Alfonso Gálvez 
The Importunate Friend 

The Importunate Friend contains three meditations. The first, from which the book receives its title, is based on the Parable of The Importunate Friend. Fr. Galvez interprets it as a story of prayer that teaches man how to talk to God. He centers on the sense of insistency portrayed in the text that reflects the audacity necessary in true prayer, for God has chosen to desire to speak with him but requires a true will to communicate on man s part. The other two meditations are a protest against falsehood and the misuse of power in the world. In The love of truth, the author speaks of the importance of sincerity in a world of deceit, explaining that the only way to be truly free and avoid being manipulated is virtue and fidelity to the gospel. The last meditation, The poor widow, searches for the quintessence of true poverty, attempting to unmask the falsehood present in any organization or person that masquerades poverty for fame or profit. Fr. Alfonso explains in this part of the book that the Christian virtue of poverty is by definition meek and unknown, and, as the poor widow must be practiced to the extreme of giving all one has to live on. True poverty is seen in Jesus on the cross, abandoned by all, not in emotive images present in donation campaigns. The Importunate Friend is one of the most lyrical of Fr. Galvez’s books while remaining consistent with the acute and profound gospel analysis so characteristic of his works. It is ideal for traditional Catholics and all who search for God.