Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time

Today's Mass Readings

“Will only a few be saved?” This is a challenging question that is put before Jesus. How many will be saved when the Final Judgment happens? Who will be ushered into the final light in Heaven? How do we grapple with these questions? Jesus doesn’t mince words on the matter. He instructs his listeners to strive to enter the narrow gate. It is not enough to walk along an easy path in life. We are called to sacrifice. We are called to be holy.

The prophet Isaiah speaks of a time when God’s people would come from all places to be reunited in Jerusalem on God’s holy mountain. They would come from as far as Tarshish. This place was located in modern-day Spain and was on the Western edge of the Mediterranean World. Isaiah showed God’s word would spread to all places. The responsorial psalm declares that we go out and spread the good news to all nations. Hebrews offers us encouragement. We are called to accept our “trials” as “discipline.” What son is not disciplined by his father, and what child is not disciplined by the parents? We are coming closer to God even in our trials.

Finally, the Gospel ends with Jesus promising that many would come “from the East, the West, the North, and the South” to find salvation. Jesus fulfills the promise of Isaiah in that many from all nations would come to find salvation. “For behold, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.” The moral is that we are to live in faith so that we may enter the Narrow Gate that leads to life and not fall away from the grace Jesus gives us.

I want to share a story about my Grandfather, Leo Marie. He passed away when I was only five. He was always a man of strong Catholic faith and devotion. One of his sons, my uncle George, was killed in a car wreck decades ago, before I was even born. My grandfather never imagined that he would have to bury one of his own children. A lawyer advised my grandfather to sue the other occupants in the car. My grandfather asked the lawyer if that would bring his son back. The lawyer said it obviously wouldn’t, and thus my grandfather said that he had no intention of suing his son’s friends. He chose to forgive because of his Christian faith. As my grandfather chose to forgive in light of his faith, we are called to act in faith as we walk towards the Narrow Gate, always preparing and always getting ready for the day of Salvation. Amen.

Reflection by Br. Matthew Marie, OSB