PRAYER AND HOSPITALITY
Prayer and hospitality are the two pillars of Christian spirituality. In prayer with relate and communicate with God, while in hospitality we live out our prayer life in relationship to others. In modern times, the spiritual and prayerful life is a challenge to Christians. There is dryness in spiritual and prayer life. We are discouraged by so many unanswered prayers in our daily lives.
Above all, there seems to be a deep silence or indifference from God about our prayers points, or desire. Why? There are many reasons why our prayers seem not to be answered by God. Why do we feel a sense of dryness spiritually? Why there is a kind of absence or silence of God to us?
FAITH TESTED AND FAITH ANSWERED (Matthew 15:21-28)
Have you ever wondered why your prayer or distressed prayer is not answered by God? What are the possible reasons for unanswered prayer? As a priest, one of the most complex and challenging theological questions I get from a desperate soul is- why is God not answering his or her prayer? It is hard to explain, justify or reason why certain desperate prayers are not answered.
Our theme
The readings of this Sunday did not only challenge us to a persistent faith in God when we ask for our daily needs, especially when our cries, desperations, and cares are met with the silence or seemingly absence of God.
They also remind us of a fundamental fact of God: that is, in the Kingdom of God, in the Divine Plan of God´s salvation, or the Church of God there is no room for exclusiveness but all-inclusiveness of all people, colour, race, nations, and culture.
Hospitality and kindness to others especially, strangers are part and parcel of human nature. We all in one form or the other are strangers in dire need of hospitality and kindness. Hence, the readings of this Sunday touch on the theme of lenience and kindness to strangers, immigrants, refugees, the vulnerable, and to others whom we might not know.
FIRST READING: ISAIAH 56:1. 6-7
The first reading from the Prophet Isaiah 56:1. 6-7 challenged and revolutionized the narrow-minded of the people of Israel that, God is exclusively for them. He reminded them of how foreigners who know, recognize, serve, and love God and his servants will find justice, peace, and integrity in the House of God because it will be a House of prayer for all peoples without exclusivity.
Therefore, Prophet Isaiah proclaimed to the people of Israel that outsiders who embraced God´s rule and commandments are open to salvation.
PALSM 66/67
Today’s Psalm (Ps 66) especially the responsorial: “Let all the peoples praise You, O God”, invites us to find our stand in the God of all peoples while rejecting all types of religious or societal exclusivity.
Thus, in the Responsorial Psalm (Ps 67) the Psalmist sings God’s blessing on the people of Israel and calls on all nations and peoples to praise God. The Psalm is a response to Yahweh’s declaration in the first reading that the Gentiles will be accepted at the altar of Yahweh.
SECOND READING: ROMANS. 11:13-15, 29.32
Romans 11:13-15, 29-32, St. Paul continues his discussion on God´s choicest plan for the people of Israel, how many of them rejected Christ as the promised Messiah, and how this rejection paved the way for the Gentiles’ nations to come to God. While there is a living anticipation of God´s irrevocable choice and mercy to save Israel despite their rejection of God´s salvation in Christ Jesus.
St. Paul in the second reading reminded Gentiles: that is non-Jewish of God’s elective choice of Israel as his own and there is no going back on his choice even when they do not accept that privileged position.
THE GOSPEL: MATTHEW 15:21-28
The gospel text of this Sunday Matthew 15:21-28 is very strange to the nature of God as prophesized by the Prophet Isaiah in today´s first reading and also to the person of Christ who came that all without exclusion may have life and have it to the full. As Jesus’ responses to her were not encouraging and very like him to the needy and troubled.
In the Gospel text of today, Jesus was a bit hashed, biased, prejudiced, and judgmental with the Canaanite woman seeking his help. Yet, the point of the Gospel is the Faith of the woman. God is open to all who profess deep faith in him irrespective of their cultural, ethnic, moral, religious, or racial background.
However, we must see the gospel text in a context and not literarily. Jesus’ action and response to the Canaanite woman was to solicit or awaken in her a true, solid, confirmed, and living faith for her heart before responding to her desperate pleading.
The woman´s response to the uncommitted statement of Christ was the strongest affirmation of persistent faith and trust in God´s mercy and favour to all even those who do not merit it. “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.”
THE DOGGED FAITH
I. The Canaanite woman was a mother who loved deeply her child and made her daughter´s misery hers to endure all odds to get what she desired.
II. It was faith, humility, and courage which grew in contact with Jesus.
III. It was also a faith that followed, praised, worshipped, and adored as she ended up on her knees.
IV. She was not discouraged as her indomitable persistence refused to quit or surrender to obstacles.
V. She has a gift of cheerfulness amid trouble. God loves the cheerful faith that always lights up hope in gloomy situations and a beamy smile in desperate moments.
Finally, Jesus’ eyes lit up with joy at such an indomitable faith; a tested and confirmed faith. He praised her as well as granted her the blessing and the healing which she so much desired. “Woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish. ”
There are several lessons for us in the gospel text of this Sunday especially in our constant struggles with unanswered prayers. Why are our distressed prayers not answered?
REASONS FOR UNANSWERED PRAYERS
a. Prayers are not wishful psychological thinking or wordy magical babbling, they are conscious mental desire to concrete physical, material, or spiritual needs of the souls that require trust and faith in God.
b. Prayer is asking for God´s will to be done and not ours to be done. It is letting God be God and not us. Most often, what we are asking for is not in accordance with the will of God.
c. Hence, prayer should be in God´s time, God´s way, and God´s tended purpose for us and not in our time, way, or manner. Sometimes, it is not yet time for what we are asking for
d. Patience, perseverance, and persistence are strong keys to unlocking the seeming silence of God. Waiting on God with persistence, insistence, and steadfastness is a living active Christian faith that does turn to others’ means of seeking answers or solutions, especially shortcuts or easy spiritual practices that are magically oriented.
e. Humility is the chief virtue of prayer, even when all odds are against your prayers, God´s pruning or trimming of our desires and expectations, it takes a humble soul and faith to continue praising, worshipping, or following or obeying God and his commandments.
f. There are many psychological, mental, physical, cultural, social, and spiritual obstacles to why our prayers are unanswered and the moments of waiting are purgative moments to purify our intentions or to align our will with God´s will.
g. some other times we do not know what we are asking for. So God in his mercy and grace grants to us in different ways than we expect. This is why we should be docile to the will and purpose of God for us and preserve in patience waiting for his will to be done.
RESIGNATION OF PRAYER
Prayer is a fundamental resignation to God to act as he will purposefully in our lives. Hence, we should pray and act as if all depend on us, and at the same time, we should also pray and wait as if all depend on God.
Finally, prayer is not asking, it is the longing of the soul to unite with God. It is daily admission of one’s weakness and dependence on God. It is better in prayer to have a heart without words than words without a heart.
OUR PRAYER
Lord Jesus Christ, there are countless moments of our lives when our desperate callings and cries seem to meet unresponsiveness, silence, and absence of you. Help us to always and everywhere persist with living, active, and unconquered faith to stand until the heavens are open and shower on us an infinite foundation of mercy, grace, and blessings, and that none is excluded from your house of prayer. Amen
