Few Are Chosen
In the Gospel for the 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Jesus tells a parable about the kingdom of heaven: he compares God to a king who invited many guests to his son’s wedding feast. Jesus says that many are invited “but few are chosen.”
We Are Invited
God invites us all, but not everyone has a place at the table. As Ordinary Time slowly comes to an end we turn our eyes to the season of Advent and the new liturgical year. The readings usually take on a tone of urgency as we prepare ourselves for the coming of Christ. Advent is all about preparing for Jesus. We prepare ourselves for his second coming. The banquet is being prepared and the occasion that the guests are invited to is no ordinary feast.
A Heavenly Feast
In the Gospel (Matthew 22: 1-14) the invitations are sent out by the king. I could imagine that those who were invited had a special relationship with him. Each guest must have been carefully chosen. Their refusal to come must not have been easy for the king to understand. Why would they refuse to come? Maybe they didn’t realize the grandness of the feast. Maybe they didn’t keep as close of a relationship with the king as he had thought. Maybe they didn’t want to sit with some of the other guests who were invited. I am sure the king felt disappointed and angry, even insulted. The king sent his servants out to search for the guests and what they did was a rather shocking. The parable is of course about being invited to God’s feast.
Homework
We are all called to be his guest but sometimes we too refuse to take part. Jesus invites us to join him in the Eucharist, to be with him and to be closer to him. Take the image of Christ, preparing a meal and we are his guests. What if no one showed up? How would we feel if we were preparing the meal and no one came? Jesus is perfect and forgiving. Do we accept his invitation or put our own feast and business ahead of His?