{"id":15242,"date":"2025-10-19T00:00:37","date_gmt":"2025-10-18T23:00:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tad.scot\/?p=15242"},"modified":"2026-01-03T20:08:11","modified_gmt":"2026-01-03T20:08:11","slug":"29th-sunday-in-ordinary-time-10","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tad.scot\/?p=15242","title":{"rendered":"29th Sunday in Ordinary Time"},"content":{"rendered":"

The phrase \u201cinsanity<\/em> is<\/em> doing<\/em> the<\/em> same<\/em> thing<\/em> over<\/em> and<\/em> over<\/em> again<\/em> and<\/em> expecting<\/em> different<\/em> results\u201d<\/em> is often wrongly attributed to Albert Einstein. It is frequently quoted in inspirational talks and writings and has gained even more popularity through a widely acclaimed 2012 video game, where it was used as a catchphrase by one of the leading characters. The quote\u2019s popularity perhaps stems from its simple message about the futility of repetition as a means for success, as well as an apparent rejection of the well-known wisdom captured in an old proverb: \u201cRepetition<\/em> is<\/em> the<\/em> mother<\/em> of<\/em> learning.\u201d<\/em> Although on the surface, both quotes seem to contradict each other, they are actually complementary. Many skills can only be acquired and developed through repeated practice; anyone who has learnt to play a musical instrument can attest to this. Those who have failed might refer to the other saying: \u201cInsanity<\/em> is<\/em> doing<\/em> the<\/em> same<\/em> thing<\/em> over<\/em> and<\/em> over<\/em> again<\/em> and<\/em> expecting<\/em> different<\/em> results.\u201d<\/em> Whether repetition leads to success or failure depends on how it is practised; it seems \u201cinsane\u201d when unreflective, but highly effective when paired with critical reflection on mistakes and errors that comes either from one\u2019s own self-assessment or feedback provided by others. In fact, combining these two sources of critical views can produce the best results. Self-assessment may be overly optimistic (see any candidates in the TV show \u201cThe Apprentice\u201d<\/em>) or pessimistic; a healthy amount of unbiased, kindly critical feedback can counteract this – that\u2019s what good coaches and managers do. Sometimes, such critical feedback can unintentionally stem from incidental events; a wise person would always consider it.<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s gospel tells a fictional story about mostly unsuccessful interactions between a widow and a heartless judge. The parable might feel quite unfamiliar to us because it doesn\u2019t mirror how our modern justice system works. The main element in this story is a vast disparity between the all-powerful, arrogant judge and the widow, who was effectively powerless in society at the time. Her repeated appeals to the judge looked like a practical illustration of \u201cinsanity is doing<\/em> the<\/em> same<\/em> thing<\/em> over<\/em> and<\/em> over<\/em> again<\/em> and<\/em> expecting<\/em> different<\/em> results\u201d,<\/em> but in the end, she achieved her goal. \u201cJesus told his disciples [this] parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart.\u201d<\/em> The experience of prayers going unanswered by gods is as old as humankind. It was as familiar to Jesus\u2019 audience as it is to each one of us. The parable in today\u2019s gospel can reflect our feelings of being powerless against the Almighty God, who seems to ignore our pleas. Did Jesus tell us that we have to soften God\u2019s heart by insistent repetitions? Does it contradict Jesus\u2019 encouragement from his \u201cSermon on the Mount\u201d: \u201cAsk, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened\u201d? (Matthew 7:7-8)<\/em><\/p>\n

The main cause of frustration with unanswered prayers is a misunderstanding of the purpose of Christian prayer. Even among Christians, it is often viewed as a one-way act of presenting needs or pleas beyond our own abilities, which the Almighty should instantly respond to through some form of divine intervention, whether providing the lucky numbers for the upcoming lottery draw or helping us out of a sticky situation. Such a view of prayer is much closer to pagan or naturalistic religions of the ancient world than to Christianity. In his teachings, Jesus frequently depicted God as a loving Father, as in the conclusion of the previously mentioned passage from the \u201cSermon on the Mount\u201d: \u201chow<\/em> much<\/em> more<\/em> will<\/em> your<\/em> Father<\/em> who<\/em> is<\/em> in<\/em> heaven<\/em> give<\/em> good<\/em> things<\/em> to<\/em> those<\/em> who<\/em> ask<\/em> him!\u201d<\/em> (Matthew<\/em> 7:11).<\/em> That image is critically important to our understanding of Christian prayer as an intimate dialogue with God, a loving relationship where we are led to greater human, Christian, and spiritual maturity. It\u2019s an approach that everyone here is familiar with, whether as a parent, a child of parents, or both. As children, we often looked at our parents\u2019 rejections of our pleas as cruel, unreasonable or loveless, while they had the exact opposite view. Only having had our own children, do we find ourselves in a similar situation, being silently or openly accused of being cruel, unreasonable or loveless. We want our children to trust us, to believe that whatever we do is for their greater good. We try to achieve such trust by reasoning with them. Those conversations are not always successful on the first attempt, but if we continue the dialogue, the mutual understanding and trust have a chance to develop.<\/p>\n

This is exactly what Christian prayer is all about. We share with the Almighty our desires, dreams, plans, needs, and so on, but with open hearts and minds, recognising that He might not fulfil them immediately, in the way we expect, or at all. Christian prayer is never a one-sided monologue where we present our wish list to God. Instead, it is a dialogue in which we are being schooled. The main question is the one Jesus ended his parable with: \u201cWhen the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The phrase \u201cinsanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results\u201d is often wrongly attributed to Albert Einstein. It is frequently quoted in inspirational talks and writings and has gained even more popularity through a widely acclaimed 2012 video game, where it was used as a catchphrase by one of the leading characters. The quote\u2019s popularity perhaps stems from its simple message about the futility of repetition as a means for success, as well as an apparent rejection of the well-known wisdom captured in an old proverb: \u201cRepetition is the mother of learning.\u201d Although on the surface, both quotes seem to contradict each other, they are actually complementary. Many skills can only be acquired and developed through repeated practice; anyone who has learnt to play a musical instrument can attest to this. Those who have failed might refer to the other saying: \u201cInsanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.\u201d Whether repetition leads to success or failure depends on how it is practised; it seems \u201cinsane\u201d when unreflective, but highly effective when paired with critical reflection on mistakes and errors that comes either from one\u2019s own self-assessment or feedback provided by others. In fact, combining these two sources of critical views can produce the best results. Self-assessment may be overly optimistic (see any candidates in the TV show \u201cThe Apprentice\u201d) or pessimistic; a healthy amount of unbiased, kindly critical feedback can counteract this – that\u2019s what good coaches and managers do. Sometimes, such critical feedback can unintentionally stem from incidental events; a wise person would always consider it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":14051,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-15242","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sermon","category-year-c"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/tad.scot\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/posts-headers-green.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tad.scot\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15242","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tad.scot\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tad.scot\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tad.scot\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tad.scot\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=15242"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/tad.scot\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15242\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15244,"href":"https:\/\/tad.scot\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15242\/revisions\/15244"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tad.scot\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/14051"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tad.scot\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=15242"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tad.scot\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=15242"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tad.scot\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=15242"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}