Rector's Sermon - Sunday, October 13, 2002

First Reading	Psalm	Epistle	Gospel
Isaiah 25:1-9	23	Philippians 4:4-13	Matthew 22:1-14

      Jesus' story for this week seems to follow the same general theme as the previous week. A king issues an invitation to his son's wedding feast, but incredibly the invitation is scorned. When additional servants are sent out to assure those of the sincerity of the invitation, the invitation is not only ridiculed, but the messengers of the invitation are mistreated and murdered. Obviously this has become no ordinary story. The ungrateful guests are punished for their bizarre behavior, and the king sends more servants out to invite everyone they could find to the banquet. You would expect that all who came, to sit down, enjoy a wonderful feast and profusely thank the host. Yet the story has one more last twist. One person does not have a wedding garment. He is spotted and his host comes over to him inquiring what was the matter. He refuses to even speak a word in reply, and so is cast out of the party.

      Sometimes I wonder if Jesus didn't want to tease our mind, and have us ponder the meaning of his stories, knowing full well that there would be more than one lesson to be gained from them. After all, human existence is more than one dimensional.

      If the part about the wedding garment was left out, the story would be so much easier. Then we could say, Ah ha, here is Jesus telling us again that God wishes to incorporate everyone into fellowship. The poor, those who have no social standing, those considered outsiders are definitely invited. While it looks to us that the Gospel welcomes both good and bad, sincere and phony, those with pure motives and those with mixed, remember the parable of the wheat and the tares. Don't be too hasty about judging, lest some of the good be rooted out with the bad. Let God who sees all decide. Perhaps in the growth process what appears to us as tares, will really turn out to be wheat. Moreover, we are all invited because of God's gracious invitation, not because we deserve it. None of us are the obnoxious relatives God has to invite, God really wants us to celebrate.

      Then we have the zinger thrown at us, the guy without the proper garment. Now some would claim, that upon entering the feast, everyone would be issued a garment so that no one would be embarrassed by having not proper attire. One of reasons we have choir robes is so that the altos with their fancy duds will not outclass the tender tenors. Yet this one individual who came to the party, refused to wear a garment or discarded the one he was given. The lesson from this might be that while God calls us all to the table, God does not condone all behavior. While everyone imaginable is invited, that does not mean that in God's new community, everything goes. Of course there are standards. Apparently this person was no able to change, accept and put on the new life God offered.

      Certainly this interpretation has validity, and yet another issue then surfaces to nag us. Jesus warned those who thought they had earned a special place with God and put down others who were judged to be not as favored. It is so easy for many of us to point the finger at others and say remember God requires a wedding garment, or you will be cast out. We begin to assume that those who are properly dressed like us are favored while those down on the Commons who wear those awful clothes and orange and blue hair, are not suited for God's kingdom. Too much concentration just on the proper the wedding garment may not be healthy.

      Perhaps the key isn't about the wedding garment at all. That's just the surface issue. Rather, the key to the story is in the guest's refusal to say anything to the one who invited him. The guest without the wedding garment seemed to reject any association with those at the party. Why did the guest refuse to have any relationship with the one who invited him? Did he still distrust the good intentions of the one who invited him? If he had said anything such as "where are the wedding garments" or "they didn't have one that fit" or "they are just too hot to wear", the host might have replied, "that's OK. I just want you to enjoy the party and the company. Forget the garment if it makes you feel more comfortable, and go over to the buffet table and meet some of our the wonderful guests." By remaining silent and speechless however, was the one without a wedding garment suspicious, resentful or doubtful of God's good intentions and in effect excluding himself from the joy of genuine fellowship and celebration?

      Why is it sometimes so hard for us to accept the goodness of God? Maybe that is why Jesus often teaches by raising questions among his disciples rather than by providing answers.

      And I offer this to you in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Amen