After talking about the narrow door and the need to struggle to enter into it, Luke also records Jesus' saying on the requirements of discipleship. The requirements are not new, they are found here and there stated in the Gospel of Luke. What is new is that Jesus warns those who think of following him to think it through first. There are requirements to be met; discipleship is not for the happy-go-lucky.
Read the articles below and use the rest of this page as a guide for your reflection.
1. In the two parables that Jesus tells in vv. 28-30 and 31-32 respectively, there is an implicit invitation to be "wise". He wants his would-be followers to make a decision based on the knowledge of the project to be undertaken and the knowledge of one's capacities. The intent is clear: to weed out those who follow him on account of a mistaken notion. Catholics in the Philippines -- some people say -- are not given the opportunity to think through a life for Christ because it has been imposed on them in childhood. This allegation is not quite true: a Catholic may have been baptized in childhood, but he/she is given ample opportunities to decide for or against Christ in his/her life. From childhood to adulthood, he/she is introduced into the Christian life by stages:
- in preparation for Confirmation
- in preparation for Holy Communion and Penance
- in preparation for Marriage
- in the yearly Easter rites where he/she is invited to renew the baptismal vows
- in the weekly Sunday Mass where he/she professes in public the faith of the Apostles
- in some cases, the daily Mass, where in the sacrament of Communion he/she is invited to join his/her life with Christ
- whenever a member of the family receives a sacrament: of the priesthood, matrimony, the anointing of the sick
- whenever he/she partakes of the sacraments with regularity: Communion and/or Confession
- sometimes, in personal study or group study of the faith
The above list are just ways by which the baptized Catholic deepens his /her knowledge of the Christian life and become more aware of his/her status as child of God.
How have you been deepening your knowledge of the Christian life and the requirements of your own baptism?
2. The two parables mentioned above also leave us the impression -- and this is intended in the words of Jesus -- that the Christian life, the life of the "sequela" is a serious matter. There is an instance in the Acts of the Apostles where Luke mentions how some who started well, actually finished "last": the story of Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:1-11). Read the story and try to find out what exactly was the problem of those two.
3. In the article I pointed to above I mentioned several episodes/sayings/parables in Luke related to the requirements of discipleship spelled out in vv. 26-27. Try rereading those passages in context and ask yourself this question:
Have I experienced in my life any or all of these requirements calling me to come to terms with my own life as a Christian? When? How did I respond?
The website of the MSC based in Peru have an interesting illustration of this Sunday's gospel linked with the narrow door saying of Jesus. Look at it here and reflect: What is the relationship of those two episodes in the Lucan gospel and what do they say about my life as a Christian?
