For many years I taught an undergraduate course in Religious Studies designed primarily for first year college students. Each semester I asked the class to read the autobiographical part of the Confessions of St. Augustine which tells the story of the author’s own journey and eventual personal and intellectual acceptance of the Christian faith. While written more than 1,600 years ago the Confessions read as if they were written just yesterday. The book wisely addresses the most pressing human questions: is there a really a God and, if so, what should we believe about this God? Does God have the power and desire to heal us? Why do we suffer if God is all powerful, good, and loving? How should we live in a complex world divinely graced but also struggling with human suffering and sin? How are we to love God and each other in pursuit of the moral life?   

In Augustine’s life story it was during the times he was most vulnerable and suffering from serious illness in mind, body, and spirit that he realized more than ever that the God of Jesus Christ was very near to him in real and powerful ways. Augustine described God as the Divine Physician who sent Jesus Christ into the world as Healer of the body and soul of the human person. Augustine gradually came to believe and experience that God was protecting him and guiding him toward a new and different life.

I am especially moved by the first reading from Hosea. The name “Hosea” in Hebrew is likely an abbreviation for “Yahweh saves” which are consoling words for us to hear. The passage in today’s reading “…he will heal us, he has struck us, but he will bind our wounds” and “[h]e will revive us…he will raise us up, to live in his presence” are also welcome words indeed for us right now. In times of suffering, anxiety, and fear we want to know that God cares about us. The book of Hosea is especially complex and challenging to interpret due to the depth and passion of the prophet’s thought and message. But a central theme throughout the book is that Yahweh loves and guides the people of Israel even when they are seriously unfaithful and when they are suffering worldly defeats and communal disasters. In the end the prophetic message of Hosea is one of salvation and acceptance of the people by a powerful and loving God.

Luke’s Gospel today gives wise counsel in our stance before prayer which we also need during this challenging time. Jesus teaches in Luke’s Gospel that we best approach prayer when we recognize our own serious need and vulnerability before the God who has made us and loves us. God does not abandon us in times of need. Yet we are reminded that humility and recognition of our utter dependence on God is in a way a starting point for prayer. St. Augustine also came to experience this in his life and the scriptures today present to us a Lord who desires to heal and save. 

We now struggle to face a complex and frightening global health problem as the coronavirus spreads quickly around the world and deep into the heart of our communities. This present and deeply serious human challenge forces us to confront significant medical, social, and economic consequences for the world and for our daily lives. Our current situation also presents us with fundamental spiritual challenges and important questions: how should we pray during these days? How are we to best help and support each other and especially the most vulnerable members of our families and society? What is the meaning of our present suffering? What might these experiences teach us about our lives and our relationship with God?

St. Augustine—who in the moments of his own serious illness that included pain, suffering, and searing doubt and questioning—eventually found a new way of being in the world in loving God and those around him. St. Augustine’s story can offer us hope and guidance in our own lives now. So too can today’s scripture readings. We can trust that God will be near to us and hear us now and in the days ahead.
–Francis T. Hannafey SJ

Each day’s readings are available here at the US Catholic Conference of Bishops website.