Word to the Wise
Thursday, August 22, 2024 - Thursday in the 20th Week in Ordinary Time
[Ezek 36:23-28 and Matt 22:1-14]"Many are invited, but few are chosen." [Matthew]
AUGUST 22 THE QUEENSHIP OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY
The last line of the parable of the wedding feast has an ominous ring to it. But it is a challenge to everyone who wishes to be invited to the Lord's eternal banquet - Jews and Gentiles alike. The invitation is to a life of faith and actions in accord with that faith.
There can be a certain kind of "smugness" that can creep into Christian life, and, I think, especially into Catholic life, about the "invitation." It can be found in the statement that one still hears from time to time, "We are the ONE TRUE CHURCH of Christ." This air of superiority can lead to one taking for granted one's place at the banquet based only on assent to certain doctrinal or devotional elements of our faith. The parable is not just about the rejection of Jesus by his fellow Jews, but about the extension of the invitation to the Gentiles as well. Whoever responds to the invitation must show a life worthy of it. It is not enough simply to "avoid evil." One must also "do good!" This will be made starkly clear later on in the Gospel According to Matthew in the parables of the Talents and the Last Judgment. [Matt. 25]
At baptism, a white garment is given as a symbol of Christian commitment and the one being baptized is challenged to bring that garment "unstained into the everlasting life of heaven." The certificate is not enough. The wedding garment is a life lived in accord with Jesus' teachings. AMEN