Sermon: Prayer and the Persistent Widow - Mr. David Puttock, Layreader, St. Paul's L'Amoreaux

October 21, 2007, Pentecost 21 (Year C), Luke 18:1-8

I am a little puzzled that I should be invited to preach on Seniors Recognition Sunday.

Is it a hint that I am getting older? Is this just a coincidence? What is a senior anyway? What are the qualifications?

Last year, to my surprise, I discovered that - in one place at least – I am already a senior. I went to the AMC cinema at Kennedy Commons. At the ticket office I was asked if I was a senior! Was this an insult - or a joke? Well, I took it in good humour. I asked – what is the age for a senior ? 55 and over was the reply. What a surprise !! So young!! Yet I qualified!! And I thought wistfully of the years of seniors discounts that I had missed!! So I immediately claimed the discount and have shamelessly done so ever since. By the way I tried it at Cineplex Odeon at STC. It didn’t work. The policy there is 65 and over. I still have a few years to go before that!

Anyway you know the old saying – and it’s true – you are only as old as you feel!!

When I read today’s Gospel I fell into a trap. Aha, I thought, how fitting for Seniors Recognition Sunday. It’s a story about old people. There’s this widow. She must be old. And the judge – well, judges are generally old too. In fact one of the commentaries I read refers to him as a “crusty old judge”. But – who says the judge is old? Who says the widow is a senior? Nowhere in the gospel does it say that he or she was old. They could have been comparatively young. The widow certainly has the energy of a young person in pursuing her case with the unjust judge.

The story is quite straightforward . . .

The woman in the parable is a widow. Whatever her age, whatever her status, she is a symbol for – and this is typical in Luke’s Gospel – the poor, defenceless, the marginalized in society.

The other character is the judge. He is corrupt and unjust. Jesus points out that this judge neither fears God nor has any respect for people. Not even a deserving widow is going to get a fair hearing from him.

But, this is no ordinary widow. This woman is bold and confrontational and persistent. Even though her chances of success are next to none, she keeps demanding justice for her case saying, "Grant me justice against my opponent."

For a while, the judge refuses. But, finally, he relents, saying, "I have no fear of God. I have no respect for anyone. But I'm going to do what this woman asks, because she keeps bothering me, and I don't want her to wear me out by continually coming" to me and pestering me.

Note that the Greek word translated here as "wear me out" literally means to "strike under the eye" or to "give a black eye." This phrase presents an intriguing picture of a raging granny letting fly at the judge with her purse or shopping bag.

And so the judge gives in – not out of a sense of justice but in order to avoid the black eye. The black eye may not be realistic but it is quite likely that he gives in to avoid the embarrassment of a very public and possibly humiliating scene with the widow. Something that would rob him of his self-importance and make him look rather foolish in the eyes of the public. He may not care for God or man but he certainly cares about his self-image.

And so through her persistence the widow achieves her goal.

The widow is an example of persistence and faithfulness.

The judge is her unlikely saviour.

We can probably see ourselves as the widow with our prayers and petitions to GOD. But don’t imagine that the crooked judge can be compared with GOD ! No, the judge is to be contrasted with GOD – not compared with Him.

And the lesson is this -- if the crooked judge can be persuaded by the lowly widow and show mercy, then how much more will a just GOD, a loving Father, give to his children out of the goodness of his heart?

So is that the message then? Persistence in prayer pays off?

Well not exactly. True, Jesus tells his disciples clearly up front that this parable is about the need to pray always. But he also tells them – and us - not to lose heart.

Because you don’t always get what you want. You don’t always get what you pray for.

This is not just a parable on how to pray. It is not just a parable on persistence in prayer. There is something deeper about this passage.

It points to the profound importance of prayer and how prayer shapes the profound nature our relationship with GOD.

It is a parable about trusting in GOD to provide for the needs of His people.

In this light, the story of the judge and the widow and how she hounds him into cowering submission seems almost like a light-hearted prelude.

The profound importance of prayer

The wonderful unique thing about prayer is this: it is the medium through which we communicate with GOD. It is a miracle in itself that we can talk directly with GOD and not through some designated intermediary. And in this we take our lead from Jesus Christ who encourages us to talk with GOD and call him Our Father.

And recall the words of St Paul who wrote to the (1st) Thessalonians: “Pray continually !”. Prayer is the medium through which we communicate with God in all times and in all circumstances, through all the seasons of our life, especially the ones that are parched and dry.

Because prayer is not always easy.

Prayer can be hard work, because our prayers for the things we feel we most deeply need are often met with long periods of silence from God. The American theologian and author, Dr Fred Craddock, writes that “prayer is hard work because the human experience is often an experience of waiting in the face of delay”.

Prayer is not like a divine vending machine. Put in your faith. Be sure to put in enough. Pull the lever. Get what you want or what you think you need. No, prayer is more like wrestling, like Jacob, who wrestled and struggled with God, through the long night until the break of day.

I feel we can draw inspiration - not so much from those who boast of a triumphant and successful prayer life and claim to have all the answers but from people who have practised hopeful and confident and persistent prayer in the face of great suffering and God's apparent silence. These are the ones who can really inspire us and be our models.

Prayer is the medium through which GOD prepares us for his answer to prayer, for an answer that may not be easy for us to accept. It may not be our will.

We pray. We get an answer to our prayer. Sometimes the answer is “No” or “Not now”. Through prayer, God’s will is revealed to us. And it may be something other than what we asked or imagined.

And as we pray, God also prepares us for the reality that an answer may not come in our life and time here on earth.

“The time we spend in hopeful and confident prayer, in the face of promises delayed, in the face of long seasons of silence, is the time that transforms us into the vessels that will be able to hold the answer when it finally comes.” (Fred Craddock again).

The profound nature of our relationship with God.

Prayer shapes us and moulds our character. And prayer strengthens our relationship with GOD. Through prayer our relationship with GOD is transformed and enriched so that we are being made ready ultimately to abide in GOD’s presence.

And as we deepen our relationship with GOD, maybe - to pick up the phrase from the parable - maybe we can dare to say that prayer is the medium through which we wear GOD out with our persistence and, if need be, give him a black eye. Through prayer we may boldly remind GOD of His promises to us until the answer comes.

Prayer is the courageous determination to let God be God.

Finally, it may take a long time for prayer to be answered – so don’t give up. There is concern expressed in the final verse that people will lose heart, abandon their persistent supplication and give up their faith. Hence the question at the end of the passage: “And yet when the Son of Man comes – will he find faith on earth ?” The message here is - trust in GOD for He is trustworthy. Trust in the eventual triumph of GOD and his people.

So, will the Son of Man find faith on earth when he comes again? If we continue to pray faithfully – yes he will!!! Emphatically, he will!!

This may be the logical point to end - but I cannot resist sharing with you a modern day equivalent of today’s Gospel story.

Edward Bennett Williams was a high-profile and powerful Washington lawyer, sometime owner of the Washington Redskins and the Baltimore Orioles, advisor to celebrities and politicians alike. One day Mother Teresa had made an appointment with him because she was raising money for an AIDS hospice and Williams was in charge of a charitable foundation that she hoped would help. Before the appointment, Williams said to his partner, Paul Dietrich, “You know, Paul, AIDS is not my favourite disease. I don't really want to make a contribution but I've got this Catholic saint coming to see me and I don't know what to do.” Well, they talked about it and agreed that they would be polite, hear her out, but then say no. So, Mother Teresa arrived. She sat like a little sparrow perched on the other side of the lawyer’s immense mahogany desk. She made her appeal for the hospice and Williams said, “We're touched by your appeal, but no.” Mother Teresa said simply, “Let us pray.” Williams exchanged glances with his partner and they bowed their heads. After the prayer, Mother Teresa made the same pitch, word for word, for the hospice. Again Williams politely said no. Mother Teresa said, “Let us pray.” Williams, exasperated, looked up at the ceiling as if to heaven and finally exclaimed, “All right, all right”, and turning to his partner said, “Paul, get me my cheque book !”

Yes, indeed, another example of the power of persistent prayer!!

As Jesus taught us - we must keep praying. And, in full expectation of his coming again, we must not – we shall not - lose heart. Amen.