QUALITY OF PRAYER, Homily for 30th Sunday, Year C, 26th Oct 2025

Homily by Fr Andrew Ekpenyong at St Mary Magdalene Catholic Church, Omaha, USA. 30th Sunday, Yr C, 26th Oct 2025. 1. Joke on Prayer. In his book, “Why Christians Sin”, J. K. Johnston tells a funny story about a small town that never had a nightclub and almost everyone went to church regularly. Then a businessman from a big city decided to build a nightclub in that little town. A group of Christians from the local church were concerned and held an all-night prayer vigil, asking God to intervene. It just so happened that shortly after, lightning struck the nightclub, and it burned to the ground. The owner of the nightclub sued the church, claiming that the prayers of the church members were responsible, but the church hired a lawyer to argue in court that they were not responsible. The presiding judge, after his initial review of the case, stated: “no matter how this case comes out, one thing is clear. The nightclub owner believes in prayer and the Christians do not.” Sisters and Brothers, just like all our thoughts, words and actions, our prayers have consequences! 2. Quality of Prayer. After teaching us to pray without ceasing, without becoming weary, in last Sunday’s Gospel reading (Lk 18:1-8), that means quantity of prayer, our Lord turns to the quality of our prayer using another powerful parable: the Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector (Lk 18:9-14). Let us call it the Parable on the Quality of Prayer. And thanks be to God, people around the world and Americans in particular, are quite prayerful. In fact, a recent national survey of U.S. adults commissioned by the Presidential Prayer Team, a non-partisan, non-profit organization founded in 2001, and conducted by Arizona Christian University, found that 2 out of 3 (66%) Americans pray at least once a week. The pharisee and the tax collector both went to the temple area to pray, to do what many of us also do. The tax collector went home justified, reconciled with God. The Pharisee did not. Why not? The quality of their prayer. Both the tax collector and the pharisee were sinners before that prayer. But the pharisee went further and committed sin even while praying. The tax collector acknowledged his evil actions: his prayer was a call for God’s mercy. The pharisee had obviously done many good things before this particular prayer but instead of asking God for grace to do more, he compared himself with others and claimed to be better than everyone else, especially, better than the tax collector. His prayer was prideful, hence, sinful. He went away without being reconciled to God. Sisters and Brothers, how I wish I could do all the good things the Pharisee did and then have the humble attitude of the Tax collector. How I wish I could do all the good things the Pharisee did and then pray like the Tax collector. How I wish I could do all the good things the Pharisee did and then pray to God to do more, rather than compare myself with others. 3. Two in One. There is a pharisee in me and also a tax collector in me. Yes, I am two in one. Yes, my prayer is sometimes like that of the pharisee and sometimes like that of the tax collector. I’m a sinner who sometimes think I’m not as sinful as some other sinners. But that happens when I forget that Jesus Christ is the yardstick of holiness and God alone is the standard of perfection. Be holy as your Heavenly Father is holy. (Matt 5:8). Despising others as the pharisee did, is certainly unholy and sinful. Sisters and Brothers, let us pray for the grace to increasingly imitate Christ in His humility, a humility that in turn makes our prayer for the world effective, as we heard in today’s 1st reading (Sir 35:12-14, 16-18): “The prayer of the lowly pierces the clouds”. Yes, as we ourselves reach out to others, as we ourselves spread the good-news, like St Paul in today’s 2nd reading (2 Tm 4:6-8, 16-18), let us rely on the Lord for strength to overcome the challenges of mission. Using the tax collector, our Lord has taught us how to pray without ceasing in a way that keeps us reconciled with God and our neighbor. It is called the “Jesus Prayer” and is it said repeatedly everyday: "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner". "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner"…. This beautiful prayer combines our faith in Christ with the prayer of the tax collector. “By it the heart is opened to human wretchedness and the Savior's mercy.” (CCC 2667). Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.