Isa 25:6-10; Psa 23; Phil 4:12-14,19-20; Matt 22:1-14
THEME: THE FEAST IS FREE BUT THE GARMENT IS NOT
Dearest friends, the readings of today, especially the first and the third readings, present to us, the theme of an invitation to a wedding feast, organized and prepared by the Lord himself. In the first reading, from the Prophet Isaiah, the Lord makes a promise of this eschatological banquet to which everyone is invited. It is not a feast for just the ‘men of the town’ but for all. In the gospel reading, the failure of ‘those who have been invited’ to the wedding feast makes it possible for the invitation to be made free for everyone. A couple of things to reflect on the readings include:
1.MORE IMPORTANT THINGS TO DO THAN ATTENDING THE FEAST OF THE LORD?
From time to time, we get invitations to some activities like wedding, funeral, child’s dedication, opening of houses etc. And whenever we fail to honor such invitations, it is almost always because we have superior reasons not to attend. When our personal things or things that we consider more important clash with the date for the invited activities, we tend to choose to let pass the invitation. In the gospel reading, those who were invited to the wedding feast, declined because they had other things, they considered important: attending to their farms and businesses (that is, securing their material goods).
Many of us have what we consider more important than making ourselves available to the Sunday participation in the feast of the Lord – the feast of the Holy Eucharist. Many of us have what we consider more important than responding to the Lord’s call to get ourselves ready for the eschatological banquet. Many of us have made our farms and businesses (i.e. earthly pursuit of wealth) to be more important than the things of God. How many times do you offer excuses for missing out in the assembly of the children of God, just because of worldly occupations? When we fail to be present in the feast of the Lord, it is either because we are not interested (Matt 22:5) or because we do not consider it a priority.
2. ALLOW EVEN THE STREET GUYS TO PARTAKE IN THE WEDDING
BANQUET
The feast of the Lord is made open for everyone. The kingdom of God is not limited to certain people. The death of Christ on the Cross fulfils the prophecy of Isaiah as we read in the first reading, where everyone is given full and equal right to draw near and be part of God’s holy family around his table. At his death, the curtain of the Temple was torn apart (Matt 27:51), so that it is not a secluded place for the high priests only, but accessible to everyone. In the parable of today, the king asked the servants to go to the street and invite everyone to the wedding banquet. EVERYONE IS INVITED TO THE LORD!!!
We must not block people from accessing the throne of grace and mercy of God; we must not, through our behavior, give people reason not to make themselves available for the feast of the Lord. Let people come to God because of the way we do in our villages, in our yards, in our place of work. Furthermore, the church must be open both for saints and sinners. Our different religious societies and organizations in the Church must not be turned into a secret society for few members, blocking others from enjoying full participation as members of Christ’s body.
- ENTERINGINTO THE WEDDING FEAST WITH THE WRONG GARMENT?
Yes, the wedding feast is free, but the garment is not. In the gospel reading, when the king came into the wedding hall, now filled up with people gathered from the streets, one man was spotted out to be having a wrong garment. The idea here is to teach us that the call of God for us to make ourselves available for this eschatological banquet can come to us when we are just in the street without the proper garment. That is to say, our ‘Call to Life” may meet us when we are lacking in the proper dressing code. In the parable, the people were called from the street, and we are not told that they were given opportunity to go home and wear proper wedding garment. That suggests that from the street, they were all led into the wedding hall. This is to teach us that our last breath may meet us anywhere and there will not be time for us to go and change our dress (our life). Hence, whether we are at home or in the street, we must always be properly dressed, always ready to join the feast. We must always and at all times be ready for death!
- MYBEHAVIOR, MY GARMENT
In many biblical passages, the metaphor of ‘putting on garment of righteousness’ is used to speak of being of good and proper behavior as children of God (Cf. Isa 61:10; 64:6; 11:5;Job 29:14; Zech 3:4; Lk 12:35; Rev 3:4; Eph 4:22-25). Just as the wedding feast is free but the garment is not, so also is the Kingdom of God free but demands certain ‘dressing codes’ –righteousness. If we present ourselves before the Lord with hearts wearing hatred, envy, jealousy, callousness, sexual immorality, lies, etc, the King will spot us out and be disappointed in us. When death comes, there will not be opportunity to change our behaviors. If death meets us trying to destroy others; if death meets us as thieves and criminals, as adulterers and murderers, as fornicators and haters, etc, that is going to be the ‘behavioral-dress’ with which we would present ourselves before the Lord. Hence, whether at home or in the street, at work or at play, we must always be of holy behaviors, like the good servants waiting for the return of their master (Lk 12:35-40)
- THE WEDDING FEAST TO BE HELD ON THE MOUNTAIN
Lastly dearest friends, in the first reading, the prophecy of Isaiah situates the eschatological banquet of the Lord to take place on a mountain. For three times it repeats: “On this Mountain” ( הזהר). Two important things to note about this phrase include: the feast is on a mountainous place; then secondly, it is not just any mountain or whatever mountains but particularly ‘this mountain’. In the OT, mountain is used to describe a theophoric place. Almost all meetings with God happens on a mountain (cf. Ex 19:1-3; 24:12). Even in the NT whenever Jesus wants to spend private time in prayer, it happens on a mountain (cf Lk 6:12; Matt 14:23). It is only ‘on this mountain’ will the Lord feed us and take away our pains and sufferings. There is no other place where we can attain the peace, rest and consolation we seek if not ‘on this mountain’of the Lord. Our tears and sufferings are not meant to be solved in this life. Insofar we are alive, pains and sufferings must always confront us. Our pains and sufferings meet their end and transformation only ‘on this mountain’. We must stop running around seeking for solutions to our problems when our solution is with the Lord who waits for us ‘on his holy mountain’ (Psa 121:1-2).
May you and your loved ones not be looked for when the children of God assemble on the Mountain of the Lord, the Creator of Heaven and Earth.
Fr. Nnamah Chukwuezugo