Texts taken from the “On Your Word” Missalette September-October 2022

29th Sunday in Ordinary Time (C)
1st week of the Psalter

FIRST READING

From the Book of Exodus (Ex 17:8-13)
In those days, Amalek came to fight against Israel at Rephidim. Moses said to Joshua: “Choose some men for us and go out to fight against Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the hilltop with the staff of God in my hand.” Joshua did as Moses told him, fighting against Amalek, while Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. Whenever Moses raised his hands, Israel prevailed; but whenever he lowered them, Amalek prevailed. As Moses’ hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it, while Aaron and Hur, one on each side, supported his hands. Thus his hands remained steady until sunset. Joshua defeated Amalek and his people with the sword. – The word of the Lord.

Commentary on the First Reading

While the people of Israel, led by Joshua, are engaged in battle against Amalek, Moses calls upon the Lord for help. Each of us, woman or man, young or old, faces a battle every day. When people speak of problems, they are influenced by two extreme and opposite approaches, both of them mistaken: some think that life is continual suffering and therefore not worth fighting for, while others think that everything is easy and, above all, owed to them, so there is no need to fight to obtain what they want. Nothing could be more wrong! This is especially true in the life of a Christian. How many times have we asked ourselves: “Lord, why does everything happen to me?” or: “God, where are you?” The children of God must have the courage to fight against sin and against life’s adversities. So let us too, like Moses, raise our arms to heaven without growing weary, lifting up our prayers with confidence that He will never abandon us. Let us not be afraid or lose heart, because the Lord himself goes before us; he is with us, he will not leave us or abandon us.

SECOND READING

From the Second Letter of Saint Paul the Apostle to Timothy (2 Tim 3:14 – 4:2)
My son, remain steadfast in what you have learned and firmly believed. You know from whom you learned it, and you have known the sacred Scriptures from childhood: these are able to instruct you for salvation, which comes through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture, inspired by God, is also useful for teaching, refuting, correcting, and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be complete and fully equipped for every good work. I charge you before God and Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, by his appearing and his kingdom: proclaim the word, be persistent whether it is convenient or inconvenient, reprove, rebuke, and exhort with all patience and teaching. – The word of the Lord. 

Commentary on the Second Reading

Saint Paul states that all Scripture is “inspired by God,” meaning that it was composed under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit and through the power of the Spirit. Sacred Scripture is useful for instruction: it reveals God’s mind concerning such subjects as the Trinity, angels, humanity, sin, salvation, sanctification, the Church, and future events. It is useful for learning what God approves in our lives. Furthermore, it serves to refute errors and answer the tempter. It is useful for correction: it does not merely point out what is wrong, but reveals how it can be made right. It is useful for training in righteousness. God’s grace teaches us to live in a holy manner, but the word of God sets out in detail what is necessary for a sanctified life. Sacred Scripture is therefore absolutely incomparable; no book, no library, and no other teaching in the world is capable of preparing a lost sinner for salvation. Let us read a few verses of the Bible every day, and we will discover that God is near us and that he illuminates our lives.

GOSPEL OF THE DAY

From the Gospel according to Luke (Lk 18:1-8)
At that time, Jesus told his disciples a parable about the necessity of praying always without becoming weary: “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected anyone. In that city there was also a widow who kept coming to him, saying, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’ For a while he refused, but later he said to himself, ‘Although I neither fear God nor respect anyone, because this widow keeps bothering me, I will grant her justice so that she may not continually come and wear me out.’” And the Lord said: “Listen to what the dishonest judge says. Will not God then secure the rights of his chosen ones who call out to him day and night? Will he delay long in answering them? I tell you, he will see to it that justice is done for them speedily. But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” – The word of the Lord.

Commentary on the Gospel of the Day

The judge in the parable does not grant the widow’s request “for a while.” This is the common experience of those who pray and think they are not being heard. God resists our prayers and supplications; he hides even when we call upon him in suffering and anguish, to the point that it seems he has completely forgotten us. Is he perhaps deaf? He does not promptly grant our requests, especially requests for “things,” because he wants the desire for him to arise within us. He wants us to raise our eyes and direct our gaze toward the one who wishes to meet us. This is why he does not answer us immediately. He does not intend to grant us just anything, but himself. This is what the widow needs, and what we all need. That is why prayer must be constant. Its purpose is not to change God toward us, but to change us toward him: we must move from the desire to receive gifts that we do not need to the desire to receive him, who is the gift. And the key to prayer is faith. When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith in us, or entitlement? Will he find us capable only of “demanding” to be heard, as though we had a magic wand at our disposal? Let us pray constantly in faith, confident that God will answer.