We Come to the Feast

Recently I have been paying attention to where and with whom I have shared meals over the past several weeks. Now I must confess that for the most part my dining habits have consisted of special meals on a tray table during a United flight somewhere across the United States, or the conversation has included the question "Do you want fries with that?" Then there have been moments of good food and conversation with a close friend or community member, and I have recognized on a heart level that something deeper was going on between us. I recognized the presence of God in our midst.

In Matthew 22:1—14, Jesus uses the parable of a royal wedding feast as an image of the Reign of God. Food, dining, eating, and feasting are so common with Jesus that he is either doing these things or talking about them. If you look at all the Gospel stories from one perspective, Jesus is constantly having a meal with someone or talking about food. If Jesus were doing this today, I am convinced that one of his disciples would be Jenny Craig and a common meeting place would be Weight Watchers. Seriously, though, in the life of Jesus, sharing a meal is a sacred event, a bonding of covenant relationship, a sign that something deeper than the mere presence of food is going on.

The Gospel parable unfolds in three movements. First a call goes out to the proper guests who are invited to the wedding feast. A great banquet is prepared, and there is a sense of urgency. All is ready. God is ready. Yet the guests do not come or find excuses not to attend. They make light of the urgency of God. Does that ever happen with us? When God is ready for us, does anything get in the way of our accepting the invitation? Things like overwork? Stress? Busy-ness? Or not taking seriously God’s call? The good news is that God is relentless in calling us. God does not stop inviting us. And God also sends out servants to help spread the invitation to others.

The second movement in the parable is that a call goes out to the social outcasts and sinners. The good news is that everyone is invited regardless of who they are or what they have done. The gracious hospitality of God is inclusive. Accepting the invitation, however, does not mean that we get to pick and choose our table companions. With God there are no barriers, no divisions among peoples or nations. All are welcome to the lavish feast God has prepared. The challenge is for us to live in a way that reflects this hospitality of God to all people, for we are all invited guests of God.

The third movement of the parable is the sorting out of the wedding party. Those who wear the wedding garment partake of the feast, and the one who refuses is thrown out. Yes, the hospitality of God is inclusive, relentless, gracious but very demanding. The wedding robe is a symbol of the responsibility we have in accepting God’s invitation. The garment alludes to our call at Baptism to put on Christ and to live our lives as the beloved of God. For dining at the Banquet with God carries the responsibility of lifelong conversion.

Sunday after Sunday what we do during Mass is a dress rehearsal for the Great Banquet of Heaven. We gather to be nourished by the Living Bread of God’s Word and the Living Bread of the Eucharist. We are called to dine with God. Accepting this invitation requires a change of heart. When I was in graduate school in Chicago, one of the priests at the local parish would use this phrasing at the fraction rite of the liturgy when he presided: "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. We who come to this table must change." That sentence would catch me every time, challenging me to examine my heart, my desire for God, and my need for conversion.

We who come to this table must change. We who eat this bread and drink this cup must be transformed into the Body of Christ not only on Sunday but every day of our lives. We who gather at the table of God must put on Christ. There is no room for complacency. We must respond with our heart over and over again. So we gather once more at table to dine with God. Dare we come to the feast?