My Dear People,

Having noted in the previous chapter the tribulation of the end times of the world, Jesus urges His followers to be persistent almost to the point of being bothersome in prayer to obtain the merciful justice of God against the injustices of one’s persecutors. In the end times, in fact the iniquity of men will be so great and the apostasy so widespread that all human remedies or initiatives will become ineffectual; only the great means of prayer will remain. Jesus urges everyone to pray, relating a parable which also characterizes the nature of the heads of state in the end times.

There was a judge in a city that feared neither God nor had any respect for the people. He was skeptical, unbelievable, with no notion of higher justice, and consequently he did not have any sense of respect or charity towards anyone. These sad characteristics are already very visible in the atheist and unbelievable chiefs that preside over our modern states!  These leaders do not know true justice but only wrongdoing, corruption, and oppression. 

There was a widow in the city who had received some serious injury or was greatly wronged and unable to defend herself. Being a widow, she appealed to the unjust judge; however, it was to no avail, because he did not care about her situation and despised her for asking. But she did not relent or tire in her pleading and thus became so bothersome that the exasperated judge in order to stop being tormented by her insistence, agreed to rule in her favor. 

With this parable, Jesus made an argument from less to more. If an unjust judge who did not care about justice yielded to the insistent prayers of a widow, will not God, who is justice in the purest sense, listen to the prayers of those who invoke Him day and night against the oppression of the wicked?

Will not the prayer that can win over a wicked man because someone has become bothersome to him win over the infinite goodness of God because of love? He will surely listen to those who plead with Him, and He will not delay and will quickly bring justice.

Jesus gives the reason for His exhortation and very clearly identifies the time for which it is intended, adding: “But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”

These will be the times—the end times—in which it will be more than ever urgent to pray. The Son of Man will come with an extraordinary outpouring of grace in and for the Church. But He will find souls with no faith and completely unconcerned. He will come in the end to judge everyone and shall appear glorious in those days when the apostasy on earth will be almost complete.  The few faithful survivors, unable to defend themselves, will have to find refuge in God alone, and they will find Him, if they pray unceasingly. 

The times predicted by Jesus already have begun to appear in many nations, where apostasy and atheism are wreaking havoc, and where persecution, overt or subtle, leaves the faithful without help and defense, at the mercy of the wicked. 

The present situation of the world is such that it is impossible to discern how to correct it effectively. Some people even hope for a global war, not considering it is a terrible punishment that always leaves a trail of other spiritual and material punishments. Others have the illusion to be able to conquer the despots of the world, without thinking that these people have a brutal power in their hands and will not let anyone sway their minds or conquer them. We are left with only prayer, and for this reason the Church is intensifying prayer in these times, attempting to vanquish the wicked with this great power that is almost like a bombardment from on high on their fortified positions. 

There are some who hear about prayer when a serious threat is looming and mockingly cast it aside as a naïve illusion. It can be said, in fact, that almost all people subconsciously, each to a greater or lesser degree, question the effectiveness of prayer, believing it to be a childish fallback during times when decisive and urgent action is needed. 

This interior false state is due to the fact that everyone has experienced times where prayer has failed them. In fact, these failed instances for some add up to the conclusion that their prayer efforts are a complete failure. 

No one considers that they may pray poorly or even not pray at all, all the while reciting many prayers. No one humbles himself sincerely when his prayer is not granted or when submitting himself to the Lord when pleading for his assistance, and so it can be said that we rarely if ever truly plead to Him. For this reason, Jesus wanted, through a parable, to reveal the attitude of the spirit that makes a prayer effective. 

This is a very important thing to ponder because prayer is more vital to us than bread. 

[Reflection of the four Gospels by Don Dolindo Ruotolo]

Yours in Christ,

Fr. Vincent Clemente