TWENTY-FIRST SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
21 AUGUST 2022
Someone
asks Jesus a question that has been haunting disciples for centuries: “Lord, will only a few people be saved?” Jesus does not answer the question directly. The key to his answer lies in the fact that
he is making his way to Jerusalem. In
the Gospel of Saint Luke, Jesus begins his life in Jerusalem. His parents present him in the Temple when he
is an infant. They find him in the
Temple when he is twelve years old after searching for him for three days. Saint Luke structures his Gospel on the
journey of Jesus to Jerusalem. When
Jesus will enter Jerusalem, he will enter through the narrow gate of his
passion, death, and resurrection to accomplish what the many sacrifices in the
Temple could not accomplish:
reconciliation with the Father and the destruction of the power of
death.
On the way, he announces the Good
News of the Kingdom of God to everyone.
In effect, he is fulfilling the prophecy of Isaiah who promised that God
would invite everyone to realize his saving power on his holy mountain,
Jerusalem. On his way to Jerusalem,
those who are first in villages and towns reject him. The religious authorities, especially the
scribes and the Pharisees, challenge him and ignore his invitations. Those who are regarded as sinners and the
poor peasants listen to his teachings and believe in him because of his
miracles and healings. Some have even
left their families and belongings to join him on his journey as disciples.
Jesus directs his answer to us, his
disciples who have joined him on our pilgrimage to the new and eternal
Jerusalem. He speaks to us every Sunday
in his Word. He feeds us with his Body
and Blood, inviting us to recognize the signs of his presence in our daily
lives. In our pilgrimage together, we
must do everything possible to remain his disciples as we walk as pilgrims with
him. He reminds us that we must enter
that same narrow gate that he entered.
The Letter to the Hebrews gives us
some insight into our pilgrimage. The
Letter was written to those Christians who had been practicing their faith for
a long time. As a result of their faith,
they were experiencing persecution and prejudice. The Letter reminds them that the pilgrimage
of faith is a marathon, not a sprint!
The Letter encourages them to see their pain and difficulties not as
punishment from God, but as discipline.
The author uses the term “discipline” four times to encourage them to
see these difficulties as training, correction, and guidance to help the
listener to continue to walk faithfully the pilgrimage of faith.
The Letter speaks to us on our
pilgrimage. We find it difficult when we
suffer prejudice or even persecution from others for living our faith. We are often tempted to pursue the wider gate
of taking care of our own concerns instead of dying to them and attending to
the needs of others. We find it easier
to pursue our daily tasks instead of setting aside time for the discipline of
daily prayer. We tend to protect the
precious talents that God has given us to take care of our own needs instead of
putting ourselves in humble service of others.
It is always easier to enter the wide gate of accumulating possessions, lots
of stuff, and positions of power instead of sharing a generous portion of our
wealth with the poor.
As we walk on this pilgrimage, we
need to remember that the gift of salvation is a freely given gift from
God. We do not earn our salvation by
doing good works. But we have been given
free wills. We can choose to accept this
gift by acting like disciples, and not by being disciples in name only. The Lord freely offers this gift. It is ours to receive it and enter through
the narrow gate.
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