Having a free will can be difficult at times. You get to choose, but the outcome may not be what you imagined. Saint Matthew’s Gospel today presents us with a parable from Jesus to the Jewish chief priests and elders of His time, as have the last two prior Sundays, inviting them to seriously consider His message of becoming holy according to God’s ways rather than their own interpretation of what they believe God meant. In there lies the problem.
As baptized believers of the Catholic faith, we are “invited” to be disciples by taking up our cross and following Jesus. To do that we are asked to love God with our whole heart, soul, mind and strength and to love all of His creation as Jesus loves us through His suffering, death and Resurrection. In other words, God created us for a purpose. We are to fulfill that purpose as best we can with the gifts God has given us.
Like the wedding guests in the parable, we are not always ready or willing to go outside of our comfort zone. In our efforts to balance what the world demands for us to be successful (amassing wealth, becoming famous and building power), we often fall short when we are asked to reach out to those who are in need. Catholic Social Teaching is about taking care of others not about how we progress up the ladder in the Church as the world says we should. It is instead a selfless way of taking care of others so all of us can attend the banquet.
On the positive side of this dilemma, God accepts all sinners with love, mercy and forgiveness. His concern is not so much about what we have done, but more about what we can and will do in the future. If we look into the four areas of love mentioned above, we certainly should be able to find and realize that the garment we need to wear is one that accepts God’s free gift of salvation. And, by doing so we acknowledge that our conversion to God’s ways are a choice in holiness.
That’s why St. Paul writes in his letter to the Philippians: “I can do all things in Him who strengthens me.” And, why the prophet Isaiah writes: “Behold our God, to whom we looked to save us!” God does not force us to take a particular path to holiness. He invites us so that with our free will we make the choice because we want to, not because we have to choose His way.
Let us take some time this week to look at areas in our life where we are hesitant to reach out to those in need in our families, with friends, neighbors, co-workers, fellow-worshippers and strangers. It is in doing for others that we wear the garment of Christianity, by the way we live our lives.
Reading 1: Isaiah 25:6-10
Reading 2: Philippians 4:12-14, 19-20
Gospel: Matthew 22:1-14
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