October 20, 2013 - You Gotta Have Heart
Posted on October 15, 2013 by faithlens
Contributed by Scott Moore, Erfurt, Germany
Warm-up Question
Contributed by Scott Moore, Erfurt, Germany
Warm-up Question
- When have you wanted something that you wouldn’t give up striving for until you got it?
You Gotta Have Heart
After 41 years, the conviction of Herman Wallace, 71, was finally overturned. In 1972 Wallace immediately was placed into solitary confinement after the murder of a prison guard named Brent Miller. He was finally convicted of the crime two years later in 1974. He was kept in a Louisiana cell that was 6’ X 9’ and only allowed out for one hour each day for solitary exercise and to shower. In addition, he had no meaningful social interaction, work opportunities, or educational classes. Nor was he part of any rehabilitation program.
Problems with the grand jury in this case are what led Judge Brian Jackson to finally rule to correct this error. Wallace was convicted of this crime along with two others, one of whom was released in 2001; the other is still serving his sentence in solitary confinement. Wallace had appealed over 160 times in the 40+ years. One of his claims was that he and Albert Woodfox (still in prison), were falsely implicated for their political activism in prison as members of the Black Panther Party.
While he is certainly happy that his case was finally heard, there isn’t much time for him to enjoy his new freedom. He has been diagnosed with liver cancer and it is believed that he only has weeks to live. Tessa Murphy, of human rights watchdog organization Amnesty International, said, “The case of Herman Wallace is a tragic example of ‘justice’ gone wrong in the USA.”
Discussion Questions
- When have you witnessed something that you felt was unjust?
- When have you acted to stop an injustice or to right a wrong?
- When have you felt powerless against injustice?
- When have you seen a conflict between two different versions of what “justice” is?
Genesis 32:22-31 2 Timothy 3:14-4:5 Luke 18:1-8
Gospel Reflection
“Pray and do not lose heart” is what Jesus encourages those listening to him in Luke’s gospel, and that includes us right now. Jesus uses once again a parable to make his point clear. He tells us about a widow, one of the most powerless in society at that time, who pleads and pleads with the judge to rule in her favor against her opponent. She turns to the one who can “make things right” for her. She places her life in the hands of the one who has the power and authority to turn things around. We know nothing from this story about what the opponent did or whether or not she deserves the justice she seeks. We do know two things: 1) the judge doesn’t really care about God or about the people he has been appointed to serve, and 2) the woman is persistent and threatens to “wear the judge out.” She keeps coming and coming and coming. He is sick of hearing her pleas. He grants her justice because she doesn’t give up.
Jesus’ hearers know that widows have no chance in society. They are the ones with the fewest chances; they are dependent on everyone. They do, however, have a voice and can speak up. The unjust judge finally hears the widow in Jesus’ story. Jesus sets us up, however. If an unjust judge, who doesn’t care about God or others can break down and give in, how much more likely is it that God, who is just, will hear the cries of God’s chosen ones. God is infinitely more compassionate than this unjust judge. Jesus 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.”
These words encourage us to persevere. Jesus gives his hears advice based on trusting in God. It’s simple. God wants what’s best for us. Jesus tells us to be like the annoying widow. He promises us that God will act.
Don’t give up in your pursuit of God’s blessings and justice. The asking and the pursuit alone strengthen your relationship to God even when things don’t happen as timely as you want. Ask for what you need. Demand it: day and night.
Discussion Questions
- When have you prayed for something that you were convinced was answered positively?
- When have you not received what you asked for in prayer?
- What is the longest you have ever prayed for something before you got an answer?
- What are you praying for that is still unanswered?
- What do you not dare to ask for in prayer? Why not?
Prayer & Mystery
by David Lose, posted May 15, 2012 I’ve wanted for a while to write an occasional series of posts on prayer. Why? Because, frankly, I don’t understand prayer. I know I’m supposed to do it. And I do. But that doesn’t mean I understand it. I don’t understand, for instance, how it works. I’m not always sure what I’m supposed to do, either. And I definitely can’t quite figure out the part about “answered” prayer. Maybe you’ve felt that way, too. Maybe there’s a lot about prayer that you don’t understand, but you still do it. And maybe that’s okay. Maybe prayer is too big to simply understand, too important for us to be able to define simply or once and for all. Maybe at its heart, prayer is a mystery. Mystery, not simply an unknown, like a puzzle. Puzzles, and many other kinds of other unknowns, beg to be solved, to be figured out. But mystery is bigger than that. It’s not that mystery is completely unknown, but that it’s ultimately elusive – you can know some things about mystery, but you can’t finally pin it down. In fact, “knowing” doesn’t seem like quite the right category when you’re talking about mystery. Because mystery defies knowing. But mystery also and simultaneously invitesexperiencing. Think of the most important relationships in your life. A child or sibling, partner or spouse, best friend or close colleague – you know some things, even a lot of things, about this person. Yet who that person really is remains something of a mystery – there is still more to know, more to discover. But beyond what you know and don’t know there’s still an actual person right there, a person you can experience, love and be loved by. You don’tneed to know everything about the person to experience him or her. In fact, when you think about it, you realize this not-knowing-but-still-experiencing is part of the delight of mystery. There is always more to experience, more to learn, more to be surprised by. And maybe prayer is like that. In fact, I’m pretty sure prayer is like that. Which is why I’m writing: to try to think some things through about prayer, not in the hope that I’ll one day figure it all out, but so that I can experience it more fully. And I invite you to come along for the ride, to share you own sense of what prayer is and how we’re to do it and, perhaps most importantly, your own experiences of prayer. As I mentioned, I’ve wanted to write on prayer for a while, but I think what kick-started me to get going is the gospel reading appointed in the lectionary for this Sunday. It’s from the seventeenth chapter of John’s Gospel, a section named “the High Priestly Prayer.” And that seems like a good place to start. After all, if Jesus is praying – and, boy, in this chapter Jesus prays for a long time – then maybe we should pay attention. We’re familiar with the Lord’s Prayer, where Jesus teaches his disciples how to pray, but there’s a way in which this passage is the other Lord’s Prayer, where we actually see and hear Jesus pray. So what is Jesus’ prayer like? Well, first let’s note that it’s takes place on Thursday night, the evening before Jesus’ betrayal and crucifixion. And so Jesus has been talking – for three chapters! – with his disciples about what it will be like for them after he leaves. He’s preparing them for life and ministry without him. And then he prays for them. Let’s start, though, with what he doesn’t pray for. Interestingly, he doesn’t pray that it will get easier. He knows it won’t. He doesn’t pray that the disciples will escape the challenges, struggles, or even persecutions that Jesus knows they will face. And he doesn’t pray that they will defeat all their enemies and create a Christian government or society. He doesn’t pray for any of this. So what does he pray for? He prays for them to hang in there. And for them to hang in there together. He asks that God would strengthen them, care for them, protect them, and keep them together. In fact, Jesus asks that they would be one, one fellowship, one family, not just modeling the “oneness” of Jesus and the Father but actually living into it, participating in it, making it real and in this way sharing in Jesus’ joy. So right up front, I find it really interesting that Jesus is incredibly realistic in this prayer. He knows it will be hard for his companions, he knows it will be difficult, he knows that the dominant spirit of the world – the spirit that we do not have enough, are not enough, that we are competitors with each other for scarce resources – will often be threatened by, even hate, the message and spirit of Jesus’ vision of abundant life where we not only have enough but are told that we are enough – that is, that God loves us just as we are. And so he prays not for an escape from all that, but for perseverance to deal with it. And maybe that’s a good enough place to start. When we pray, we’re invited to be realistic, to be honest, to share what is hard in our lives. And to ask for help. To ask God to hold onto us, to help us not just survive but to flourish. And to do it together. To be in relationship with each other, supporting each other, celebrating with each other, bearing each other’s burdens and hopes, disappointments and dreams. So being honest, praying for help, praying that we hang in there, sensing as we do that we are participating in the divine communion that Jesus enjoys with the Father and that he invites us into, even now, even here. That’s not all we might say about prayer, but it’s a start. |
Martin Luther King - I Have A Dream Speech - August 28, 1963Closing Prayer
God of justice, God of abundance, we wait upon you and your goodness. We do not always act in the name of justice. We do not always share the blessings we have with others. In spite of all that, you turn your ear to us. You hear our cries both day and night. Hear us now as we plead for justice, peace, and wholeness for ourselves and for the whole world. We ask this in the name of the one who encourages us to pray and not lose heart, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. |