Asking for answers

Today is the liturgical memorial of Saint Patrick.  This is the day that all the world wants to be Irish, or at the very least meet a leprechaun.  In fact one of the priests who lives with me presented special gifts to all our staff (at least the female staff members): beads to be worn in honor of the festival day.

On such a day of celebration, it's worth reflecting for just a moment on the work of Saint Patrick himself.  He was a bishop who spent his life teaching and preaching the good news of the Gospel.  I'm willing to bet that if he were alive today he would have some ingenious way of explaining the finer points of today's scripture readings and his reflection would certainly leave people with a bit of good news to ponder.  Isn't that the hope of all those who are entrusted with the task of proclaiming this good news?

Specifically, the scripture readings for today remind us of the power of prayer to ask for the protection we desire, to ask for the blessings we want, to request the help we need and to trust that when we do our prayers will be heard.  The theme is reflected in the prayer of Ester and in the prayer of the psalmist who says with great confidence Lord on the day I called for help, you answered me, and even in Matthew's gospel passage (7:7-12) as he encourages us to never be afraid to seek the things we need, for we will always find, to knock with full confidence that the door will be opened, and to ask with confidence, trusting even as we pose the question that the request will be heard and responded to.

What a remarkable demonstration of faith this would be.  Perhaps we should all pray for the gift of faith, the same faith that enabled Saint Patrick to preach the gospel is entrusted to us, and if we truly believe that it is, the possibilities are endless.