Homily 9th October, 2011 Twenty-eighth Sunday of the Year - A
The disturbing thing about today’s gospel is that the excuses given by those who decline the wedding invitation are actually (in the main) good and worthwhile things: attending to one’s business and livestock, at least.
The thing is, they have their priorities wrong.
The most important thing they should have been at, (at that time), was the wedding banquet (which they had already accepted) and now were too distracted by other things to bother doing what was most important.
It is so easy to get caught up with the ‘urgent’ that we lose sight of the ‘important’.
The other thing is, that even for people who aren’t overly religious, most people in the community would know that Christians believe that God wants to invite all people to be part of God’s family, part of God’s Kingdom. Christians and non-Christians alike know that God loves all people and invites everyone to be part of God’s family. The only problem is that some seem to make a big deal of that aspect whilst playing down and ignoring the second aspect of the King throwing out one of the invited guests because they were not properly attired and had no good excuse for it.
Some have watered down the Christian message by overplaying the first point and ignoring the second. You see people fall into that trap when they publicly recommend this kind of thinking: God is a God of Love and compassion, God loves everyone (and that is true), so God wouldn’t care about how people live (that… is not true)…
This parable warns us, we are all invited to the banquet feast.. We are all invited to be part of God’s Kingdom, but it does not mean that we can then do as we please, live as we want and make up our own relativist mode of morality to suit ourselves. This parable teaches us that Christianity is not a ‘design-your-own’ lifestyle group. The baptismal garment, or the wedding garment that symbolises the entry into Christ’s life and death, is not a mix and match costume… one size fits all and that is Christ.. When we accept the invitation to be a part of Christ, WE ARE, as St Paul says, “clothing ourselves in Christ… we are ‘putting on Christ’ and his way of living and loving. Today’s parable warns us that if we do not put on Christ’s garment, we will be thrown back outside.
Contrary to some false prophets in this society…. NOT “everything goes” in the Kingdom of God. We have been given true freedom as sons and daughters of God, but that is freedom to keep God’s will and not break it. (this is a definition of freedom that many in modern society would find confusing. But it is the Judeo-Christian definition of freedom. Freedom to be everything God calls us to be, not freedom to do as we please).
I sometimes joke that that wonderful hymn “come as you are” which I like a lot, does NOT have a sequel for the end of mass “go as you please” ….. nor is there another hymn called “Do as you please, that’s how I want you…..” Because, once we are approach God, no matter whether we feel unworthy or sinful.. (and we all feel like that)… nevertheless, then God invites us to be transformed (heart, mind and soul) into the people God calls us to be, and to live and behave as children of God, according to his values.
This parable is sobering and powerful. Those who were invited thought they could take the goodwill of the King for granted and they also had all sorts of excuses about how what they were doing was more important than what the King was asking them to do at this time. They were fooling themselves, and they were taking their status for granted… and so Jesus warns them, they will all be kicked out and people from other nations, other cultures and other religious… sinners and saints alike will be given their place and invited to be part of the family… but they too must put on the garment of salvation and live a new way.. leaving behind their old garments and old ways….
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REFERENCES:
FR. PAUL W. KELLY
THE DAILY STUDY BIBLE. GOSPEL OF Matthew. (REVISED EDITION). BY WILLIAM BARCLAY.
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