Reflection for the 21st Sunday of Ordinary Time, Cycle C
The lectionary translation of the readings for this Sunday can be found HERE
1st Reading:
Isaiah 66:18-21
This end-times prophecy, comes from the end of the Book of the Prophet Isaiah. It shares a theme from the Gospel wherein people from every nation come and enter the kingdom.
2nd Reading:
Hebrews 12:5-7, 11-13
We continue from the Letter to the Hebrews from where we left off last week. The message, as you will hear, is to endure the trials resulting from the struggle to resist sin. Accept the trials as disciplinary actions from a loving God.
Gospel:
Luke 13:22-30
“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!’” Lk 13:25-27
Setting & Parallels:
This is still part of Luke’s travel narrative of Jesus journey to Jerusalem which began at Lk 9:51. Matthew 7:1314 is a brief teaching about the narrow gate, after the giving of the Golden Rule.
Verse by Verse:
Lk 13:23a “Someone asked him…” | This question, and its answer, impart a sense of urgency to the need for reform.
Lk 13:23b “…He answered them.” | This indicates that he was speaking to all present, not just the one who asked him the question.
Lk 13:24a “Strive to enter through the narrow door…” | This was evidently a well-known saying meaning “don’t try to take the easy way.”
Lk 13:27a “…I do not know where you are from…” | This does not simply mean that he doesn’t know the place they are from but that he has no relationship with them at all. (UBS Handbook)
Lk 13:27b “…all you evildoers!” | This gives the real reason for their rejection and why the master does not know them. The master does not comport with evildoers.
Lk 13:28a “…wailing and grinding of teeth…” | This was a “well known description of the place where the rejected are after the final judgement.” (UBS Handbook)
Lk 13:30b “…some are first who will be last.” | This is a warning to the people to whom Jesus is speaking.
What the 1st hearers heard:
I assume they heard that we actually have to take part in our salvation, presumably by avoiding evil being active disciples.
What would change if our community really heard this Gospel?
We would practice conscious discipleship.
What is the good news in this Gospel?
People will be saved.
Gospel Reflection
Does God Know Who You Are?
When I was in the first year of seminary, for the Diocese of San Diego, we had regular sharing sessions. I don’t remember what they were called, nor do I remember their particular goal. What I do remember is one of the young seminarians, a kid in my estimation. He told a story from his life, which I no longer remember, and ended it with the words “that’s when I fell in love with God.” I’ll never forget that. I had never heard anything like that before. I had never considered being in love with God before. But I did know where this kid’s deep faith came from.
I think that is the point of this Gospel selection today. It’s not about what city or town the person knocking at the door was from. It’s about who he was. Jesus was saying “I don’t know who you are.” But, he was talking about the deeper sense of knowing a person. He was talking about the deeper person we get to know when we are in love, the person behind all of the external embellishments we present as who we are.
Think about the people you know, your friends and acquaintances, the people you like and the people you actually can say you love. What’s the difference? We know the people we love at a deeper level. We know who they are rather than just what they are. We’ve experienced who they are. We are concerned for their wellbeing and they for ours. How can we know God in this sense.
Jesus tells us how. At the Last Supper he tells the disciples “You are my friends if you do what I command you.” Jn 15:14 This may sound self-serving to you, and it may seem detached from knowing who Jesus is, but it’s not. This comment about doing what he commands comes right after he says, “This is my commandment: love one another as I love you.” Jn 15:12
Jesus isn’t talking about a legalistic following of the Law. He is talking about living the Law of Love and thereby experiencing his presence. If God is love, we experience his presence by truly loving another, in the Christian sense. One spiritual writer described it as experiencing a mysterious third presence. I can affirm that, and this mysterious presence strengthens us in our love for the other. It’s how we come to know the Lord deeply. It is how we, too, fall in love with him.
How do we love as Jesus commanded? Scripture tells us that too. It tells us who and how we should love and gives the story we call the Good Samaritan as an example. Jesus tells us himself that he is the example. Christian love is selfless concern for the well-being of the other, spiritual, emotional, physical, etc.; concern for the total well-being of the other. Conceptually, that is easy to understand, so let’s do it!
The question for this week is: For whom do we care in this manner, for whom do we not? Who specifically is God asking us to care for in this manner and what would it take to make that happen?
I suggest that we make our discipleship a conscious effort. We might take some time each day to ask ourselves how we have, or have not, fulfilled Jesus’ command. Can we commit ourselves to consciously try to fulfill his command each day? Can we commit ourselves to consciously trying to be his friend so that when we knock on the door, he will know where we are from?
God bless you all…
Personal Reflection:
“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!’” Lk 13:25-27
Question:
What words or phrases attracted your attention during the Liturgy of the Word on Sunday? What connection do those words or phrases have to your day-to-day life? (Why do you think they attracted your attention?) What might God be trying to say to you through these words or phrases? What response should you make? What action should you take?
Alternative:
Reflect upon/Share about people you love, in the Christian sense, and people you don’t. Who, among those you don’t feel you love, is the Lord calling you to love? What will it take to begin loving that person? What will it take for you to commit to trying?
