Thursday of 20th Week in Ordinary Time
CALLED TO THE FEAST
Israel had profaned God’s name among the nations, making it look weak when he had to send Israel into exile. Now Ezekiel consoles them when they are in exile. He will again restore his people, giving them a new heart and a new spirit.
All are invited to the kingdom of God, even repeatedly, the good and the bad alike. Salvation is open to all. But they should be willing, they must respond to the call. And once they respond, they should be consistent. They must share in the death struggle of Christ against evil, to live with the life of Christ. The force to live the Christ life is indeed given to us in the Eucharistic meal. There the Lord prepares us for the royal marriage feast.
First Reading: Ezekiel 36:23-28
“Therefore, tell Israel, ‘Message of God, the Master: I’m not doing this for you, Israel. I’m doing it for me, to save my character, my holy name, which you’ve blackened in every country where you’ve gone. I’m going to put my great and holy name on display, the name that has been ruined in so many countries, the name that you blackened wherever you went. Then the nations will realize who I really am, that I am God, when I show my holiness through you so that they can see it with their own eyes.
“‘For here’s what I’m going to do: I’m going to take you out of these countries, gather you from all over, and bring you back to your own land. I’ll pour pure water over you and scrub you clean. I’ll give you a new heart, put a new spirit in you. I’ll remove the stone heart from your body and replace it with a heart that’s God-willed, not self-willed. I’ll put my Spirit in you and make it possible for you to do what I tell you and live by my commands. You’ll once again live in the land I gave your ancestors. You’ll be my people! I’ll be your God!
Gospel: Matthew 22:1-14
Jesus responded by telling still more stories. “God’s kingdom,” he said, “is like a king who threw a wedding banquet for his son. He sent out servants to call in all the invited guests. And they wouldn’t come!
“He sent out another round of servants, instructing them to tell the guests, ‘Look, everything is on the table, the prime rib is ready for carving. Come to the feast!’
“They only shrugged their shoulders and went off, one to weed his garden, another to work in his shop. The rest, with nothing better to do, beat up on the messengers and then killed them. The king was outraged and sent his soldiers to destroy those thugs and level their city.
“Then he told his servants, ‘We have a wedding banquet all prepared but no guests. The ones I invited weren’t up to it. Go out into the busiest intersections in town and invite anyone you find to the banquet.’ The servants went out on the streets and rounded up everyone they laid eyes on, good and bad, regardless. And so the banquet was on—every place filled.
“When the king entered and looked over the scene, he spotted a man who wasn’t properly dressed. He said to him, ‘Friend, how dare you come in here looking like that!’ The man was speechless. Then the king told his servants, ‘Get him out of here—fast. Tie him up and ship him to hell. And make sure he doesn’t get back in.’
“That’s what I mean when I say, ‘Many get invited; only a few make it.’”
Prayer
Merciful Father of all people,
you open the doors of your kingdom
to invite us all, good and bad alike,
to share the life of Jesus, your Son.
Give us the wisdom and the strength
to respond to your generous call
with the whole of our being.
Help us to go the loyal way
to you and to one another
of Jesus Christ, your Son and our Lord,
who lives with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Reflection:
18 August 2022
Matthew 22:1-14
A banquet for busy people
Jesus compares the Kingdom of God with a wedding feast. However, the Gospel warns us: that accepting or rejecting the invitation to the wedding banquet is a personal choice, and God will not force it on anyone. Many guests said no because they thought they had better or more important things to do.
The guests did not think the wedding was sad or boring but simply “did not care”: they were distracted by “their” interests. This is how we distance ourselves from love – both the love of God and love of people – not out of malice but because we prefer our own security, comforts and pleasures.
When our options are to chase after profits, pleasures, and some hobbies that make us happy, we forget God and his call. We would assign time for everything else – for our work, socialisations, leisure trips, meal gatherings, games … but no time for the Church, prayer, the Word of God… because we ignore His invitation.
Furthermore, when everything depends on the self – what I want, what I need – we become rigid and evil. We begin to react instead of responding to the invitation, like the guests of the Gospel. Because they bothered them, they insulted and even killed the people who brought the invitation (v. 6).
God is the opposite of selfishness, of self-reference. The Gospel tells us that in the face of constant rejections that he receives, in the face of the refusals to his invitations, the king goes on; he does not postpone the feast. He continues to invite and includes even more people. In the face of the injustices suffered, God responds with greater love. While suffering our “no’s, ” God continues to take the initiative again and again. Because that’s how love is; that’s the only way evil can be defeated.
The Gospel emphasises one final aspect: the dress-code of the guests, which is indispensable. It is not enough to answer once the invitation, to say “yes” and that is it, but you have to put on the clothing, you need the habit of living love every day. One cannot say “Lord, Lord” without living according to God’s will (cf. Mt 7,21). We need to clothe ourselves daily with his love and renew God’s choice every day.
We have received in Baptism the white robe, the bridal garment for God. Let us ask Him for the grace to choose and wear this dress daily and keep it clean. How do I do it? Above all, seeking the Lord’s forgiveness without fear is the decisive step to entering the wedding hall to celebrate the feast of love with Him.