The Relentless Widow

by Lia Scholl

Gospel  Reading: Luke 18:1–8

For Sunday, October 20, 2013: Year C—Lectionary 29

Our gospel lesson talks about a widow who wants justice. She goes to the judge to seek relief from her opponent. We're not told what her complaint is. What are the injustices that she seeks to rectify?

Parallel Passages?

Because it's Jesus telling the story, and Jesus would be so rooted in the Hebrew Scriptures, let's look to see what kinds of injustices widows faced:

• Tamar was promised the third son as a husband—Judah refused by dragging his feet, leaving Tamar without the protection of marriage and children.
• The widow of Zeraphath was facing starving to death.
• Naomi, the mother-in-law of Ruth, faced hunger and loneliness.

During the time of the Biblical times, being widowed left you without property, impoverished, and vulnerable to the whims of your closest male relative. Over and over again, the Hebrew Bible implores us to take care of the widows.

Annoying God

It is possible that our widow's opponent is a male relative. And it's highly likely that the injustice is a financial one. So the widow wears the judge down with her persistence, and the judge votes on her behalf.

Isn't it great when we convince someone to vote our way?

Unfortunately, though, this passage is often interpreted to mean that we should petition God for the things we want. And that if we annoy God enough, we'll receive whatever it is. So there's the rich pastor pestering God for more riches. There's the young woman worrying God for a lover or spouse. There's the cancer sufferer insisting on God's intervention and healing.

The Hardest Question

So, if I wear God down, will God fix everything?

And if not, how does this interpretation work through our congregations? If you believe that if you just ask enough, God will make you rich, what does your poverty say? If you believe that if you just ask enough, God will give you the desires of your heart, what happens when your heart is broken? And if you believe that God will heal your body if you only ask enough times, what happens as your body wastes away?

Is this really how God works?

Rev. Lia Scholl serves as pastor at the Richmond Mennonite Fellowship in Richmond, Virginia and is a sex work ally, a Board member at the Red Umbrella Project. Her book, I <3 Sex Workers, is forthcoming from Chalice Press. Find out more at www.liascholl.com or you can find her on twitter at http://twitter.com/roguereverend.