8 August 2020
Memorial of Saint Dominic, Priest
In today’s first reading, the prophet Habakkuk raises a timeless question about God’s justice in the face of suffering: “Why, then, do you [God] gaze on the faithless in silence while the wicked man devours one more just than himself?” Habakkuk’s lament is offered when he tastes both injustice and also God’s apparent silence or absence. After speaking from the depth of his heart to God with this bold yet honest question, Habakkuk seeks to listen to the Lord’s reply. God doesn’t offer him an easy answer, but God does not remain silent in the face of his prayer. After Habakkuk’s prayer with God, he writes that “though the fig tree does not blossom, and no fruit is on the vines; though the produce of the olive fails and the fields yield no food…yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will exult in the God of my salvation” (my emphasis). Habakkuk ends his book with a prayer of trust and praise of God even in the face of a situation that is painful and unjust. This response of the prophet teaches us something about prayer and God’s consolation. Too often we can expect God’s consolations and God’s answer to prayer to take away all hardship or to bring pleasant moments or feelings. But the Psalms, the Prophets like Habakkuk, and even Christ himself on the cross, teach us that God’s consolations can be offered to us in ways that do not take away the pain, but bring us joy, trust, patience, and fidelity in the midst of it all. Habakkuk teaches us to bring our doubts, fears, and even our anger to the Lord in prayer. Through this revelation of our heart, we give the Lord the opportunity to mold our hearts into ones more like his: giving us the gift of his presence which brings with it the ability to rejoice, to trust, and to praise the God of our salvation no matter what we are experiencing. Let us learn from the prophet today and let our prayer be touched by the depth of honesty before God – seeking consolations from him in times of blessing and times of woe.