Readings for Wednesday of the Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time[1][2]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
Commentary:
Reading 1 Rom 8:26-30
In the first paragraph of this selection St. Paul speaks about the impact the Holy Spirit has upon prayer. Even if one cannot express their needs, the Paraclete will search it out and intercede for Christ’s followers.
In the second part of the reading the Evangelist outlines the Christian vocation as God intended it to be. Because Christ existed eternally those called to him were carefully chosen or elected from the beginning of time to be called to salvation.
Responsorial Psalm Ps 13:4-5, 6[3]
R. My hope, O Lord, is in your mercy.
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
Commentary:
Reading 1 Rom 8:26-30
In the first paragraph of this selection St. Paul speaks about the impact the Holy Spirit has upon prayer. Even if one cannot express their needs, the Paraclete will search it out and intercede for Christ’s followers.
In the second part of the reading the Evangelist outlines the Christian vocation as God intended it to be. Because Christ existed eternally those called to him were carefully chosen or elected from the beginning of time to be called to salvation.
Responsorial Psalm Ps 13:4-5, 6[3]
R. My hope, O Lord, is in your mercy.
Look, answer me, O Lord, my God!
Give light to my eyes that I may not sleep in death
lest my enemy say, “I have overcome him”;
lest my foes rejoice at my downfall.
R. All my hope, O Lord, is in your loving kindness.
Though I trusted in your mercy,
Let my heart rejoice in your salvation;
let me sing of the Lord, “He has been good to me.”
R. All my hope, O Lord, is in your loving kindness.
Psalm 13 is an individual lament. The signer, who is ill, asks the Lord for salvation so their enemies will not think the illness is a punishment from the Lord.
Gospel Lk 13:22-30
Linking nicely to the first reading from St. Paul’s letter to the Romans, Jesus is asked how many will be saved. His response is that salvation comes with effort and that there is need to make that choice early because the “narrow gate” will not always be open. In the latter part of this reading we see that many of those first invited, the Jews, will reject Jesus and so those who are invited last, the Gentiles from the four corners of world, will come first to the Kingdom of God.
Reflection:
The image used today by Weigel does a nice graphical job of illustrating the point Jesus made in his answer to the question; “Lord, will only a few people be saved?” We see in the foreground the throng coming through the wide gate; the gate that does not restrict those who do not follow God’s laws. And in the distance we see the “narrow gate” and the path beyond that is difficult to travel. Not everyone wants that road.
If we think about the two choices offered it is easy to see why so many reject the narrow gate. They may know that it leads to eternal life, but it’s hard, that way that forces us to carry the poor and the downtrodden, to love one another. Many of our brothers and sisters will look at that way and say; “That is more sacrifice than I am willing to make.” They will see the Laws of God and of the Church as being to restrictive of their freedoms. It is not just in modern times that the narrow gate has stood as an unpopular choice. It has been so since the time of Christ. Is it any wonder that his answer to that question –“…will only a few be saved?” is a majority will choose the easier path. All are free to choose, some were able to choose the more difficult path.
Today our prayer must be two fold. First we pray thanking God for showing us the path to the narrow gate and we ask for his strength to stay on that path. Second we pray for those for whom that gate seems to be too much. We pray that they find the strength to see that, while the way is difficult, it leads to peace in this life and eternal life with the Father.
Pax
[1] After Links to Readings Expire
[2] The picture used today is Narrow and Wide Gates by Johann Christoph Weigel, 1695
[3] I provide the entire psalm today because it is short and because it uses two different responses.
Psalm 13 is an individual lament. The signer, who is ill, asks the Lord for salvation so their enemies will not think the illness is a punishment from the Lord.
Gospel Lk 13:22-30
Linking nicely to the first reading from St. Paul’s letter to the Romans, Jesus is asked how many will be saved. His response is that salvation comes with effort and that there is need to make that choice early because the “narrow gate” will not always be open. In the latter part of this reading we see that many of those first invited, the Jews, will reject Jesus and so those who are invited last, the Gentiles from the four corners of world, will come first to the Kingdom of God.
Reflection:
The image used today by Weigel does a nice graphical job of illustrating the point Jesus made in his answer to the question; “Lord, will only a few people be saved?” We see in the foreground the throng coming through the wide gate; the gate that does not restrict those who do not follow God’s laws. And in the distance we see the “narrow gate” and the path beyond that is difficult to travel. Not everyone wants that road.
If we think about the two choices offered it is easy to see why so many reject the narrow gate. They may know that it leads to eternal life, but it’s hard, that way that forces us to carry the poor and the downtrodden, to love one another. Many of our brothers and sisters will look at that way and say; “That is more sacrifice than I am willing to make.” They will see the Laws of God and of the Church as being to restrictive of their freedoms. It is not just in modern times that the narrow gate has stood as an unpopular choice. It has been so since the time of Christ. Is it any wonder that his answer to that question –“…will only a few be saved?” is a majority will choose the easier path. All are free to choose, some were able to choose the more difficult path.
Today our prayer must be two fold. First we pray thanking God for showing us the path to the narrow gate and we ask for his strength to stay on that path. Second we pray for those for whom that gate seems to be too much. We pray that they find the strength to see that, while the way is difficult, it leads to peace in this life and eternal life with the Father.
Pax
[1] After Links to Readings Expire
[2] The picture used today is Narrow and Wide Gates by Johann Christoph Weigel, 1695
[3] I provide the entire psalm today because it is short and because it uses two different responses.
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