The gospel for the 29th Sunday is the parable of the “Unjust Judge and the Persistent Widow.” Language and etymology can tell us a lot. The word chḗra, meaning “widow,” derives from a root meaning “forsaken.” Widows are associated with others who are disadvantaged, e.g., orphans, aliens, or day laborers. They suffer wrongs (Is. 10:2) or loss of rights (1:23). They are held in low esteem (54:4); cf. their special clothes (Gen. 38:14). Yet the OT enjoins all the righteous to be kind to widows. God is their refuge, and he helps them to their rights (Ps. 146:9; Dt. 10:18). He threatens judgment on those who wrong them and promises blessing to those who assist them (Ex. 22:21ff.; Jer. 7:6)

The gospel for the 29th Sunday is the parable of the “Unjust Judge and the Persistent Widow” which begins in v.2, “There was a judge in a certain town.” A more literal translation: There was a certain judge in a certain town, echoes a previous passages – a certain rich man who experienced an abundant harvest or a certain rich man (fool) who lived in purple garments and fine linens but never gave heed to poor Lazarus.  

This judge is likely a local magistrate yet of notable status within the community. Despite his exterior bearing Jesus characterizes him as someone who neither feared God nor respected any human being (v.2).  In the scriptural tradition The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge (Prov 1:7) and the threshold of God’s grace: His mercy is from age to age to those who fear him (Luke 1:50).  Fear (holy awe) is the manner in which he disciples and others respond to Jesus’ power (8:25, 35; 9:34, 45). Further, Jesus instructs the disciples not to fear their persecutors but to fear God (12:4-5).  Luke portrays those who “fear God” in a positive manner (cf. Acts 10:2, 22, 35; 13:16, 26).  It can be taken that a lack of such fear is a sign of one’s thorough wickedness.  The statement that the judge does not fear God points to 2 Chron 19:7, where King Jehoshaphat appoints judges in Judah, charging them, “And now, let the fear of the LORD be upon you. Act carefully, for with the LORD, our God there is no injustice, no partiality, no bribe-taking.” Without such fear, can one expect justice or impartiality except with a bribe?

The gospel for the 29th Sunday is the parable of the “Unjust Judge and the Persistent Widow.” This parable is a twin of the parable of the neighbor in need (11:5-8). Both are used to illustrate the importance of persistence in prayer. Both present a person in need persistently pressing a request, and both parables call for reasoning from the lesser to the greater: If a neighbor or an unjust judge will respond to the urgent need and repeated request, then will not God also respond? It is an argument from lesser to the greater by which Jesus affirms the faithfulness of God – He will assuredly act on behalf of the righteous.

The widow’s actions are a model of perseverance in the midst of wrong. The literal translation of v.8 is not “faith” as a general category, but is “the faith” – that is the manner of faith demonstrated by the widow. She is certain of God’s justice and thus acts in resolute faithfulness in anticipation of that certainty. The parable is a metaphor for Jesus’ followers who also will encounter hostility, look for the deliverance that accompanies the coming of the reign of God – and not finding it in their lifetime, may become disheartened. Jesus insists that adversity is integral to the process by which God brings salvation (cf. 17:25, 32-34) – and assures his disciples that, despite delay, they are always to be rooted in hope (18:1-18).

The gospel for the 29th Sunday is the parable of the “Unjust Judge and the Persistent Widow.” It is Jesus’ parable about the necessity for them to pray always without becoming weary (v.1) stands as a climax for the longer section on faithfulness at the coming of the Son of Man (17:20-18:8). Read against the horizon of 17:22-37, Jesus’ teaching is particularly oriented toward the necessity of steadfast, hopeful faith in the midst of trials.

This parable is unique to Luke, as is the following parable on prayer (18:9-14, the gospel for the 30^th Sunday in Year C). Luke has a greater emphasis on prayer than the other gospels. In the following five synoptic events, Luke adds a comment that Jesus is praying that is not found in the other gospels:

• Jesus is praying at his baptism before heavens open (3:21)
• Jesus spends the night praying to God before selecting the twelve (6:12)
• Jesus is praying before he asks the disciples, “Who do the crowds/you say that I am?” (9:18)
• Jesus is praying on the mountain before the transfiguration. (9:28, 29)
• Jesus is praying before the disciples ask him to teach them to pray. (11:1)

On the 28^th Sunday in Ordinary Time the story of the 10 lepers and the portions of Luke’s gospel that precede those verses, dealt with forgiveness, faith and gratitude. There is a portion of Luke’s gospel that is passed over in the Ordinary Time sequence – Luke 17:20-37.  The passage is known in the New American Bible as “The Coming of the Kingdom of God” and “The Day of the Son of Man.” You can find the passage here. At first read this somewhat apocalyptic text seems misplaced – aren’t those readings located in Jerusalem just prior to the Passion? But Luke has a logic for inclusion of vv.20-37. 

The disciples had asked that their faith be increased and they were told that they did not understand the nature of faith (17:5-6). As almost a counterpoint, the one leper who returns in gratitude to Jesus (vv.15-16) is told that his faith has saved him (v.19). The experience of the leper, seeing his healing and praising God, offers an apt illustration that the kingdom of God is among you (v.21) even as the Pharisees ask in v.20 when the kingdom of God would come.