EVERYONE’S INVITED…
… THROUGH THE NARROW GATE
INTRODUCTORY RITES
INTRODUCTORY RITES
Gather as a family/ community; create an environment appropriate for prayer (dress appropriately - switch off your phones...).
We cannot gather as usual for the Eucharist. But we are conscious that Christ is present not only in the Blessed Sacrament but also in the Scriptures and in our hearts. Even when we are on our own, we remain part of the Body of Christ.
Place lighted candles, a crucifix, and the Bible on a covered table. These remind us of the sacredness of our time of prayer and could help us feel connected with our local worshipping communities.
You may sing or play an appropriate hymn. For instance:
The Sign of the Cross
Greeting and Introductory Words
L: The Lord invites us to the table of his Word: let us bless him for his goodness.
A: Blessed be God forever.
L: Everyone likes to go to a house where the doors are open in welcome. That is how Jesus wants the Church to be: a house of welcome open to anyone. But at the same time the door is narrow. Everyone is invited but entry is through the narrow gate!
We pray that we may welcome all people into our hearts and follow the discipline of the narrow gate.
Penitential Rite
L: For the times we have excluded people from our lives and communities, we ask the Lord to forgive us.
Pause
L: Lord Jesus, you caution us that it is not enough to enter through the narrow gate:
Lord, have mercy.
A: Lord, have mercy.
L: Lord Jesus, you caution us that it is not enough to eat and drink in your company:
Christ, have mercy.
A: Christ, have mercy.
L: Lord Jesus, you remind us that people will come from all nations
and will recline at table in your kingdom:
Lord, have mercy.
A: Lord, have mercy.
L: May almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us our sins, and bring us to everlasting life.
A: Amen.
Gloria
Opening Prayer
L: O God of the nations,
you have invited people of every race
to the banquet of your kingdom.
May all who are called to your table
come by the narrow way
to the unending feast of life.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God for ever and ever.
A: Amen.
THE LITURGY OF THE WORD
Readings
The readings are those assigned for the day in the Lectionary.
Preferably use a Bible/ Lectionary for reading.
Reading 1 Isaiah 66:18-21
Psalm Psalm 117:1, 2
Response Go out to all the world and tell the Good News!
Reading 2 Hebrews 12:5-7, 11-13
Acclamation
Alleluia, alleluia.
I am the way, the truth and the life, says the Lord;
no one comes to the Father, except through me.
Gospel Luke 13:22-30
Reflection on the Readings
Use one of the following ways to reflect on the readings.
Lectio Divina
Imagine you are with Jesus as he goes through towns and villages, making his way to Jerusalem. What are your thoughts and feelings when you hear the question “Lord, will only a few people be saved” and Jesus’ response?
Sunday Snippets
Over the last few years, we have become used to seeing “no entry” signboards: “no mask, no entry”; “no vaccine, no entry”. These are health-related bans.
Outside a place of worship in South India hangs a signboard that reads: “No entry for dogs and Christians.” There are some beaches and restaurants in India where no Indian is allowed! Shocking!
But there are many places with equally shocking “no entry” signboards even if these are less obvious and perhaps invisible. Some churches in India do not allow Dalit Christians to enter. In Anumanthanpatti in southern India, they have a separate cemetery and an exclusive hearse.
Very little has changed from biblical times! The Jews, especially the Pharisees and the Scribes, had a “no-entry” sign on the gate of heaven: there was “no-entry” for non-Jews; there was “no entry” for tax collectors and prostitutes; there was “no entry” for those broke the smallest of the commandments. The Jews considered that they were the “chosen ones” and the kingdom of heaven was exclusively for them.
This attitude prompts the question we heard in today’s Gospel: “Will those who are saved be few?”
Jesus, typically, does not answer the question. He refuses to speculate on numbers, on who’s in and who’s out. He looks forward to the time when people will come from east and west and from north and south, and sit at table in the kingdom of God. He looks forward to the fulfilment of Isaiah’s vision in the first reading (Isaiah foretells a time when people from all nations, on all modes of transport, shall come to Jerusalem).
The “no-entry” signs are off. Jesus’ signboard reads: EVERYONE’S INVITED; there are neither reserved places nor favoured people. But there is the fine print: entry is restricted to those who choose the “narrow gate”! Jesus changes the focus from general statistics to the individual and to individual responsibility. We must walk his way of the cross and keep his commandment of love.
All of us have no “no-entry” signboards.
What are the “no-entry” signs in my life? Whom do I exclude from my circle of life and my circle of relationships?
What is the meaning of the narrow gate for me? Am I ready to choose the discipline of the narrow gate?
Let us ask Jesus who welcomed all, who loved all to help us remove the “no-entry” signs from our lives and to give us the strength to walk through the narrow gate.
Questions to Ponder
Reflect on some (or all) of the following questions:
Reading 1: It is God’s plan to save all humankind. How can I help in the realization of this plan? Do I exclude people from my life? What could my parish or the Church as a whole do to be more inclusive?
Reading 2: The reading asks us to “strengthen our drooping hands and our weak knees.” Do I “work out” spiritually? How? What must I do to prevent become spiritually “flabby”?
Gospel: For me, what does the image of the narrow door represent? What kind of strength does it take to enter the narrow door? How will I get the strength?
If God loves all people, why isn’t the door wider? Who, in my estimation, are the ones outside? Why isn’t “eating and drinking” with Jesus enough to enter the kingdom?
The Creed
Prayer of the Faithful
L: My sisters and brothers, we have responded to God’s invitation to come to his Kingdom. We therefore pray with confidence for all people: Lord, hear our prayer.
R: For the Church: that Christians from east and west, north and south may work together in confronting evil, poverty, and disease and thus proclaim the Gospel in deeds and words, we pray…
R: For the world: that God may help us to heal division and mistrust in society, to speak respectfully of one another, and to pursue the common good, we pray…
R: For all who are experiencing trials and disciplines: that God may strengthen their spirits and help them to be open to the pruning and renewing work of God’s Word, we pray…
R: For those working to promote racial and inter-religious harmony: that God may guide their efforts and help all to give witness to the dignity of each person, we pray…
R: For better stewardship: that the Lord grant us the wisdom to care for the earth and help us to act for the good of future generations and all his creatures, we pray…
R: For ourselves: that the Spirit may give us the grace we need to enter through the narrow gate by living lives of love, forgiveness, self-control, and service, we pray…
L: Lord God, you want all people to be saved. Help us to be open to every person and culture. Make us humbly recognize the good that is found everywhere, and to recreate and perfect it in the image of Jesus Christ, your Son and our Lord for ever and ever.
A: Amen.
SPIRITUAL COMMUNION
The Lord’s Prayer
Spiritual Communion
A: Jesus, I know and believe in your real presence in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Eucharist. It is you I desire to love and receive above all things. As I am unable to receive your sacramental presence now, come and be with me in heart and soul. Let my entire self be united with you as I welcome you again and know your loving embrace. Amen.
Post Spiritual Communion Reflection
Lord,
you gather every kind of people into your kingdom:
the shy and the noisy,
the simple-hearted and the movers and shakers,
the common man/woman and presidents.
Give me the grace to be inclusive like you.
Lord,
keep me from becoming complacent about entering your kingdom.
Your gate is narrow, yet it opens easily.
Everyone has access to the key that opens it.
You gave it to us when you created us.
It’s the one with the sign on it that reads: love.
Teach me to love all people
and thus to choose the narrow gate.
CONCLUDING RITE
Concluding Prayer
L: God our Father,
you have given us Jesus, your Son,
as the door through which we enter
into your kingdom.
Help us to listen to his voice
and to follow him without reserve.
May our authentic Christian living
bring goodness and joy to this world
and lead us to you, our saving God.
Through Christ our Lord.
A: Amen.
Blessing
L: The Lord bless us, protect us from all evil, and lead us to everlasting life.
A: Amen.
L: Go in the peace of Christ.
A: Thanks be to God.
Conclude with a hymn. For instance:
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