The Kitchen Sink
An occasional piece of paper
October 21, 2007
Vol. 10 no. 38

Everything But...
           If there ever needs to be proof that Jesus was fully human and fully experienced in the grittier parts of life, then this parable of the unjust judge, or better the nagging widow, is the pudding.
           One has to keep in mind the stated purpose for the parable: that one ought to always pray and not lose heart. Pray unceasingly and pray knowing it will do something. It is easy to find oneself off the beaten track in this tale.
           The unjust judge who cares for neither God nor humanity immediately riles up our spirit. We rely upon worthy judges in our society, but in the first century a judge was barely above the level of a corrupt tax-collector. The judge had infinitely more power, quite brutal power, and there were no poor judges back then, so actually a judge was not a man of justice.
           This story is really no surprise to its original listeners - “tell me something new” - though it shocks us. The widow having a legitimate claim to justice is not surprising either, for widows were frequent targets of abuse and manipulation. The judge was probably being bribed by her adversary, so he was not budging and compassion was not part of his vocabulary.
           Fortunately, the widow too had no compassion for the judge. She was not concerned about how tired he was and whether he was irritated at her continual pleading. In fact, she knew annoying and irritating was the back door way into justice. The angels in heaven would not necessarily be rejoicing at her final vindication, but as we have seen in our generations, when a matter of social justice triumphs, the former oppressors who relent and give in are never happy and pleased. This is the way God works, Jesus reminds us, and is that something new?