Author: admin

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Gospel: Luke 13: 22-30

Jesus passed through towns and villages,
teaching as he went and making his way to Jerusalem. 
Someone asked him,
“Lord, will only a few people be saved?” 
He answered them,
“Strive to enter through the narrow gate,
for many, I tell you, will attempt to enter
but will not be strong enough. 
After the master of the house has arisen and locked the door,
then will you stand outside knocking and saying,
‘Lord, open the door for us.’
He will say to you in reply,
‘I do not know where you are from.
And you will say,
‘We ate and drank in your company and you taught in our streets.’
Then he will say to you,
‘I do not know where you are from. 
Depart from me, all you evildoers!’
And there will be wailing and grinding of teeth
when you see Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob
and all the prophets in the kingdom of God
and you yourselves cast out.
And people will come from the east and the west
and from the north and the south
and will recline at table in the kingdom of God. 
For behold, some are last who will be first,
and some are first who will be last.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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John Stephen Akhwari was chosen to represent Tanzania at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, running the 26-mile marathon. There were 75 competitors from 41 countries. It was a brutal race at a punishing altitude.

Though his chances of winning the marathon were slim, they dropped to zero after he stumbled, smashed his shoulder, dislocated his knee, and was nearly trampled to death by a group of other runners jockeying for position.

After receiving emergency medical treatment, he pushed the doctors away, got up and continued the race.

Almost an hour after a winner was crowned – and nearly every spectator left the stadium – Akhwari stumbled across the finish line.

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When asked why he didn’t quit – even after dislocating his knee, he said, “My country did not send me 5,000 miles to start the race. They sent me 5,000 miles to finish the race.”

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In today’s Gospel, someone asks Jesus, “Lord, will only a few people be saved?” It’s something we may have wondered, too. How many people will enter the kingdom of God?

While our first reading from the prophet Isaiah says there will be “many nations,” and the Gospel says that people will come from the, “east, west, north, and south,” Jesus does not give an exact number or percentage.

He only encourages us to, “Strive to enter through the narrow gate.” 

To “strive” means, “to struggle or to fight vigorously.” It’s a very physical verb implying effort; grit; momentum. 

Think of those athletes striving to win first place in that Olympic marathon. John Steven Akhwari was nearly trampled to death because people wanted to win! 

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Thankfully, our journey together towards the kingdom of God is not that kind of race. We don’t have to compete with one another; it isn’t a zero-sum game. Everybody can enter the race; everybody can win. 

Still, in today’s Gospel, Jesus teaches us that heaven’s entrance is “narrow.”

Imagine if Jesus said, “The gate leading into the kingdom of God is ‘pretty wide,’ let’s say wide enough to fit 7 out of every 10 people.” 

Most of us would respond, “Great! That means I’ve got a better than average chance of getting in. So long as I’m living a slightly better life than my neighbor, I should be okay!”

But that’s not what he says. He says it’s, “narrow.”

Why not have a wide, easily accessible entrance?

Why must it be narrow?

When ancient cities had wide gates, enemies could sneak in with large crowds; it was nearly impossible to discern who was coming or going.

Cities with narrow gates admitted people in a single file line, much like airport security today. There was no sneaking in; each person was screened individually and either permitted or denied access.

The same idea applies to God’s kingdom; each person is screened individually as we are held accountable for our actions. God either allows or denies us access.

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The good news is that the door is open.

“After the master of the house has arisen and locked the door,” Jesus says, “then you will stand outside knocking and saying, ‘Lord, open the door for us.’ He will say to you in reply, ‘I do not know where you are from.’”

We should all strive to enter into a relationship with God now, securing a place in his kingdom. If we mosey along at a snail’s pace, expecting the door to be open whenever we decide to show up, then we may find it closed.

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How much effort are we putting into the race? Are we moseying along? Or “striving” to enter through the narrow gate?

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“My country did not send me 5,000 miles to start the race. They sent me 5,000 miles to finish the race.”

Just as John Stephen Akhwari never gave up – in spite of the hardships he faced – so you and I must be like well-trained athletes striving to enter the kingdom of God.

Our vision statement reminds us of this: “We are all generations journeying together with Jesus to satisfy our hungry hearts. Come and see!”

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Image credits: (1) Western Hills Church of Christ – Podbean (2) The Ultimate Display of Determination, YouTube (3) Quora

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Gospel: Matthew 22: 1-14

Jesus again in reply spoke to the chief priests and the elders of the people in parables saying, 
“The Kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king
who gave a wedding feast for his son.
He dispatched his servants to summon the invited guests to the feast,
but they refused to come.
A second time he sent other servants, saying,
‘Tell those invited: “Behold, I have prepared my banquet,
my calves and fattened cattle are killed,
and everything is ready; come to the feast.”’
Some ignored the invitation and went away,
one to his farm, another to his business.
The rest laid hold of his servants,
mistreated them, and killed them.
The king was enraged and sent his troops,
destroyed those murderers, and burned their city.
Then the king said to his servants, ‘The feast is ready,
but those who were invited were not worthy to come.
Go out, therefore, into the main roads
and invite to the feast whomever you find.’
The servants went out into the streets
and gathered all they found, bad and good alike,
and the hall was filled with guests.
But when the king came in to meet the guests
he saw a man there not dressed in a wedding garment.
He said to him, ‘My friend, how is it
that you came in here without a wedding garment?’
But he was reduced to silence.
Then the king said to his attendants, ‘Bind his hands and feet,
and cast him into the darkness outside,
where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.’
Many are invited, but few are chosen.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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Did you ever show up to school without doing your homework?

To me it was the worst feeling ever, as if the entire day was over before it began.

Even if I knew I didn’t do it, I’d still turn my bookbag upside down and give it a good shake pretending it’d magically fall out.

My teachers were never fooled. 

They knew as well as I did that I was simply unprepared. Still, I tried to provoke mercy out of them by making excuses.

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In the Gospel, Jesus uses a parable to describe the end of the world, and thus, the final judgment.

There are two groups: those who are permitted to attend the eternal banquet and those who are not. Each person is judged by a sole criterion: whether or not they’re wearing a wedding garment.

We might say, whether or not they’ve done their homework.

The white wedding garment symbolizes a pure heart. Anyone who’s stained their lives with impurity or sin cannot enter.

It sounds harsh. It is harsh.

But the Gospel reminds us about the importance of living holy lives.

Meaning, we go to confession; we attend Mass; we read the Word; we pray; we make room for God in our daily lives; we serve Him in our neighbor.

We do our homework.

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Whatever it takes to make sure we arrive at the banquet dressed appropriately, where there is a seat saved for anyone who has desired it – and lived accordingly.

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Image credits: (1) NeverThirsty (2) ThoughtCo (3) Endofthematter.com

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Ezekiel 34: 1-11

The word of the Lord came to me:
Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel,
in these words prophesy to them to the shepherds:
Thus says the Lord GOD: Woe to the shepherds of Israel
who have been pasturing themselves!
Should not shepherds, rather, pasture sheep?
You have fed off their milk, worn their wool,
and slaughtered the fatlings,
but the sheep you have not pastured.
You did not strengthen the weak nor heal the sick
nor bind up the injured.
You did not bring back the strayed nor seek the lost,
but you lorded it over them harshly and brutally.
So they were scattered for the lack of a shepherd,
and became food for all the wild beasts.
My sheep were scattered
and wandered over all the mountains and high hills;
my sheep were scattered over the whole earth,
with no one to look after them or to search for them.

Therefore, shepherds, hear the word of the LORD:
As I live, says the Lord GOD,
because my sheep have been given over to pillage,
and because my sheep have become food for every wild beast,
for lack of a shepherd;
because my shepherds did not look after my sheep,
but pastured themselves and did not pasture my sheep;
because of this, shepherds, hear the word of the LORD:
Thus says the Lord GOD:
I swear I am coming against these shepherds.
I will claim my sheep from them
and put a stop to their shepherding my sheep
so that they may no longer pasture themselves.
I will save my sheep, 
that they may no longer be food for their mouths.

For thus says the Lord GOD: 
I myself will look after and tend my sheep.

The Word of the Lord.

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Today is a day to pray for priests – that we may be worthy shepherds, that we may lead our communities to Christ, that we may stand humbly before the judgment seat of God, ready to offer an account for our ministries.

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In our first reading from the Book of Ezekiel, the Lord condemns the shepherds of Israel. 

“Woe to the shepherds of Israel,” he says, “who have been pasturing themselves! … You did not strengthen the weak nor heal the sick nor bind up the injured. You did not bring back the strayed nor seek the lost, but you lorded it over them harshly and brutally.”

These religious leaders were out to serve themselves. 

And consider the result.

“My sheep were scattered for the lack of a shepherd, and became food for all the wild beasts.”

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These words remind me of two things:

The responsibility that the Lord places on the shoulders of priests – to act in His name, to celebrate the Sacraments, to lead, to govern, to heal, and to serve. 

And the trust that the sheep – God’s people – rightfully place in their leaders.

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Let’s pray for all who serve God’s people, myself included, that we may devote ourselves to what matters most: leading souls to Christ, the Shepherd of us all.

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Image credits: (1) St. Catherine of Siena Academy (2) ShareCatholic.com (3) Psephizo