1st Michaelmas
Matthew 22:1-14
And Jesus continued to speak in parables to them:
is like a man, a king, who prepared a marriage feast for his son. And he sent out his servants to call the guests who had been invited to the marriage, but they would not come.
"Then he again sent out other servants and said, 'Say to those who have been invited, 'Think, I have prepared my best for the banquet, the sacrificial oxen and fattened cattle have been slaughtered; everything is ready. Come quickly to the wedding.'
"But they were not
interested and went off, one going to his field to be his own master, another
falling into the hectic pace of his own business. The rest, however, took hold
of the servants, mistreated them, and killed them.
"Then the king grew angry; he sent out his army, brought the murderers to their destruction, and burned their city. Then he said to his servants, 'Although the marriage feast is prepared, the invited guests have proved themselves unworthy. Go out, therefore, to the crossroads of destiny and invite to the wedding whoever you can find.' And the servants went into the streets and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good. And the wedding hall was filled with guests.
"Then the king came in to see the guests, and among them, he noticed a man who was not dressed in the wedding garment [that was offered to him]. And he said to him, 'My friend, you are sharing the meal; how did you enter here not having a wedding garment?'
"But the man was speechless.
"Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot and cast him out into the darkness, where human beings wail and gnash their teeth. For the call goes out to many, yet only a few make themselves bearers of the higher life.' "
1st Michaelmas
October 2, 2022
Matthew 22:1–14
We
have probably at least once had a dream where 
Burnand
we showed up for an event and
looked down at ourselves only to realize that we were not appropriately dressed.
In the dream, we don’t know how we got that way. And we don’t know what to do —
we are paralyzed.
As human beings today, we find ourselves in a similar position. We find ourselves in horrifying situations and circumstances, not knowing how we got there or quite what to do about it. What we may not recognize is that, in fact, we are standing at the crossroads of destiny spoken of in the Gospel reading. We are all being called, invited to a wedding. Outer events have brought us to the place where the wedding is taking place. The Bridegroom is God’s Son. The Bride is the Soul of Humanity.
Each of us is individually invited to be aware of the union of God and Humanity, to acknowledge and partake in the wedding. To begin with, we don’t have to “be good.” Whether we are good or bad seems to matter less than whether we are able at the right moment to hear the invitation, recognize its significance, and respond appropriately. We only have to respond by accepting the wedding garment offered to us and joining the process.
One of the places, one of the portals to the wedding feast between the Divine and the Human is the Act of Consecration. An invitation goes out every time it is celebrated. To join in the celebration is to answer the invitation. And the appropriate dress, a wedding garment, is given to each of us at the beginning of the service. And what is the wedding garment? It is the reading of the Gospel. The Gospel reading itself is the festive garment in which to clothe our souls.
Having come, having clothed ourselves in the good news, having participated in the King’s service, we become the King’s people. We feel strengthened by our contact with Him and with his Son, by our conversation with them, by their words and deeds. And when it is time to leave the sacred hall when we have thanked them, we can say to them in the words of Rilke:*
May both voices
accompany me
when I am scattered
again in city and fear.
They will serve me in
the fury of our time
and help me to make a
place for you
wherever you need to
be.
*Rilke’s Book of Hours—Love Poems to God,
page 135.
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