All invited to feast

The invitation to feast and be guided to green pastures is an image of Providence in the texts today from the Roman Catholic Lectionary. Friar Jude Winkler notes that the passage from Isaiah speaks of a universalism whereby salvation is offered to all people through the great feast on the holy mountain.  Karoline M. Lewis is stuck by the extravagant banquet which Isaiah, Psalm 23 and the Gospel from Matthew describe. There are people excluded from the banquet in the parable Jesus tells in the Gospel. Ignacio Castuera understands that a process of self exclusion is being described. The Gospel was written by a Jew to a Jewish audience at a time after the destruction of the Temple by the Romans in 70 CE. This event was part of a great transition to suffering for many Jews in the Roman Empire. The Letter of Paul to the Philippians, Friar Jude notes, was written by Paul from his imprisonment in Rome. The faith of Paul in Providence has the character of expectation that the mission to spread the Good News is connected to and even facilitated by the tragedies and suffering of our lives. The openness of Paul to finding the Will of God in all life events is in contrast to the attitude of some people invited by the king to the wedding feast in the Gospel. The message of Matthew to his Jewish audience is linked to rejection of the Prophets and Jesus and the destruction of the Temple. The decision not to accept the invitation to the Kingdom of Heaven here and now is often because our self serving priorities place communion with God in joyful celebration at a lower importance that our property, power, possessions and privilege. The invitation is for all. The universal set of all people is dualistically described as the good and the bad. With all of the joy and invitation to Life in Isaiah, Psalm and Matthew it is very surprising that we might accept the invitation and arrive with no intention to participate. Did the unfortunate who was thrown bound into the darkness come with an assumption formed through an overblown self image that he deserved something for nothing. The King seeks only the decision to participate and be open. How sad when we cannot put on the garment provided for our Life.