The hearts of the congregation feel nourished with love and comfort when all sing the lyrics of Marty Haugen’s hymn, “All Are Welcome”:

Here the love of God, through Jesus,

Is revealed in time and space;
As we share in Christ the feast that frees us,

All are welcome, all are welcome,

All are welcome in this place.

The celebration of the Eucharist brings God’s family together. Take a moment or two to glance around the church before Mass begins. Our family in Christ is beautifully diverse.

Enter a Catholic church on any given Sunday morning, and you will see the Body of Christ fully alive in the faces of young and old waiting for the proclamation of God’s Word and the gift of the Eucharist. There are mothers nudging little ones into pews while adjusting collars and bows. You will find resourceful fathers rocking crying infants with a soothing little song or funny expression. Moving into a favorite pew, senior citizens smile at longtime neighbors before carefully kneeling in prayer. Even those nameless individuals who sit in the back or side pews are grateful to be considered part of the human family gathered in song and prayer as a community of love and acceptance.

As Jesus so often reminded us in his actions and words in the Gospel, we are all vital parts of the body of Christ. For those who seek to know the Father through Christ, Jesus invites them to grow spiritually with the grace of the Holy Spirit through liturgical and personal prayer, reception of the sacraments and works of charity.

Throughout his ministry, Jesus welcomed all with open arms of love and forgiveness. Remember the objections of the self-proclaimed righteous Pharisees when they were shocked to see Jesus enter the home of the tax collector, Levi. Jesus responded to their outrage with a statement of love and welcome to all who seek his teaching and intercession with God: “Those who are healthy do not need a physician, but the sick do. I have not come to call the righteous to repentance but sinners” (Luke 5:31-32).

The Good Shepherd, Jesus emphasized how he came to help his lost sheep find their way back to God. All are truly welcome to join our Catholic journey towards salvation.

How can sharing our faith through song in the Mass proclaim Jesus’ message of welcome to all?

In what ways can we help those who are not practicing their faith to know that they are Jesus’ lost sheep who are essential parts of the Body of Christ?

Kelly Galimi is a catechist at St. Patrick’s parish in Yorktown Heights.