21 August 2022
Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time
Where do we come from and where are we going? Two crucial questions as we contemplate the origin and destiny of our lives. To a Christian, the answer is clear. We come from love and to love we are to return. To believe that we are created from love and for love, and to live accordingly, that is the goal of our lives.
Today’s gospel presents the well-known image of the narrow gate. What’s striking is that once the doors are locked, the master of the house says to those who are locked out, not once, but twice, “I do not know where you come from.” They answer about the time they spent with the Lord and what they saw the Lord do, but they are unable to answer where it is they come from, and they are left outdoors.
“I come from love, and to love I am returning,” may be simple to say. But living it out is another story. It requires that we examine all those corners of our lives, of our hearts where the rays of love seldom hit, those corners we believe are unworthy. It requires a felt knowledge of that love that then overflows in our actions and in our words towards others. This is not easy. But if we are faithful in our journey of love, we will leave behind us a wake that widens and invites others to walk through that door to our final resting place.