Jesus frequently compared heaven to a wedding feast and to a family gathered around the table. In our human experience, in fact, these represent some of life’s most beautiful and serene moments. But how many will enter heaven, how many will take their place in that “banquet hall”?
One day, Jesus was asked this question: “Lord, will only a few people be saved?” (Lk 13:23). As he did on other occasions, Jesus went beyond the question and brought his listeners face to face with a choice that must be made, inviting them to enter God’s house.
But this is not easy. The gate is narrow and it remains open only for a while. In order to follow Jesus, we must deny ourselves; we must give up, at least spiritually, our selves, our possessions and the persons we’re tied to. He even says that we must carry the cross as he did. It is a difficult way, it’s true, but with his grace we can all make it.

«Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I tell you, will attempt to enter but will not be strong enough»

It is easier to enter when “the gate is wide and the road broad.” Jesus speaks of such a way elsewhere, but this way can lead to “destruction” (see Mt 7:13). In our secularized world, dominated by materialism, consumerism, hedonism, by vanity and violence, so much seems acceptable. We tend to satisfy every need, to give in to every compromise in our quest for happiness.
But we know that true happiness is obtained by loving and that self denial is the necessary condition for being able to love. We need to be pruned in order to yield good fruit. We need to die to ourselves in order to live. It is the law of Jesus and one of his paradoxes. Today’s mentality envelops us like a swift-flowing river and we need to swim upstream: for example, we must give up the longing to possess, we must avoid disagreements on matters of principles and we must not defame our adversaries. But we should also carry out our work honestly, and with generosity, without hurting the interests of others; we should evaluate carefully what to view on television, what to read, and so forth.

«Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I tell you, will attempt to enter but will not be strong enough»

For those who let themselves go and for those who choose an easy life and who do not have the courage to face the journey proposed by Jesus, a sad future lies ahead. This too is in the Gospel. Jesus speaks of the suffering of those who will be left outside. It will not be enough to boast of belonging to one’s religion or to be satisfied with living Christianity merely in its traditions. It will not help to say: “We ate and drank in your company and you taught in our streets” (Lk 13:26). No one can take salvation for granted.
It will be unpleasant to hear the words: “I do not know where you are from” (Lk 13:25). It will mean loneliness, desperation, the absolute lack of relationship, the burning regret of having had the possibility to love and to no longer be able to love. This is a torment whose end it is not possible to see because it will never end: “And there will be wailing and grinding of teeth” (Lk 13:28).
Jesus warns us because he wants what is good for us. He is not the one who closes the door; we are the ones who shut ourselves off from his love. He respects our freedom.

«Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I tell you, will attempt to enter but will not be strong enough»

If the wide gate leads to perdition, the narrow one is fully open to true happiness. Every winter is followed by the blossoming of spring. Yes, we must be ready to practice the self denial the Gospel demands, and be willing to shoulder our cross every day. If we accept suffering with love, in unity with Jesus who assumed all our sufferings, we will experience a foretaste of heaven.
This is the way it was for Robert when he went to the final court appearance of the man who, four years earlier, had caused his father’s death. After the sentence was read, the man, together with his wife and father, was desolate. “I felt like going over to him,” Robert said, “overcoming my pride which told me not to. I wanted him to know that we were not enemies.”
“They are the ones who should ask pardon of us,” his sister pointed out. Robert, however, persuaded her and together they approached the “opposing” family: “If this can lessen your pain, know that we do not bear any grudge against you.” They earnestly shook hands with one another. “I had seized the opportunity to look at the suffering of the other person and to forget my own,” Robert later said, “and I felt a great joy.”

Chiara Lubich