The Twenty-First Sunday in Ordinary Time – August 24, 2025
Those welcomed to the table in today’s Gospel reading are not the insiders—members of the master’s household or his neighbors and friends. Rather, it is the outsiders coming in from all corners of the earth to whom the master opens the door.
Many of our parishes in the United States are blessed with diverse communities, some celebrating together regularly in multiple languages and sharing a variety of customs and traditions. These parishes often work hard to address the unique and shared needs of those who make up their community. Furthermore, they look beyond those in their pews to notice who is missing. Still, even these communities recognize that they can always do more to ensure their doors are always open and that places are ready at the various tables of parish committees, liturgical ministries, decision-making groups, and leadership.
It is the outsiders coming in from all corners of the earth to whom the master opens the door.
On the other hand, some parishes see themselves as more homogenous, sharing the same ethnicity, language, or economic status. Therefore, they make little effort to extend a welcome since they believe everyone there is just like them—insiders with immediate access. Yet in these communities, even the smallest effort can begin to draw in those just waiting to be seen and recognized.
May our hearts and parishes never be a narrow gate but a welcome table for all.
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