October 2, 2022

Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time

• Habakkuk 1:2-3; 2:2-4
• 2 Timothy 1:6-8, 13-14
• Luke 17:5-10

Reflection Written By: Janet McDermott

HOW LONG, OH LORD?
I CRY FOR HELP BUT YOU DON’T LISTEN!” Habakkuk 1:2-3

Sometimes our parents have chosen to tell us “no”.  In many cases, the “no” is “for our own good” – or so we may have been told.  But there may also have been times when our parents or loved ones have other plans for us – a surprise, perhaps plans for a much-anticipated trip or when a special visitor is on their way to see us.  In any case, getting “no” is not what we as children wanted to hear.  And we may have objected to that response by saying or doing wild and crazy (think “tantrum”) things and perhaps later regretted it.  Today we are asked to deal with the child inside of us.

In preparation for writing this Reflection, I was drawn to the first Reading, a lament of the Prophet Habakkuk.  I had no idea who the prophet was or the circumstances of his lament.  I learned that Habakkuk was from among the group described in Hebrew history as the “minor prophets”.  Other than that, not much else is known.  Nothing, that is, but his prophetic words.  “How long, O Lord? I cry for help but you do not listen!”

How many times in our lives do we think to turn to our God for answers, for help, yet it seems that there is no one there listening?  What exactly do we expect when we send our appeals to the God of our faith?  What is the nature of that relationship between our individual self and the Almighty One?  I have come to believe that one of the deeper and enduring tasks of our life is to give words to that relationship (God is Father? God is Creator of all things including me? God loves me?  Loves him/her?  God makes God’s Self known through the shine on my child’s/my grandchild’s face?).  I wonder if, perhaps, as many as there are persons in creation, there are words to describe that primal relationship.  We each have to name and rename who God is as our relationship with God grows and matures.  Then, from the perspective of our relationship with God, we can look at the answer to Habakkuk’s lament – “how long?”

St. Paul implores us to listen to his words and example.  “Take as your norm the sound words that you heard from me”.  Earlier in the same epistle he writes, “do not be ashamed of your testimony to our Lord…bear your share of hardship for the gospel with the strength that comes from God”.  For him, and for his followers, faith in God (the is-God-listening faith) comes from the example of others and from the strength given by God through Christ Jesus and the Holy Spirit.  Paul’s letters continue to call people to faith in Jesus, using words, examples, using his own life – all to describe a relationship with God through Jesus the Christ.

Luke’s gospel offers a perspective on our relationship to God, using the example of a servant in service to its master.  Being a good servant in Jesus’ story is simply what is expected when one is a servant – nothing fancy, just the simple satisfaction of being a faithful servant: what does the servant rightfully expect? In the scriptures above, then, the “how long” is not really an issue.  We have a relationship with God who loves, cares for and watches over us and others.  We go to God with our needs and the needs of others, we leave those needs at God’s feet, invoking our privileged relationship with Jesus, God’s Son, and leave the rest to God.

In answer to Habakkuk’s lament, God is said to reply (calling us to the patience of a loyal servant):

 “the vision still has its time….and will not disappoint.  If it delays, wait for it, it will surely come, it will not be late.”  Thankfully, then, we have the response we all need as we await God’s loving reply, especially when we wonder if God has heard our prayer.

Thoughts for Consideration

• Recall sometime when you have been surprised by unexpected events.  Is it possible that God too has good surprises in mind for you?
• Consider the role of friends and mentors.  Who has given you the inspiration and courage to believe in God’s listening heart?
• Stop throughout the day to ponder the possibility of God’s promised gifts that await and perhaps surprise.