October
23, 2016
30th
Sun OT; World Mission Sunday
Sir
35:12-14. 16-18; Psalm 34; 2 Tim 4:6-8. 16-18; Luke 18:9-14
Once a Japanese
tourist was riding a taxi around Manila. He said: “This car is Toyota…Made in
Japan. Very fast.” Seeing a car pass by, he remarked: “Ah, that’s Mitsubishi…
Made in Japan. Very fast.” Seeing another car, he bragged: “That’s Suzuki…Made
in Japan. Very fast.” On reaching his destination, the Japanese was surprised
to see the high taxi fare. “Why so high?” the Japanese complained. The driver
said: “Taxi meter, made in Japan. Very fast!”
The Japanese in
the story reminds me of the Pharisee who exalted himself as he prayed to the
Lord in the gospel today. Jesus reminds us, “Whoever exalts himself will be humbled
and the one who humbles himself will be exalted.” What do our readings today tell us about the
proper disposition in prayer? How can we become sincere and genuine every time
we pray?
Let
us reflect on this in three points:
A
SINCERE PRAYER RECOGNIZES OUR NEED FOR GOD. In the first reading,
Sirach tells us that God’s heart is touched every time we cry out and ask for
God’s help in prayer. Who are those who usually cry out to God for help? Only those who recognize their need for God.
We see the same disposition in the prayer of the tax collector in the gospel
today. When he entered the temple, the tax collector realized his sinfulness.
He admitted his need for God and said, “Be merciful to me a sinner.” The
Pharisee on the other hand entered the temple and prayed. But how come his
prayer was not acceptable to God? Because his prayer indicates that he does not
need God anymore. As he enumerated the list of his accomplishments and good
works, he seems to imply that God needs him more. Sirach tells us
that this kind of prayer will never reach the heavens because God only hears
the sincere prayer of those who recognize their need for God. My dear friends,
may we not let our achievements lead us to the thinking that we don’t need God
anymore. We need God always. Sincere and genuine prayer reminds us of this
reality.
A
SINCERE PRAYER OPENS OUR HEARTS TO FORGIVENESS.
Whenever people share to me that they are having difficulty in
forgiving those who have wronged them, I always tell them to pray and tell God
about it. Because prayer can teach us
the value of forgiveness. Look at the experience of Paul in the second reading.
It is quite sad to know that while Paul was dragged into court and put into
prison, he was left alone by his friends and companions. If we are in that situation what will our
prayer be? Perhaps out of bitterness we will ask God to take revenge and punish
those who have abandoned us. But look at the prayer of Paul. He said, “Everyone
deserted me Lord but may it not be held against them.” If we find it hard to
forgive those who wronged us, Paul tells us that maybe what we need is prayer.
Because genuine prayer can teach our heart the value of forgiveness.
A
SINCERE PRAYER REMEMBERS THE NEEDS OF OTHERS. To
pray for oneself is good. But Sirach also tells us that the prayers of those
who serve God and other people will be heard by God. To serve other people
means that I am not focused only on my needs. Yes, we may have needs for
ourselves and for our families, but we should also consider the needs of others.
We can pray for the leaders of our country. We can pray for friends who might
need our prayers.
In a special
way, as we celebrate today World Mission Sunday, we can also pray and support
the work of missionaries throughout the world. They all need our prayers. As we
pray, let us not be too focused only on our own needs. Let us remember other
people who needs our prayers.
In this mass let
us pray for the grace to be sincere in prayer by recognizing our need for God,
by allowing prayer to teach us the value of forgiveness and by remembering the
needs of others. Amen.
