Once again, Jesus is presented with an intriguing question which he did not answer but used to impart an important teaching. “Lord, will only a few people be saved?” Jesus replied by saying, “Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I tell you, will attempt to enter but will not be strong enough.”
Jesus did not tell how many will be saved but who will be saved. He made his listeners understand that what is more important to know is not how many will be saved but rather how one can be saved.
We are all called to salvation. This is the very reason why Jesus came on earth and became man. He came that all may have life, and have it abundantly. (cf Jn 10:10) And he came to save not only the people of Israel, but all peoples. Already in the Old Testament, the call to universal salvation was echoed by the prophets. The first reading describes Isaiah’s vision of God who gathers all the nations of every language to come and see his glory in Jerusalem, his holy mountain. A similar image is evoked at the end of the gospel where “people will come from the east and the west and from the north and the south and will recline at table in the kingdom of God.”
However, Jesus also tells us that while the door to salvation is open to all, it is narrow and difficult. Only those who are willing to pay the cost will succeed in passing through. What does this mean? Only those who are willing to follow Jesus all the way can be saved.
To better understand this, we need to remember the context of today’ gospel. It opens with Jesus making his journey to Jerusalem to fulfill God’s plan of salvation through his death and resurrection. On his way, he preaches in the towns and villages which provide a fitting platform for his teaching on discipleship (following Jesus). To attain salvation, it is not enough to listen to Jesus who teaches along the way. To be saved one has to follow him all the way to Calvary and to the cross. That is why we read at the end of the parable that the door of the kingdom is closed to those who claim, “[But] we ate and drank in your company and you taught in our streets.”
Salvation is not an entitlement or a claim born of some religious affiliation or presumption. It is not even guaranteed by one’s being circumcised or baptized. Salvation is attained by entering the narrow door who is Christ himself. “I am the gate. Whoever enters through me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture.” (Jn 10:9)
Jesus is the door that leads us to communion with the Father. It is narrow, not because it is oppressive but because it is demanding. It requires us to die to our pride, selfishness, sinfulness… so that we can rise with Christ’s own life of goodness, love and grace. Yes, the door of Christ is narrow, but it is always open wide and welcoming to all.
“Lord, will only a few people be saved?” Four years ago, Pope Francis received a similar question (but with a twist) during a question-and-answer session held with a group of children. When it was little Emmanuele’s turn to ask the Pope, he froze in front of the microphone and burst into tears. The Holy Father motioned the boy to come and whisper his question to his ears. The Pope then enveloped him with his embrace, and they talked privately. The Pope then sent him back to his seat and addressed the people.
With Emmanuele’s consent, the Pope shared his question with the audience. This is what the boy said: “A little while ago my father passed away. He was a non-believer who had all four of his children baptized. He was a good man. Is dad in heaven?” “God is the one who says who goes to heaven,” the pope explained. He then asked the children to think about what God is like and, especially, what kind of heart God has: “What do you think? God has a dad’s heart. And with a dad who was not a believer, but who baptized his children and was a good man, do you think God would be able to leave him far from himself? Does God abandon his children when they are good?” The children shouted, “No.” “There, Emmanuel, that is the answer,” the pope told the boy. “God was surely proud of your dad, and you should be too, because he was a good man who wanted what was best for his children.”