The Door That Opens Only One Way
Updated: Sep 6
“On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were… Jesus came and stood among them.”John 20:19
It clicks shut behind you. The sound is small and final. You can leave. The person who remains cannot follow.
Some doors in hospitals and other large buildings are made this way. For safety. For order. For reasons that make sense on paper. That does not remove the feeling they leave behind. One person can walk out. The other cannot.
Jesus knew both sides of a closed door. After he rose from the dead, his friends hid in a locked room. He came in and stood among them. He also knew what it was to be left outside.
You do not have to apologise for using the door when your work requires it. You also do not have to pretend that the difference is nothing.
Walk through when you must. Remember the one who cannot.
At Mass we come in freely and we are sent out again. Many people we love cannot come with us. Christ is not only in the church we leave. He is already in the room that stays locked.
If you are the one who leaves, leave with care.
If you are the one who stays, you are not forgotten.