Lk 18: 1-8
Then Jesus told them a parable about their need to pray always and not to lose heart. He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor had respect for people. In that city there was a widow who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Grant me justice against my opponent.’ For a while he refused; but later he said to himself, ‘Though I have no fear of God and no respect for anyone, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will grant her justice, so that she may not wear me out by continually coming.’”
And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. And will not God grant justice to his chosen ones who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long in helping them? I tell you, he will quickly grant justice to them. And yet, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”
New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989, by the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. USCCB approved.
Sitting with Jesus
When I first entered the Jesuits, I couldn’t sit still – this was a problem. I was months away from a 30-day retreat during which I would sit in silent prayer for hours every day. If I couldn’t sit still, how would I survive?
So, I started ‘exercising’ my capacity for stillness. First, ten minutes. When that felt easy, 20, then 30, and eventually, a full hour of nearly no movement at all.
Then, one day towards the end of my stillness training, I understood – the gift wasn’t the stillness in itself. The gift was realizing that in all this sitting still, Jesus showed up to sit with me.
Today’s Gospel invites us to pray without becoming weary. This invitation is ultimately not about learning to pray all day every day. Rather, it’s about recognizing that the Lord wants to sit with us and build a relationship. And so, let our prayer be a willingness to come to Jesus in prayer, and faith that Jesus will come to us.
—Fr. Eric Immel, SJ, is a vocation promoter for the Midwest Jesuits. He was ordained in June 2022. Learn more about Jesuit vocations at beajesuit.org.
Prayer
Be still and know that I am God.
—Psalm 46:10