The time is coming to gather all nations and tongues. And they shall come and shall see my glory.
This Sunday, the readings invite us to look beyond our own surroundings and reflect on the universality of Christ’s Church.
In the First Reading, Isaiah, seeking to encourage the people of Israel after their return from exile, assures them that ‘the time is coming to gather all nations and tongues’ to see the Lord’s glory.
The short Psalm calls on all peoples and nations to praise their ever-faithful Lord.
For the writer of the letter to the Hebrews (Second Reading), being a son or daughter of God involves behaving as a child should, accepting a parent’s discipline, so that they can later enjoy ‘the peaceful fruit of righteousness’.
The Gospel takes the ideas of the First Reading even further. Belonging to a particular faith community will not in itself guarantee our being able to enter the ‘narrow door’. People from all nations will be accepted to share the banquet of the Lord.
As Pilgrims of Hope in this Jubilee Year, we pray that people from every nation might be treated with dignity and find a welcome as they seek peace and a place of safety, not least in our own country. We remember especially those trying to escape the evils of modern slavery.
