE US OUR SINS, UNLESS HE SEES THAT WE FORGIVE, REALLY FORGIVE OTHERS. ITS LIKE THE STORY OF THE MAN WHO WAS FORGIVEN A DEBT HE COULD NOT PAY, BUT WENT OUT AND DEMANDED THAT A MUCH SMALLER DEBT BE PAID TO HIM. HE ENDED UP UNFORGIVEN.
SO BE CAREFUL HOW YOU PRAY; PRAY FROM WITHIN THE WILL OF GOD, THE PURPOSE OF GOD; PRAY THAT YOU WILL BE ALIGNED WITH GOD'S WILL. AND PRAY LIKE YOU MEAN IT; IF YOU ARE GOING TO PRAY FOR SOMETHING, THEN GET OUT AND AT LEAST MAKE AN EFFORT; THEN GOD WILL SEE THAT YOU ARE SERIOUS.
AND PERHAPS THE LAST FEW WORDS ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT. ALL PRAYER, PROBABLY, BOILS DOWN TO PRAYING FOR THE HOLY SPIRIT; FOR IF THE SPIRIT LIVES IN US, THEN OUR PRAYER WILL BE RIGHT, AND OUR PRAYER WILL BE ANSWERED.