"A Feast for All Peoples"–the Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time–Year A

My Sisters and Brothers: 

Today’s Scriptures teach us about the wonders of God’s Kingdom, and they tell us something about how the faithful are to prepare themselves to participate in its glory.  In the first reading and the Gospel, the images of banquets and feasts are used to illustrate the awesomeness of that Kingdom.  The Prophet Isaiah wrote: “The Lord of hosts will provide a feast for all peoples of rich food and choice wines, juicy, rich food and pure, choice wines” (see Isaiah 25:6).  In Matthew’s “Parable of the Great Banquet” Jesus taught: “The kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king who for his son gave a wedding feast with sumptuous foods, including calves and fattened cattle killed for the occasion” (cf. Matthew 22:1-14).

But Jesus also reminded his disciples about the need to be “properly disposed and dressed” for entrance into the Great Banquet.  And he warned his listeners: “Many are invited, but few are chosen.”  Symbolically, the “wedding dress” cited by Jesus in the parable really referred to the “inner dispositions” of those invited to the banquet. Participation in it necessitated a complete submission of the mind and of the will to all those things expected of anyone attending.  The “proper attire” of those “dressed for the occasion” was analogous to (and perhaps evidence of) the guests’ willingness to do everything expected of those invited, and there were no exceptions!

We might recall many types of “uniforms” and “dress codes” to which we’ve had to defer in order to be “dressed for the occasion” during various situations and events of our lives.  I remember when I first entered my parish school as a young boy, I was suddenly forced to wear a uniform that included navy blue pants, a white shirt, and something I truly disliked called a necktie.  Because I complained about the uniform and my new school so much, there’s no-doubt I caused my mother great heartache!  And I begged my parents to send me to another school where such formalities were not required; as you might imagine, I didn’t win them over to my way of thinking! Eventually, I accepted the uniform, and the tie, and the new school, and I turned my attention to the great tasks of learning and of being a responsible student and son.

For wedding receptions, we always dress in our finest attire, and we are courteous and respectful toward all who are present. In this way, we honor the bride and the groom and their parents who want to make the feast as special and as beautiful as possible; our very selves become part of the splendor of such moments by the way we dress and behave!  Such was the expectation at the wedding feast described in Jesus’ “Parable of the Great Banquet.”  Even though those “first-invited” failed to come, the “second-choice” guests (those otherwise thought “unworthy” to attend) were still required to wear “proper clothing” and to behave nobly for the occasion.  The same standards applied to all.

The feast is for “all peoples,” but because we are all sinners (that is, those who are thought to be “unworthy”), we might believe that God just tolerates our presence at the feast, and that he doesn’t expect greatness from us. The truth is, even if we are “latecomers,” we’ve in fact been invited to God’s banquet, and therefore much is expected of us! And so, may we always strive to be the best possible Christians we can be! In our hearts, let’s always be resolved to embrace and faithfully wear the “uniform” of our faith! What’s more important, let’s be sure there’s always harmony between our “outward actions” and our “inner dispositions;” that’s how we will truly honor and serve the Father who’s invited us to the table! My friends, let’s enjoy the feast and all the wonders the Kingdom promises to provide for us!

Praise God!  Friar Timothy

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