Philippians 4:1-9 My brothers and sisters, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, my beloved.
I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. Yes, and I ask you also, my loyal companion, help these women, for they have struggled beside me in the work of the gospel, together with Clement and the rest of my co-workers, whose names are in the book of life.
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.
Matthew 22:1-14 Once more Jesus spoke to the people in parables, saying: “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son. He sent his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding banquet, but they would not come. Again he sent other slaves, saying, ‘Tell those who have been invited: Look, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready; come to the wedding banquet.’ But they made light of it and went away, one to his farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his slaves, mistreated them, and killed them. The king was enraged. He sent his troops, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city. Then he said to his slaves, ‘The wedding is ready, but those invited were not worthy. Go therefore into the main streets, and invite everyone you find to the wedding banquet.’ Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered all whom they found, both good and bad; so the wedding hall was filled with guests.
“But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing a wedding robe, and he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding robe?’ And he was speechless. Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ For many are called, but few are chosen.”
Reflection Jesus addresses this parable to the religious officials of his time, Jews with elite positions in the synagogue and state, Jews who refuse to receive his message of a new way of living for everyone including the rich and powerful. In Jesus’ teaching tale members of the elite class are invited to the kings’s son’s wedding having no idea who the bride might be. This is not a proper invitation so the first round of guests not only ignore it, some even react with violence. But, having already offended the status quo, the king bends the breach even further, extending a second invitation to anyone who will participate. And therein lies the secret.
Everyone who attends the wedding banquet is meant to fully participate, to be married to a new way of living, the way of living revealed by Jesus. Apparently the entire second round of guests received and understood this message except the one who showed up in street clothes instead of a wedding robe. It is easy to get flustered by the fuss the king makes about required attire, but this is a parable, a teaching tale. So the question is, “What does the wedding robe represent?”
I believe the wedding robe is the outward and visible sign of the wearers inner desire to participate in Jesus’ new way of living, the way firmly rejected by the religious officials bent on protecting the status quo. Which brings us to St. Paul’s counsel to the Philippians. “…whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” Do these things.
These things are the garments in which we, the people of God who choose to follow Jesus must be dressed. People will recognize that we belong to Jesus because our robes radiate truth, honor, justice, purity, “whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable… anything worthy of praise.” Our robes are the way we appear in society. It is what people see when we walk into a room, it is what people read when they open our email or see our social media post. Our robes are the way we reveal who and whose we are. Are we truthful, honorable, just, pure, pleasing, commendable and worthy of praise? Or are we deceitful, deceptive, unfair, false, unpleasant, unethical and worthy of censure?
Could it be that many of us cringe when we hear this teaching tale because it implicates every one of us? We are the religious elites, people who claim to belong to God but far too often fail to wear our righteous wedding robe. Let’s face it. The way we live and breath and treat one another and the earth is scandalous. From disturbing emails forwarded to angry jabs, and threatening gestures, far too often we wear insult rather than honor, disrespect rather than devotion.
I beg you, please, stop before you forward another inciting email, before you like or even dislike another social media post (do you know a dislike counts as much as a like to push a post to the top of the hit list?) Stop before you despise or disdain another person. Stop and say to yourself, she or he like me is created in the image and likeness of God. And like me he or she may not be living into the fullness of their God given identity, but the shells I aim at them ricochet to shatter my glass tower, sending me into terrible dark moods where all I can do is weep and fret and gnash my teeth. Can you relate?
We are caught in a cyclone of social, political, physical, emotional and spiritual upheaval. If ever we needed to wrap ourselves in our righteous wedding robes, it is now. Being clothed in whatever is true, honorable, just, pure, pleasing, commendable, an excellent we will not be bound, hand and foot, and find ourselves weeping and gnashing of teeth. If we keep on doing the righteous things that we have learned and received and seen in Jesus, the God of peace will persist with us.
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