Gospel & Reflection for the Twenty-First Sunday in Ordinary Time
Luke 13:22‐30
Through towns and villages Jesus went teaching, making his way to Jerusalem. Someone said to him, ‘Sir, will there be only a few saved?’ He said to them, ‘Try your best to enter by the narrow door, because, I tell you, many will try to enter and will not succeed.
‘Once the master of the house has got up and locked the door, you may find yourself knocking on the door, saying, “Lord, open to us” but he will answer, “I do not know where you come from.” Then you will find yourself saying, “We once ate and drank in your company; you taught in our streets” but he will reply, “I do not know where you come from. Away from me, all you wicked men!”
‘Then there will be weeping and grinding of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and yourselves turned outside. And men from east and west, from north and south, will come to take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God.
‘Yes, there are those now last who will be first, and those now first who will be last.’
Reflection
Friends, there is a story told of a Missionary who was sent to preach the Gospel to a Primitive tribe in Africa. In due course, the missionary learnt their language and was accepted among them. Before long, he was invited by the tribal elders to participate in their annual festival, a celebration of great importance to them. However, the missionary found the festival abhorrent and obscene. So, in powerful words, he denounced the festival and its rituals. Well, the natives did not appreciate his intervention, and violently beat him, nearly to death. He limped back to the village and continued with his missionary work as if nothing had happened.
On the same occasion the following year, he was again invited to the festival. He criticised it as he had done the year before, and once more was set upon for doing so. For nine consecutive years, he repeated his denouncement of the festival, with the inevitable outcome each time. Eventually, the missionary died, of natural causes. On the year following his death, as the time for the festival drew near, the Chief of the tribe sent an urgent request to the Church Headquarters, looking for another missionary. He said: “We must have another missionary. His denouncement has become an essential part of the show!”
Over the last few weeks, our readings have challenged us all to commit ourselves to discipleship, to dedicate ourselves to our Christianity. We are called to be the best disciples we can be, and not to count the cost. This weekend, the consequences of being that best disciple or not, are laid clearly out for us.
In our First Reading, the Prophet Isaiah reminds us that God is the Lord of all people and not just those who see themselves as His ‘chosen people’. Accordingly, every person is called to go out into the world and proclaim the Good News. St. Paul, in the Second is saying that being such a follower, proclaiming such ‘Good News’ is not easy and that it requires great discipline. Trials and pain can part of this discipline, but while it can be costly, failure to stay the course can cost even more. Then, in our Gospel, in speaking of the narrow door, Jesus is saying that we can never take salvation for granted. We must be committed, despite everything, to achieving it.
In short, our readings and especially the Gospel are telling us that our Faith must never simply become part of the show. If faith is just some harmless side show of our life and society, amusing and comforting when we need it to be but without commitment, then there is something wrong and we are off course regarding salvation. That already narrow door is even thinner than we think or expect.
We cannot be just spectators with our faith, we must be willing participants. Our faith should not be just lukewarm, it must be capable of setting the world ablaze in our witness to it. We are called to be actors in the beautiful and challenging drama of salvation, not just passive members of the audience!
People can be whichever one they want, but the result won’t be the same for everyone. We can’t spend our lives thinking about taking a leap of faith, we must take that leap, we must commit and land where we will. We can’t just sit on the fence. Christ wants more; He deserves more.
The Gospel calls for commitment; it asks for courage; it seeks faithful followers. When people consider all of that, sometimes it seems too big an ask of anyone, the door seems just too narrow from a distance for all that is required of us. But often, if we take that first step, if we take the leap of faith and live our faith fearlessly, we will see that the door is not that narrow after all.
So, let us do what Christ asks us to do today. Let us be focused and attentive about where He is leading us and be committed in doing our best, to strive always to get there. By our efforts, the Lord will bring us not just to the door, but through the door. He will bring us to life eternal.
Fr. Richard
