17th Sunday in Ordinary Time C - July 27, 2025

 17^th Sunday in Ordinary Time C - July 27, 2025

Genesis 18:20-32; Colossians 2:12-14; Luke 11:1-13

 

Theme: “Lord, Teach Us to Pray”

 

A.    A Brief Exegetical Analysis of Luke 11:1-13

 

1.      Historical and Literary Contexts

Jesus continues to teach his disciples as they travel toward Jerusalem, where his Passion, Death, Resurrection, and Ascension will occur. In this passage, he shares important lessons about prayer. Just before this, the disciples learned from Martha and Mary how to be both active and contemplative followers of Jesus (10:38-42). After this passage, the disciples will witness Jesus casting out a demon and dealing with some people who refuse to believe in his divine power (11:14-28). 

 

2.      Form, Structure, and Movement

This story includes sayings that can be regarded as parables. Luke arranges this account into three sections. Jesus first presents the “Lord’s Prayer” (vv. 1-4), then emphasizes the importance of persistence in prayer (vv. 5-8), and finally underscores the need to trust God when praying (vv. 9-13).

 

3.      Detailed Analysis

Vv. 1-4. The disciples of Jesus realize that, unlike John’s disciples, they do not know how to pray. Seeing Jesus praying alone on this occasion prompts them to ask Jesus to teach them. Jesus provides them with a Christian communal prayer, well known as “The Lord’s Prayer.” There are some differences between Matthew’s version and Luke’s. (1) Matthew’s version has seven petitions, while Luke’s has only five. (2) Matthew uses “Our Father,” whereas Luke simply says “Father.” By including “Our” before “Father,” Matthew emphasizes the family relationship among believers, all of whom are children of the same Father. In contrast, by stating that the disciples should address God simply as “Abba,” “Father,” as Jesus does (see Lk 10:21; 22:42; 23:34; 23:46), Luke aims to bring believers into the same close relationship with God that Jesus shares. (3) Luke does not emphasize the separation between heaven and earth as Matthew does through phrases like “Our Father in heaven” (Mt 6:8) and “your will be done, on earth as in heaven” (Mt 6:10).^[1]

Each of the five petitions in this prayer conveys virtues for believers to observe. The first petition is about the holiness of God’s name. Note that God manifests his holiness and sanctifies his name through his Son, Jesus. Through this petition, Luke asserts that believers should contribute to the process of sanctifying God’s name by practicing Jesus’ teachings. The second petition expresses the believers' longing for God’s kingdom to come. This is the kingdom of peace, justice, and love that Jesus has established, which all disciples and believers are called to continue implementing wherever they live. The third petition evokes the physical food necessary for their daily survival. This is to ensure they are strong enough to carry out Jesus’ mission. It also reflects their reliance on God’s sustenance each day. In the fourth petition (v. 4), believers are challenged first to be capable of forgiving their offenders before expecting God to forgive their sins. The final petition is “Do not subject us to the final test.” The Greek word that Luke used here is peirasmos, which means test or temptation. This petition does not imply that God subjects believers to temptation; rather, it asks to be spared from a period of severe trial, sometimes referred to as “messianic woes” and identified here as the “final test,” which, according to Jewish apocalyptic writings, will occur before the end of the age.^[2]

Vv. 5-8. The housekeeper's reaction in this parable, “Do not bother me; the door has already been locked and my children and I are already in bed” (v. 7), is realistic given the Palestinian-Jewish customs of the time. In those days, the whole family in a peasant home slept on the floor in a single room, above the animals. Unlocking the door at night would have been unreasonable because the father would have to step over everyone sleeping to reach it; additionally, removing the wooden or iron bar that secured the door was a tiresome and noisy process that would not only disturb the family but also create a fuss among the livestock.^[3] Jesus conveys two lessons here. (1) Persistence in prayer: if friendship cannot convince this father in the parable to get up at midnight and assist his friend under such circumstances, then the persistence of a petitioner can. (2) The generosity of God: if this father in the parable, who is human, ultimately helps the persistent man, how much more will God act out of love?    

Vv. 9-13. Jesus first teaches his disciples about the process of prayer, which he summarizes in three imperative verbs: “ask, seek, and knock.” The focus here is not on what to ask but on how to pray. Second, through the parable of a snake versus a fish and a scorpion versus an egg, Jesus encourages his disciples to trust God when they pray, because God knows what to give to those who ask him.

   

4.      Synthesis

First, Jesus teaches his disciples the Christian communal prayer known as the “Lord’s Prayer.” This prayer consists of five petitions, each conveying Christian virtues to believers. (1) Believers should contribute to sanctifying God’s name by practicing Jesus’s teachings. (2) They are called to continue implementing the kingdom of justice, peace, and love that Jesus established. (3) The physical food necessary for their daily survival ensures they are strong enough to carry out Jesus’ mission. It also reflects their reliance on God’s sustenance each day. (4) They must first be capable of forgiving their offenders before expecting God to forgive them their sins. (5) They ask to be spared from a period of severe trial, sometimes referred to as “messianic woes” and identified here as the “final test,” which, according to Jewish apocalyptic writings, will occur before the end of the age. Second, Jesus encourages them to be persistent in prayer and reassures them of God’s generosity. Third, he teaches them the essence of prayer, which focuses not on what to request but on how to pray. He also urges them to trust God because God knows what to give to those who ask him.

     

B.     Pastoral Implications

 

1.      Liturgical Context

Today’s Scripture readings invite us to learn and teach others to pray to God with perseverance and complete trust in him, because God answers us when we call for help, as our Responsorial Psalm says.

 

2.      What the Church Teaches Us Today

First, realizing that they don’t know how to pray, the disciples ask Jesus to teach them. We should not hesitate to learn how to pray to God, especially when it comes to spontaneous prayers. Since prayer is our spiritual food, we should aim to improve it every day. Second, we are called to teach others to pray to God, mainly through our examples. Jesus’ prayer life has inspired his disciples. We should not feel ashamed, unworthy, or shy about praying to God, particularly vocally and in front of others. Our prayer life can inspire those around us and motivate them to do the same.

Matthew’s version of the “Lord’s Prayer” uses “Our” before Father, highlighting the family bonds that must exist among us, who are all children of the same Father. In contrast, Luke’s version simply states “Father,” emphasizing the close relationship that we, as children, should have with God, our Father. By bringing both versions together, praying the “Lord’s Prayer” encourages us to cultivate perfect relationships with God and one another.

Each petition in the “Lord’s Prayer” that Jesus teaches us in the Gospel highlights virtues we are called to uphold. The first petition urges us to demonstrate the holiness of God’s name through our actions by living according to Jesus’ teachings. The second petition asks that the kingdom of justice, peace, and love that Jesus established on earth become visible. It is our mission as Christians to spread God's kingdom wherever we go. In the third petition, we request the daily bread we need to survive so we can stay strong enough to fulfill Jesus’ mission. It also reminds us that we depend on God’s provision every day. The fourth petition challenges us to forgive those who offend us before seeking God's forgiveness for our own sins. In the fifth petition, we ask God to protect us during difficult times of trial, sometimes called “messianic woes” and described here as the “final test,” which, according to Jewish apocalyptic writings, will occur before the end of the age.

Through the parable of a man who helped his friend at midnight, not out of friendship but because of his friend's persistence, Jesus encourages us to be persistent in prayer and reassures us of God’s generosity. The story of the dialogue between Abraham and God in our first reading provides a model of prayer that emphasizes perseverance. In this account, God decides to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah due to their sins, and Abraham wants to know how many righteous people must be found among the wicked for God to save everyone. From the suggestion of fifty to ten innocent people, Abraham persists six times in his efforts to save Sodom and Gomorrah. We, too, are called to keep persisting and not to give up when we pray to God.

Through the parable of a father who, despite being wicked, cannot give his son a snake when he asks for a fish or a scorpion when he asks for an egg, Jesus teaches us about the essence of prayer. This prayer emphasizes not what to ask for, but how to pray. He also encourages us to trust God because He knows what to give to those who ask him.

Saint Paul reminds us that through our baptism, we are buried with Christ and raised with him by faith in the power of God, who raised Jesus from the dead. Therefore, let us strengthen our prayer life by learning and teaching others how to pray, by meaning everything we ask God in the “Lord’s Prayer,” and by praying with persistence and complete trust, believing that God answers us when we call for help, as we sing in our responsorial Psalm. Amen. 

 

Fr. Leon Ngandu, SVD

Pastor of Holy Family Catholic Church, Jackson, MS &

SVD USS Biblical Apostolate Coordinator   

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[1] Michael F. Patella, The Gospel According to Luke, 78.

[2] NABRE, note to Matthew 6:13.

[3] Michael F. Patella, The Gospel According to Luke, 79.