In the book “Essential Spiritual Writings” by Fr. Ron Rolheiser, this parable from G.K. Chesterton offers a lot of food for thought: “A man who was entirely careless of spiritual affairs died and went to hell. And he was much missed on earth by his old friends. His business agent went down to the gates of hell to see if there was any chance of bringing him back. But though he pleaded for the gates to be opened, the iron bars never yielded. His priest also went and argued: ‘He was not really a bad fellow; given time, he would have matured. Let him out, please!’ The gates remained stubbornly shut against all their voices. Finally, his mother came; she did not beg for his release. Quietly and with a strange catch in her voice, she said to Satan: ‘Let me in.’ Immediately, the great door swung open upon their hinges. For love goes down through the gates of hell, and there redeems the dead.” Monsignor Ellsworth Walden writes that Jesus came into our world, knocking at the door of every heart, seeking to embrace us with His unconditional love. While He made a great impact, His seeking and knocking on hearts is still a work in progress. Not everyone opened their hearts to Him. He faced the wrath of hell as He endured rejection and His passion and death on the cross. Yet even there, He kept seeking and knocking. All He had to gain was every person who responded with humble faith and joy for eternity. Jesus does not wait for us to be perfect; he loves us as we are now. That puts the ball in our court. How wide do we open the door of our hearts to Him? Is prayer a nourishing, hopeful time every day, or is it just another thing to check off the list of things to do? Is Sunday Mass an uplifting, life-giving experience, or is it just another thing to check off for a routine Sunday? There is nothing routine about Jesus and His love for us. We can ignore Him and His love and become blasé and indifferent. But as much as we try and test His love, He will never give up.