17TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME — YEAR C

1st Reading   Gen. 18: 20-32

Resp. Psalm  Ps. 137:1-3, 6-8

2nd Reading  Col. 2: 12-14

Gospel            Luke 11: 1-13

"LORD, TEACH US TO PRAY"

Dear friends, today is the 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time and we have to remind ourselves that we have Seventeen Sundays more to draw the curtain on the liturgical season of Ordinary Time and the Liturgical Year (Year C). This should be brought to focus so that we assess our journey so far. 

Delving into the Gospel passage for this Sunday (Luke 11: 1-13), we can divide it into two. Luke vv. 1-4 which talks about the Lord's Prayer and vv. 5-13 which speaks about perseverance in prayer with the admonition to ASK (AITEO), SEEK (ZETEO), and KNOCK (KROUO). 

Let us take a closer look at the first part, the Lord's Prayer. We can find a parallel in Matthew 6:9-15. We can observe few textual differences. Luke starts by telling us that Jesus' initiative to teach this Prayer stemmed from the disciples' bidding, "Lord, teach us to pray" (v.1). Also unlike Matthew, Luke does not include the petitions of 'God's will to be done', 'deliverance from evil', and the mention of heaven.

The first solution we may offer this problem is the glaring issue of the two authors having to take some parts of their accounts from different sources. However, I believe Luke picks some elements, and in highlighting them, wants to communicate something. Let us look at two of them.

The first is the petition, "Give us each day our daily bread" (v.3). This part of the prayer helps us to Remember the Exodus event of the daily Manna (Exodus 16: 5). In a more physical sense, bread is given and consumed to satisfy human instinct of hunger. The bread stands for human wants and needs. This is the surrender of the humanity of the person to God who provides. The best things that can help our humanness are things that only God gives. This is the bread that suffices for each day. 

The second detail is the forgiveness of sins. Luke adds that "and forgive us our sins" (v. 4). The word for sin in this context is HAMARTIA. Hamartia means missing the mark. It is a sort of missing the standard. This also includes a moral disorder. 

The point is that Luke, a physician, may be concerned about the wellbeing of the individual. He cannot afford to put hunger and sin out of the prayer. Bread satisfies hunger. The search for daily sustenance speaks of humanity's search for that which will make him eternally satisfied. Only God can provide what we need for our daily living. 

As we seek to satisfy human instinct of hunger, to live by that which will sustain us everyday, and knowing that only God suffices and Christ becomes the bread from Heaven, we have to pay attention to the needs of the soul. Sin wounds the soul and it has to be healed. 

I believe that Luke wants us to seek our well-being and the well-being of others. As we pray, we have to focus on the needs and problems of other people. It is good to seek the satisfaction of physical needs, but it is equally vital to see to the wellbeing of the soul. The soul can be spiritually wounded. Heal it by prayer which strengthens our relationship with God.

May God help us to give attention to our physical and spiritual wellbeing, and in doing so, may we never forget others. Prayer sustains.

Pax et Bonum