Fr. Michael Williams

‘Jesus told His disciples about the need to pray continually and never lose heart’.

In the life of Our Lord we see that during intensely difficult moments in His life, Jesus prays to His Heavenly Father, never losing heart. For example, in a moment of deep struggle, Jesus prays in the Garden of Gethsemane, ‘Father, if you are willing take this cup away from me. Nevertheless, let your will be done, not mine’; and during His suffering on the Cross Jesus prays, ‘Father, into your hands, I commit my spirit’. Rather than lose heart, Jesus prayed when He was sorrowful and when He was struggling, because He knew God the Father is the only refuge for us, when the darkness appears to be closing in. When life is difficult we need to follow the example of the Lord and ‘to pray continually and never lose heart’. CS Lewis once said, ‘For most of us the prayer in Gethsemane is the only model. Removing mountains can wait’. In times of difficulty and struggle we ‘need to pray continually and never lose heart’.

As Christians we must always remember that Jesus’ prayer was answered; His prayer was never in vain. Jesus’ prayer to the Father of Heaven, carried Him through His suffering and death, because ‘on the third day Jesus rose again’. The Father delivered Jesus from His suffering and death, and brought Him into the glory of the Resurrection. Every Sunday, the Day of Resurrection, we come together to celebrate Jesus’ victory over the powers of darkness and death; we come together to celebrate the Resurrection. If we did not celebrate the Resurrection each week, we could easily lose heart and think life is devoid of meaning. But the Resurrection reminds us that the crosses, toils, and disappointments of this life, are followed by the glory of the Resurrection, because ‘When the body of our earthly dwelling lies in death we gain an everlasting place in Heaven’ (Preface of Christian Death 1). Our prayers will have been fully answered when we have experienced the Resurrection.

At the end of today’s gospel Jesus asks the question, ‘When the Son of Man comes, will He find any faith on earth’? Jesus knew that Faith in God, and faith in God’s Son, would come under severe attack from the anti-Christ. Through the centuries the anti-Christ has manifested itself in many different guises, but it always has the same objective, which is the destruction of faith in the Son of Man- Jesus Christ. Today our faith in God is under attack from many different quarters, but we are called ‘to pray continually and never lose heart’, because Christ has won the victory, and is preparing a place for us in Heaven, even as I speak. I notice that when the world can do nothing more for a sick patient in the hospital they often call for the priest, who brings Christ through the sacraments and through prayer to the sick person and his/her grieving relatives. The Church brings them hope; hope in the new life of Heaven; hope in the victory over death.

Today is ‘Mission Sunday’. Our Mission is to bring the good news of Christ to the people whom we know and whom we encounter. The Church has something to give to the people of our world, that no one else can give them. There is a great need for us to share this message with others. St Paul, like many of the saints, suffered for being a Christian, but he ‘prayed continually and never lost heart’. He encouraged others to do the same. In the second reading he says, ‘proclaim the message and, welcome or unwelcome, insist on it. Refute falsehood, correct error, call to obedience- but do all with patience’. Like Christ and like St Paul let us ‘pray continually and never lose heart’ and encourage others to do likewise.