Category: Uncategorized

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Gospel: Luke 13: 31-35

Some Pharisees came to Jesus and said,
“Go away, leave this area because Herod wants to kill you.”
He replied, “Go and tell that fox,
‘Behold, I cast out demons and I perform healings today and tomorrow,
and on the third day I accomplish my purpose.
Yet I must continue on my way today, tomorrow, and the following day,
for it is impossible that a prophet should die
outside of Jerusalem.’

“Jerusalem, Jerusalem,
you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you,
how many times I yearned to gather your children together
as a hen gathers her brood under her wings,
but you were unwilling!
Behold, your house will be abandoned.
But I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when you say,
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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Something fishy is going on here.

Both King Herod and the Pharisees want Jesus dead. Yet, in today’s Gospel, the Pharisees warn Jesus about Herod’s intention to kill him, as if they’re trying to keep him safely out of Jerusalem.

Why? 

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Politically, it’d be much easier for Herod and the Pharisees to rid themselves of Jesus by having him disappear voluntarily than it would be to kill him. Christ has won the hearts of the people; executing him would come at a cost. 

But even death threats will not deter Jesus from doing his Father’s will. He knows exactly what awaits him in Jerusalem, and he’s ready to embrace it. If the authorities want Jesus dead, then they will have to do it themselves.

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This fishy exchange between the Pharisees and Jesus reminds us that the Lord not only understands our fallen human nature, but also human politics.

Although we’d all like to believe that everyone is for us, that’s not always going to be the case. At times, there will be people either inside or outside of our circles who do not want us to succeed.

This was not only true for Jesus, it can also be true in our own families, at work, in the Church, or in society at large.

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Rather than flinching or breaking at the first sign of resistance, Jesus urges us to remain steadfast. The only one whose approval we seek should be our Father in heaven.

It was never between us and the rest of them anyway.

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Image credits: (1) Meadowbrook Church, Redmond, WA (2) The Catholic Thing (3) AZ Quotes

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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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“Lord, will only a few people be saved?” an anonymous person asks Jesus in today’s Gospel.

The Lord does not respond with a precise number or percentage. 

If he said, “Only 5% of humanity will be saved,” then we’d all be sweating! But if he said, 99%, then we’d be shouting for joy. We’d bet our odds, quickly presuming that the warlords, criminals, and evildoers in this world will be the 1% left behind.

But we simply don’t know.

“Strive to enter through the narrow gate” Jesus says. This verb “strive,” means to, “struggle; fight vigorously.”

Think of heaven’s gate as narrowly cracked, requiring force or momentum for us to squeeze through. 

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This does not mean that anyone will be excluded.

But think about heaven’s gate in terms of airport security. Although millions of people pass through our airports each year, each passenger is screened individually. If someone is not deemed a threat, then that person is allowed to pass through.

Similarly, every soul is “screened” by God – analyzed, purified, washed clean – before being allowed to enter into eternal life. 

This is what makes the gate narrow: individual responsibility.

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In what ways am I striving for eternal life? What gives me momentum? What slows me down?

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“Lord, will only a few people be saved?” an anonymous voice asks.

No, Christ died for all.

Thus, there’s a better question to be asked: “Grateful for what God has done, in what ways am I striving for eternal life?”

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Image credits: (1) Sound Cloud (2) Simply Catholic (3) Artza Box

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Gospel: Luke 6: 12-16

Jesus went up to the mountain to pray,
and he spent the night in prayer to God.
When day came, he called his disciples to himself,
and from them he chose Twelve, whom he also named Apostles:
Simon, whom he named Peter, and his brother Andrew,
James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew,
Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus,
Simon who was called a Zealot,
and Judas the son of James,
and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.

The Gospel of the Lord.

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Immediately before electing the Twelve Apostles, Jesus spent the entire night in prayer to his Father. I don’t imagine it took very long for the Lord to know who his Father had chosen; I can recite all of the Apostles’ names in less than a minute.

So, why did Jesus have to pray all night about it?

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I wonder if he struggled to accept that these were the men his Father wanted. 

Peter, the one who will sink into the Sea of Galilee; the one who will try to stop Jesus from entering Jerusalem; the one who will deny Jesus three times before abandoning him at the cross; the same one who will be entrusted with the keys to the kingdom.

Simon and Jude, whose feast day we celebrate today. Like Peter, they will abandon the Lord in his hour of greatest need. And well before that, they’ll will struggle with their faith, argue over who is the “greatest,” and fail to understand the paradoxes of Christ’s teachings. 

None of the Twelve are educated; none are wealthy, influential, or scholars of their religion. Many will struggle to get along.

And, of course, there’s Judas Iscariot, who will help to bring Christ’s life and ministry to a bloody end. 

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No wonder it took Jesus all night to pray – and, perhaps, to accept – what his Father wanted. But this will not be the last time he struggles in his prayer.

In Gethsemane, Jesus will plead with his Father again, “Let this cup pass from me.”

But his prayer ends with, “Not my will, but Thine be done.” 

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Sometimes we all struggle to understand or accept God’s will for our lives. (Some may also feel this way about our Church as our Archdiocese undergoes the restructuring called for in We Are His Witnesses). 

But Christ shows us that long periods spent in prayer strengthen us, lead us to acceptance, and fill us with peace.

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Image credits: (1) Learn Relgions (2) Drive Thur History (3) Catholic Virginian