17^th Sunday in ordinary time, 25^th July 2010

Genesis 18: 20-32  Col 2: 12-14 Ps 69 or 19 Luke 11: 1-13.

1. Way back in 1975, My mother and I went to the Eaton-Simpson stores. She wanted to buy a whole dining set. The price on the set said $275.00. That was a lot of money in those days. Today you pay that much for a week’s groceries for a family. “That is too high a price, my mother said to the salesman. “I won’t pay $275, I will only give you $180.00”. Mum, I groaned, these prices are fixed.



This is not a market in the middle east. I walked away a little embarrassed. Two minutes later, my mother came back with a big grin. “He gave it to me for $150”, she said. If you ask, you will get it. All he could have said was either Yes or No. If it is Yes, you get your bargain. If he says, NO, at least you tried.

 I went to the salesman and said, the price is $275, how could you give it for $150. Oh, he said, the inventory must go. Next week everything will be 50% off. But your mother was so polite and courteous, I decided to give her the sales price earlier.

2. For people like my mother and others coming from third world countries, “Bargaining” is a way of doing business and also of living. You interact with your fellow human beings – you hear their stories and they hear yours. It is not merely a matter of opening your wallet and paying the price.

 The encounter between Abraham and God is told in human language. It shows God like a human being – interacting with the works of his creation: human beings. This is the same God who hundreds of years later will send his Son to live among us and show us how to be children of God. This is because God loved Abraham and all of us who are children of Abraham.

 In our present story Abraham pushes the limits of bargaining. God does not seem to mind. God does not say as we do: “Oh for goodness sake, make up your mind.” You and I pray depending on how badly, how urgently, how intensely we want something.

3.  The story of Abraham and God – is a backdrop to the Gospel where Jesus tells us to ask, seek and knock. The Gospel starts out with an abbreviated form of the Lord’s prayer. It is a subject is enough for a dozen homilies. However, I would like to share some thoughts with you about the first of the three commands of Jesus: Ask, Knock, Seek.  We have no problem with asking and it will be given to you:

• We ask for happiness in family life
• We ask for health for our near and dear ones
• We ask for financial stability.

• Then we go for more general items that affect the world in which we live, depending often on how these things affect us, or because we have a special interest in them.

• We ask for the end of war in Pakistan, Middle East, Afghanistan
• We ask for an end to abortion
• We ask for an end to discrimination and bigotry.
• a: We ask for health and peace of mind for your families and friends in the first place. When they have health and they have happiness we find we can deal with “whatever life throws our way.” The well being of those who are near and dear to us is a natural desire of the human heart.
   
• b: The problem with asking is that we want answers right away and we would like preferential treatment. If someone is sick with cancer or some other serious ailment, we can utter pious phrases like: “I will pray for him. May God’s will be done.”  If some one in the family is sick, we want a cure and we want it immediately. We want a miracle just like the ones Jesus did in Galilee. Jesus touched them and healed the blind, the lame, the leper – and even the dead. We want the same for family and friends.
   
• c: However when our emotions, especially those of anxiety and worry calm down, we can accept things more peacefully. If things do not turn out the way we want them to turn out, we are more accepting of reality. We realise that just as night follows the day, there are certain things, like death which are inevitable. We find that our prayers are answered:
• we have the courage to face difficulties
• we are in peace when there are somethings we know will not change
• It is in this sacred space, in this atmosphere of prayer, that we become a model, we become an inspiration to others. We can truly pray the Lord’s prayer and say
• Your Kingdom Come
• Your will be done

In this spirit we pray the “I Believe”. It is in this confidence we make the prayers of the faithful.