All Are Invited!

Homily for the Twenty-Eight Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

Rev. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara, CSsR

St. Gerard Majella Church, Baton Rouge, LA

October 12, 2014

In today’s Gospel taken from Matthew 22:1-14, Jesus speaks about what the kingdom of heaven may be likened to. He tells of a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son. Several guests were invited. On the day of this occasion, the king dispatched his servants and messengers to summon the invited guests for the feast, but they refused to come. The king did not give up on them, instead he sent other servants to go tell his guests: “Behold, I have prepared my banquet, my calves and fattened cattle are killed, and everything is ready; come to the feast.” But despite the second summon and beckon, some of the guests still ignored the invitation and went away; some of them mistreated the king’s servants, and even had some of them killed. Obviously the invited guests were neither hungry nor have any need. After all, some were property owners; some had farms; others had businesses. But some were just arrogant and vicious to the point of putting the king’s servants to death. The king became furious. In anger, he sent his army to wipe out the murderers and burn their city. Then he said to his servants: “The feast is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy to come. Go out, therefore, into the main roads and invite to the feast whomever you find.” The servants went to the streets and invited everyone, ‘the bad as well as the good.’ The banquet hall was filled up. 

When the king came into the banquet hall to greet the guests, he saw a man who wasn’t dressed in a wedding garment considered proper for a wedding banquet. When he challenged him on it, the man had nothing to say. So the king told his guards, “Bind his hands and feet, and cast him into the darkness outside, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.”

What was wrong with the people who refused the king’s invitation? Why would they exclude themselves from the experience of a wedding feast? The answer is simple: they did not have any relationship with the king. In this parable of the wedding feast, Jesus makes it clear that just being a member of the church with official approval is not enough. When the king came to see his guests, he saw a man who had been admitted by the king’s own servants, but wasn’t dressed up for the wedding feast. The man was physically present, but wasn’t ready for the wedding feast. He was invited just like the others; he showed up just like the others, but he wasn't ready for the occasion. He was present, but just did not know what to do. His presence was not enough. He was physically present, but socially not ready. When I was in the seminary, there were guys who came to the seminary to study for the priesthood.  Like me, they were also invited by the Lord. Like me, they also wanted to be Redemptorists priests or brothers, but after a discerning process, which included them and the Formation Directors, they were found to be unready and unprepared. Eventually some of them were asked to leave. 

By the virtue of our baptism, we are all Christians. But you and I know that not every Christian is ready for the Wedding Banquet of the Lord. There are people who come to Mass every Sunday, but are yet unready for it. There are so many who claim to be in the church, but are hardly ready. Some of us are hardly physically unready (i.e. they only go to church when a family member or friend is wedding, a child related to them is being baptized, and when someone they know dies). Such persons cannot really be spiritually ready for the Wedding Banquet of the Lord. There are some who are physically ready, that is, they are seen in church every Sunday, but spiritually are not ready and prepared. They may honor the Lord with their lips, but their hearts are far away from him (Matthew 15:8). They may be calling the Holy One “Lord, Lord,” but hardly do his will. To be in the Church is to be in a relationship of love with Jesus Christ. 

The King who gave the wedding banquet is the Father. The Son is Jesus. The wedding banquet is that of the Lord found in Revelations 19:7, “Let us rejoice and be glad and give him the glory. For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready.” It is the end of the time banquet which will mark the second coming of Jesus. Everyone is invited to this wedding feast. But only those who are prepared and ready, who are still wearing the spotless white garment given to us at Baptism will be admitted into the Banquet Hall. At Baptism the priest usually place a white garment on the newly baptized and say, “... you have become a new creation, and have clothed yourself in Christ. See in this white garment the outward sign of your Christian dignity. With your family and friends to help you by word and example, bring that dignity unstained into the everlasting life of heaven.” 

At this banquet, all are invited, but only those who retain their symbolic white garment given to them at Baptism unstained will be admitted into the banquet of the Lord. At this banquet, all are invited, but only those who are prepared and ready would be admitted into it. Everyone is invited, but only those who are ready would be chosen. To just show up in any kind of dress is not enough. To just show up at the right place and at the right time is not enough. Each of us must be spiritually ready to enter into the banquet hall of the King. To be ready is to be spiritually and morally alert, alive and healthy. To be ready is to be awake and alive in the spirit. To be ready is to be pure in heart. To be ready is to persevere in doing what is good. St. Paul tells us in Galatians 6:9 “Do not be tired of doing what is good, for at the proper time, we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” To be ready is to continue unceasingly to do what is just, what is honorable, what is lovely, what is gracious, what is amazing, what is excellent, what is true, and what is pure. In Matthew 5:8, Jesus says, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.” In today’s second reading from Philippians 4: 12-14, St. Paul assures us that we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. Yes, we can be faithful! Yes, we can be pure in hearts! Yes, we can keep our love relationship with Lord unstained and undivided! Yes, we can love the Lord above all things! And yes, we would be admitted into the wedding banquet of Jesus our Lord!