Prayer

25th Sunday in Ordinary Time

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Originally delivered on September 24, 1989

Readings: Amos 8:4-7; Paul to Timothy 2:1-8; Luke 16: 1-13 or 16:10-13

We cannot serve God and money.  We cannot put things in front of people.  People must always be more important and we must never put ourselves in a better position at the expense of our sisters and brothers. Through the second reading, we are told to pray for all the people in positions of power and authority over others.

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30th Sunday in Ordinary Time

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Originally delivered on October 26, 1986

Readings: Sirach 35:12-14, 16-18; Paul to Timothy 4:6-8, 16-18; and Luke 18:9-14

In this week’s Gospel we hear the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector. We are reminded today that everything that we do should be done in a Christian spirit and in the name of Jesus.  Through the parable, we are invited to examine the prayerfulness of our own lives.  In Jesus’ time, the Pharisees were seen as the most righteous and the tax collector was seen as the lowest, greediest kind of person.  And yet, the tax collector asks for and receives God’s mercy. We hear about Bishop Hunthausen’s courage, despite the institutional church, to stand up for social justice. Through this homily, we are reminded that although we belong to the Church, only adhering to the rules of the institutional structure, like the Pharisee in the parable, doesn’t justify us in the eyes of God.  But rather, we must try everyday to be a people devoted to Jesus, make mistakes, but know that we can ask and receive God’s mercy. If we’ve made the choice to follow Jesus, then we’ve committed ourselves to be a struggling people – a people devoted to helping the poor.

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29th Sunday in Ordinary Time

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Originally delivered on October 19, 1986

Readings: Exodus 17:8-13; Paul to Timothy 3:14 – 4:2; Luke 18:1-8

Prayer is always the lifting of the mind and thought with God. It is how we are in communion with God.  But prayer is more than just formal prayers. Being in relationship with our brothers and sisters, especially those hurting and in pain, is how we give praise to our God that created us and also be a people in prayer.  Whatever we do that is meant to harmonize us with God’s plan for us is prayer. In this week’s readings, we hear that even Moses’ arms needed support, just as we need others to help and support us. 

Read the Transcript: c29ot-10-19-86

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17th Sunday in Ordinary Time

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Readings: Genesis: 18:22-32; Colossians 2:12-14; Luke 11:1-13

Originally delivered on July 30, 1989

In this week’s readings, we hear about Sodom and Gomorrah. Through this story, we learn that we can talk to God, despite our sins.  In the today’s Gospel, Jesus says tells us how to pray.  Indeed, He wants us to forgive, just as He has forgiven us already.  That’s the spirit in which we should pray and the spirit in which we should live.  But, we must embrace this in our lives and make the message our own.

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5th Sunday in Ordinary Time

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Originally delivered on February 7, 1988

Readings: Job 7:1-4, 6-7; Corinthians 9:16-19, 22-23; Mark 1:29-39

In today’s liturgy, we are challenged to look at the quality of our prayers to see why, how, and when we pray.  Perhaps more of our prayers are for ourselves rather than as Jesus taught us to pray. Do we only call out to God only when we need Him?  Today, in the first reading, we are reminded of Job, who pitied himself. But in the Gospel, we hear of Jesus’ healing of the sick and hurting although His real purpose was to tell the people of the Good News of God’s infinite love and His love for us as His children. Everyday, we should try to purify our prayer from that of a petition to one of thanks for His love.

 

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