Tuesday in the Twelfth Week of Ordinary Time

                           

In St. Matthew we read, “Enter through the narrow gate” (Mt. 7:13).  But in St. Luke this saying of Jesus is much stronger: “Strive to enter through the narrow gate” (Lk. 13:24).  The Greek word for strive is agonizomai.  It means to fight hard, to do battle, and even to endure agony.  Do you want to be saved?  Then the war is on.  St. Paul says, “It is necessary for us to undergo many hardships to enter the kingdom of God” (Acts 14:22).

The title of one of Ralph Martin’s books is “Will Many Be Saved”.¹ He writes that Western culture is in a post-Christian age.  It’s far more difficult to follow Christ now without the social and cultural supports we once had.  Many people are drifting along with the culture on the broad way. The point of his book is to stress the urgency of evangelization, because the Mystical Body of Christ is the only way we can share in God’s divine nature.  It is the narrow gate, and along the way there will be many sufferings and battles to win.    

1. https://www.renewalministries.net/wordpress/comments-by-dr-ralph-martin-on-fr-robert-barrons-review-of-will-many-be-saved/