Perseverance
Oct. 20, 2019 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time - C
by Dcn. Bob Bonomi
If there’s one word which can be used to describe the call of all three of our readings today, it might be Perseverance.
• Perseverance in prayer, as we see in today’s Gospel;
• Perseverance in action, as we see in our first reading about Israel at war; and
• Perseverance in faith, as we are encouraged to be by St. Paul.
Of what value is Perseverance? We’ve all probably heard the little ditty that was taught to school children since the mid 1800s: “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.”
Why? Why not W.C. Field’s version; “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again – and then give up”? It seems that that has become the mantra for far too many people today.
St. James states it clearly: “Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.” (Ja 1:12)
We live in a world that is full of challenges, but despite what some people think, the challenges of today are no more or less severe than those faced by previous generations. War, natural and man-made disasters, and life-threatening illnesses were part of the world that faced those in Jesus’ time and the early Christians, just like we do today. What’s different?
Maybe it is because as a society, we are losing a sense of hope for a better world. And it begins with our loss of faith.
In a recent Pew report from 2018, while 80% of adults in the United States said they believed in a “god”, only 56% believed in the God of the Christian faith, while a total of 33% said they believed in some other sort of god or some higher power. About 10% stated no belief in a higher power at all.
And, as belief in God diminishes, so does hope. A recent report from the Center for Disease Control states that despair is at an all-time high, especially for young men and women in the ages between 15 and 34. Is it any wonder that our world seems to be more cynical and less loving today?
BUT, there really IS hope. God has promised to never abandon us, and Jesus is the fulfillment of that promise. The Gospels are full of hope, and with every generation God continues to call upon his saints-in-the-making to help us see the brightness of our futures, or, as the prophet Jeremiah said, “For I know well the plans I have in mind for you – plans for your welfare and not for woe, so as to give you a future of hope. When you call me, and come and pray to me, I will listen to you.” (Jer 29:11-12)
Which brings us back to today’s readings. The hope of our future lies in our perseverance as seen in the examples given to us today:
1. St. Paul calls us to “proclaim the Word of God and to be persistent in doing so, whether it is convenient or inconvenient” – in other words, whether others, or we, like it or not. We must live our faith; we must profess our faith. And we must do so with humility and charity.
2. And Jesus tells us that in order to proclaim the Good News, we too must reach out to God and “pray always without becoming weary”, for God will always listen and answer our prayers, and will give us the strength to persevere.
3. Finally, we are reminded that we cannot do it alone – it takes a Church to do so. Moses, God’s favored one, was still unable to sustain his “prayer” in the heat of the battle without the help of Aaron and Hur. If we ever think that we don’t need our “religion” because we can go “directly to God”, this should remind us that we need friends of faith. God has placed others in our lives to help us to get to heaven – and just as important has provided us to others to help them as well. We should not be afraid to turn to others for help – and to be persistent in our efforts to help others.
This is what gives meaning to life – a belief in God, the promise of heaven, and help for the journey. We need perseverance: perseverance in prayer, perseverance in actions, perseverance in faith. Praying to God leads to faith; Faith leads to Hope; Hope leads to action; action leads to God.
And it is God that gives meaning to our lives.
