Wrestling with God

THROUGH UNTRUE

- FR. ROLANDO Y. DELA ROSA, O.P.

It is deeply frustrating when our prayers go unanswered. We begin to wonder if praying is just a waste of time and effort. In our desperation, we cry out: "Awake, O Lord! Why do You sleep? Why do You hide your face?" (Psalm 44:23).

Prayer can feel like wrestling with a God who seems unmoved by our pleas. But if it is any consolation, Jesus Himself had this experience. Hanging from the cross, wounded, abandoned, and in pain, He longed for a word from the Father. Yet, all He received was silence. In that moment, Jesus became the perfect model for anyone who feels that God is indifferent to his pleas.

I remember presiding over a funeral Mass for a man who had died in a car accident. After the service, his widow approached me in tears and asked, "Why did God allow this to happen?" My first instinct was to share what I had learned in the seminary about undeserved suffering. But I stopped myself. I thought it might come off as dismissing her grief, or worse, making excuses for God's silence.