Oh Lord, listen to my cry for help

When Arturo and his family fled unrest in their native country, they chose to relocate to the United States for freedom and the opportunity to live a decent life. When the oldest child of the family became the first to graduate from college this past summer, tears of joy and gratitude filled the eyes of his parents as they watched their son walk the stage to receive his diploma. In fact, their tears of joy are a testament to perseverance, hard work, and the opportunity that life in the United States offers them. Not long afterward, their tears of joy turned into loud and painful wailing as they mourned the death of their Abuela, whose deep devotion to Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe was a steady source of strength for the family.

Her loss left a void in their lives as they feel the absence of her ever-radiant presence in the household. Only God can help in such times of consuming human frailty, as the first reading insists. When awash with the tears of hopelessness, when the foundations of comfort and peace begin to cave in under our feet, when fear diminishes courage, when we feel adrift from stability, and when the certainty of life we built begins to crumble before our eyes, causing us tears of pain and sadness, then God’s voice of support brings courage and hope, as in the first reading.

Sadly, the experience of the prophet and his generation is not far removed from ours, as violence and anguish descend on the children of God, leaving behind loud wailing and hardship. Images of destruction across war-torn regions of the world invite us to seek God’s intervention, like the prophet Habakkuk did. The millions of people fleeing conflict that leaves children and the vulnerable in mental dystopia have become unbearable to watch. The magnitude of human despair and the throes of indignity that unnecessary violence inflicts on the human person bring tears to our eyes. The prophet calls out the discord and strife ripping apart families and communities, the kind that denies us the disposition to meet each other on common ground of dignity and respect for a peaceful resolution of conflicts. We are witnessing the intensity with which discord is ripping into the fabric of our society, tearing families and communities apart, and unleashing incalculable pain and anguish.

When the Psalmist cried profusely to God, beckoning for God’s intervention in the realities that turned his pain into tears (Ps 130:1), he embraced the gift of hope (v. 5). This is the kind of hope that steadies one’s resolve to wait for God to intervene on behalf of the one who cries for help (v. 6). The love of God manifests in the power of God that delivers us from pain and misery (v. 7). Just as God promises to redeem the Psalmist and Israel from the anguish of daily life, likewise God assures the prophet Habakkuk and his contemporaries that fidelity to God guarantees life. Writing to Timothy in the second reading, St. Paul reminds him of the gift of the Spirit of God in his life, and not a spirit of timidity and fear (2 Tim 1:7). Rather, it is the Spirit of power and love (2 Tim 1:7). St. Paul believes that the children of God can survive hardships and the enervating realities of life with the strength that comes from God (2 Tim 1:8).

We raise our hands in supplication to God with the words of the apostles: “Increase our faith, Lord” (Luke 17:5). The strength of our faith ought to be proportionate to our hope in God and resilience in the face of the challenges of daily life that bring us to tears. The readings this Sunday call us to have faith in God, to steady our hope in God, because the love of God has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit (see Rom 5:5). Therefore, no adversity can separate us from God’s love and power (2 Tim 1:8). In Evangelii Gaudium, Pope Francis says that faith is believing that God will not abandon us in challenging times because God loves us, and God will make good emerge out of evil on account of his divine creativity. Hence, we have hope in God, and our hope in God will not fail us (Rom 8:5), no matter our challenges.

Ferdinand Okorie, CMF