The
parable about the king at the wedding feast, who saw a guest with no wedding
garment. The king tells his servants to bind the man hand and foot and throw
him into the outer darkness.
Jesus certainly had no trouble letting let the Jewish
leadership know that they were on rocky ground if they persisted in resting on
their assumptions that they were the chosen, the elite, the blessed ones of God
just because they were born to the Jewish race and faith. The parables of the
wedding feast plus others of the same ilk, were exceedingly dangerous ones for
Jesus to put before the Jewish elders. I have this amusing image in my head of
the disciples standing behind the crowd and facing Jesus, using mime to
indicate that Jesus should re-think what he was saying. Fingers slashing across
throats. Exaggerated pantomiming of zipped lips. Heads deliberately shaking
while silently mouthing, “Stop NOW!” But Jesus knew that there was already a
cross with his name on it; holding back would not gain him any points. Matthew
wrote his Gospel for the Jewish people and Matthew related parables that
pointed out that Jesus was serious about the fact that entrance into the
Kingdom was not guaranteed just because someone was born Jewish and had all the
right paraphernalia or even performed all the right actions. God looks at the
heart not the outward show and it's still the same today.
What Jesus was saying to the Jews was, “Going to the
synagogue doesn't make you a good Jew anymore than standing in a barn makes you
a donkey.” The modern translation of that is: Going to church doesn't make you
a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car. No wonder those
leaders were out to get him.
Then Jesus finished off the parable with a somewhat obscure
and alarming addition where the king orders his servants to bind up a guest and
throw him into the darkness just because the guest had no wedding robe. Just
before that, scripture said the king sent his servants to round up anyone they
could find, good or bad. If the king was so anxious to find guests to come to
the wedding banquet, why would he pick on one poor soul who wasn't dressed
properly? Maybe the fellow was one of the poor and didn't own a wedding
garment. Where was the sin?
In the time of Christ, it was the host who provided all male
wedding guests with a white garment called a 'Kittel' to wear into the banquet
hall. It looked a little like a bathrobe and it had no pockets. The robe was
white to signify unity with the bride. It had no pockets to symbolize the act
of marrying for love, not for what material possessions could be gained by
marrying the bridegroom. For a guest to enter into the banquet hall with no
robe on was completely inexcusable and utterly rude. The guest in Christ’s
parable had been caught out and he had no defense. He was not there in unity
with the bride but was there for whatever he could gain.
So, now another hard question faces us: how often do we go
to Mass, the great celebration-wedding feast, without our wedding garment? What
would that look like in our attitudes and our expectations?
•The wedding garment that the host provided for the guests
was white so that they could show their unity with the bride who also wore
white. She wore white to signify purity. Our wedding garment was given to us at
baptism where Christ clothed us in himself and in dignity but it is completely
possible for any one of us to show up at the feast with that wedding garment
hidden away.
•If there is no inner intention of or desire for unity with
the bride of Christ, which the people of God represent, the wedding garment has
been left in a closet somewhere.
•When we instigate or take part in any talk or actions that
could bring wounds or division to the community, the bride of Christ – or even
hurt to just one member of the body – we are refusing to wear our robes.
Disagreement within the body doesn't necessarily mean disunity. It's how we
work it out with each other in respect and love that shows unity with the bride's
garment. We should be wearing the full robes of integrity, peace, mercy,
wisdom, understanding, humility, gentleness, patience, faith ... wait, I'm
describing the fruit of the Kingdom that Jesus alluded to in last week's
Gospel. Interesting how all these things are woven together, isn't it?
•When we come to get, not give, we are coming to the feast
with deep pockets. In last week's blog I spoke of the trap of wanting to
possess the vineyard instead of simply being servants within it, dependent on
the landowner's generosity. It is so easy for us to begin valuing and guarding
our placement and position rather than simply appreciating the goodness of the
host. We start making sure that we're getting what we feel is owed to us and
that no one else is getting more than they deserve.
•We all have times when we go to Mass for our own spiritual
benefit. If we are not open to interacting much with those around us or we go
just to 'fulfill an obligation' and to receive our weekly merit badge for Mass
attendance instead of being there because we are a royal priesthood called to
serve God and one another, we have misplaced our pocketless robes. Remember,
the lack of pockets symbolizes a relationship built on love and on what one can
give not on what one can get.
A white robe is a great equalizer. When we recognize that
everyone is wearing exactly the same garment as ourselves, it's not as easy to
categorize and dismiss others. Nobody is too young, too old, too new, too poor,
too rich, too ignorant, too knowledgeable, too insignificant or too important;
everyone is simply a cherished invited guest at the feast, participating in a
celebration of joy and being united with the bride and with one another.
White is not only a symbol of purity; in some cultures,
white signifies death. At the wedding banquet, donning our white robes is a
kind of death to self-importance. It says, “I am no more important or powerful
or needed than you. We are both here for no other reason than that the King and
his Son invited us to come. They opened their doors and their storehouse and
sought us out of the highways and by-ways to come and be a part of the
celebration. We are here because the King wants us, not because we have a
right.”
A wedding feast is the celebration of a love relationship.
By feasting with the bride, the groom, the king and all the other invited
guests, we affirm that love is the foundation of a holy union and of holy
unity. We see the bride and the bridegroom gaze into each other’s eyes and
behold the joy lighting up their faces. We know that in the married life there
will be challenges, struggles, wounds and hardship and that these messy times
are going to affect all of us because of our unity with them. But we all need
to keep returning to the feast, keep returning to the love exchange and keep
remembering that it is love that keeps us all afloat. You can have good rules,
great programs, strong disciplines and cherished traditions and many children
but if love has been forgotten or lost, it is a cold and empty house.
The banquet is ready, the guests are arriving, the music is
playing, the bread is broken and the wine is flowing. Let's get our robes and
go to the feast.
No comments:
Post a Comment
.comment shown {display:inline}