Becoming Fully Alive: All Saints Day . . .

        

The Thirty-First Sunday of Ordinary Time 2026 

November 1, 2026

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Revelation7:2-14; Psalm 24; 1 John 3:1-3; Matthew 5:1-12

 

 

This feast of All Saints Day is a celebration of what God can accomplish in human beings when they allow divine grace to transform their lives. When we think of the saints, we often think of people who accomplished remarkable things, who gave great sacrifice for others, or who possessed a holiness that seems far beyond our own reach. We admire them and often hold them on a high pedestal. Saints have never been perfect or otherworldly; they are witnesses to God's generosity. Their holiness reveals what happens when God's grace is welcomed and allowed to transform a human life.

 

The Beatitudes reveal the type of people God calls us to become. It is not a recitation of who the saints were; it is a map for future life and a promise for those whose lives have begun to embody the Beatitudes as a way of being. We were created for communion with God and with one another. It is God’s way of calling us to a higher state of being. Heaven is the fulfillment of that calling: the blessedness of sharing God's life, where the love that we struggle to practice now is brought to its perfection.

 

We are invited to become fully alive in the generosity of God. We are called to become more human. Obeying rules and fulfilling religious obligation is expected, but holiness reaches deeper than outward behavior because it necessarily involves the transformation of our hearts, the deepening of relationships, the pursuit of our desires, and renewing the way we see other people. Jesus, through the Beatitudes, reveals what humanity looks like when it is open to God’s love. Jesus allows his way of loving to reshape our own humanity. Therefore, we do as Jesus did – welcome the excluded, forgive sins, heal the wounded, confront injustice, and put the needs of others before one’s own. Holiness does not separate us from our humanity but fulfills it. Saints did not reject the world; they immersed themselves in the struggles of the day. 

 

Our holiness demands that we allow a diminished humanity to be transformed by grace. How do we do that? Here are some examples. Instead of seeing others as competitors, we recognize the other as a person of dignity who is in communion with us. Instead of protecting ourselves at all costs and putting up barriers, we discover the freedom of generosity. Instead of grasping our grudges and resentments tightly, we become open to the idea of forgiveness. Instead of seeking recognition and superiority, we find meaning in humble service. Instead of turning a blind eye to someone’s suffering and allowing ourselves to become indifferent, we enter the chaos of another person and allow that person’s suffering to change us. Instead of treating differences as threats, we discover the delight of being in communion. Instead of living primarily for our own satisfaction, we recognize our responsibility to and for one another. Our holiness is the transformation of our humanity through full participation in the life and love of God. We are unfinished in our “becoming.” God is continually inviting us into a deeper, more generous, more loving way of life. Our lives become transformed because we become more deeply alive in the presence of God. 

 

We often begin to think about heaven because this month is for the remembrance of All Souls. Heaven is not simply the reward for having lived a good life. Heaven is not about a place or being in a better location. Heaven is the fulfillment of our relationship with God. It is the happy contentment of sharing in God’s life, knowing God as fully as we can, and loving without the limitations that we have in our life today. The Beatitudes is God’s way of preparing us for the fulness of heaven by transforming our lives here and now. 

 

All Saints reflection . . .

 https://uscatholic.org/articles/202610/a-sunday-reflection-for-november-1-2026/

Feast of All Saints, November lst

We interrupt this war

We interrupt this war for doctors to heal,

teachers to teach, and students to learn.

We interrupt this war to marvel at sunsets,
listen to music, and to laugh.

We interrupt this war for poets to rhyme, sculptors to
chisel, and writers to paint pictures with words.

We interrupt this war to plant tomatoes, mow
the grass, and to smell the roses.

We interrupt this war to feed the hungry, build
new schools, and to stamp out ignorance.

We interrupt this war to clean up the air, save
the whales and to find a cure for cancer.

We interrupt this war to rebuild New Orleans,
tickle babies and for world peace.

We interrupt this war for PTA meetings, band
concerts, and high school graduations.

We interrupt this war for Girl Scout Cookies,
church bake sales, and the Special Olympics.

We interrupt this war for Disneyland, the
World Series, and the Super Bowl.

We interrupt this war for Halloween candy,
Thanksgiving Turkey, and 4th of July fireworks.

We interrupt this war for Hanukkah,
Christmas and Kwanza.

We interrupt this war to bring sons,
daughters, sisters and brothers home.

We interrupt this war to hear a message from
Our Sponsor: THOU SHALT NOT KILL.
 - cappy hall rearick - 2001

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Prayer for world peace

 

Great God, who has told us
"Vengeance is mine,"
save us from ourselves,
save us from the vengeance in our hearts
and the acid in our souls.

Save us from our desire to hurt as we have been hurt,
to punish as we have been punished,
to terrorize as we have been terrorized.

Give us the strength it takes
to listen rather than to judge,
to trust rather than to fear,
to try again and again
to make peace even when peace eludes us.

We ask, O God, for the grace
to be our best selves.
We ask for the vision
to be builders of the human community
rather than its destroyers.
We ask for the humility as a people
to understand the fears and hopes of other peoples.

We ask for the love it takes
to bequeath to the children of the world to come
more than the failures of our own making.
We ask for the heart it takes
to care for all the peoples
as well as for ourselves.

Give us the depth of soul, O God,
to constrain our might,
to resist the temptations of power
to refuse to attack the attackable,
to understand
that vengeance begets violence,
and to bring peace--not war--wherever we go.

For You, O God, have been merciful to us.
For You, O God, have been patient with us.
For You, O God, have been gracious to us.

And so may we be merciful
and patient
and gracious
and trusting
with these others whom you also love.

This we ask through Jesus,
the one without vengeance in his heart.
This we ask forever and ever. Amen
 - Sister Joan Chittister - Benedictine Sisters of Erie

 

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God is my enough!

 

When there is
nothing left
but God –
you become aware
that God is
enough!

In Praise of Fall!

 

In the stillness of an autumn afternoon
we sit in quiet communion. Before us,
hills and valleys yawn, spreading wide
their yellow and green, ochre and gold
harvest of hay, beans and corn.
All summer long these fields drank
daily offerings of dew and sunlight.
We listen to the hush of hills, a hawk
above us riding thermal winds,
the drying corn nearby whispering
Praise! Praise! Praise!, the grass
beneath our squeaking swing
chanting, sotto voce, Thank you, God. 
Everything around us whispers shhh.
And when we do, we hear the holy
breath of God bringing forth the world.

Poem by: Sister Irene Zimmerman, SSSF

The Sense of a Goose!

 

Our Wisconsin skies  are filled with migrating Canada Geese.  Thought it would be good to share this reading: 

In Autumn, when you see geese heading south for the winter, flying in a "V" formation, you might consider what science has discovered as to why they fly that way. As each bird flaps its wings, it creates an uplift for the bird immediately following. By flying in a "V" formation, the whole flock adds at least 71 percent greater flying range than if each bird flew on its own. 
People who share a common direction and sense of community can get where they are going more quickly and easily, because they are travelling on the thrust of one another. 

When a goose falls out of formation, it suddenly feels the drag and resistance of trying to go it alone and quickly gets back into formation to take advantage of the lifting power of the bird in front. 
If we have the sense of a goose, we will stay in formation with those people who are heading the same way we are. 

When the head goose gets tired, it rotates back in the wing and another goose flies point. 
It is sensible to take turns doing demanding jobs, whether with people or with geese flying south. 

Geese honk from behind to encourage those up front to keep up their speed. 
What message do we give when we honk from behind? 

Finally - and this is important - when a goose gets sick or is wounded by gunshot, and falls out of the formation, two other geese fall out with that goose and follow it down to lend help and protection. They stay with the fallen goose until it is able to fly or until it dies; and only then do they launch out on their own, or with another formation to catch up with their own group. 
If we have the sense of a goose, we will stand by each other like that. (Author Unknown)

Magnificent Autumn ~ Delicious Autumn ~ Wise Autumn!

 

O sacred season of Autumn, be my teacher, for I wish to learn the virtue of contentment.  As I gaze upon your full-colored beauty, I sense all about you an at-homeness with your amber riches.

You are the season of retirement, of full barns and harvested fields. The cycle of growth has ceased, and the busy work of giving life is now completed. I sense in you no regrets; you've lived a full life.

I live in a society that is ever-restless, always eager for more mountains to climb, seeking happiness through more and more possessions.  As a child of my culture, I am seldom truly at peace with what I have.

Teach me to take stock of what I have given and received; may I know that it’s enough, that my striving can cease in the abundance of God’s grace.

May I know the contentment that allows the totality of my energies to come to full flower. May I know that like you I am rich beyond measure.

As you, O Autumn, take pleasure in your great bounty, let me also take delight in the abundance of the simple things of life which are the true source of joy. With golden glow of peaceful contentment may I truly appreciate this autumn day. (Ed Hays, Prayers for a Planetary Pilgrim)

Beyond the Coin:

 

The Twenty-Ninth Sunday of Ordinary Time 2026 

October 18, 2026

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Isaiah 45:1-6; Psalm 96; 1 Thessalonians 1:1-5; Matthew 22:15-21

 

 

In prior weeks, we have heard Matthew’s parables on the Kingdom of God, and as those instructions conclude, the Pharisees plot against Jesus by trying to trip him up with his own words. Jesus responds by showing us that through all of life’s conflicts and stressed situations, we can think expansively and not be forced into one of two choices. He encourages discernment. 

 

Jesus does not ask us to choose between belonging to God and participating in the world. He invites us to understand how these two commitments belong together. We are called to engage, to live fully, in civil society as people who belong to God, allowing our faith to inform the way we participate. The Pharisees try to trap Jesus between a false choice between religious faithfulness and civic responsibility. The trap is designed to position him as one who either supports Roman occupation and Caesar’s authority or of opposing the Roman government. He does not accept the Pharisee’s terms. Navigating both options is still a choice. How do we live fully in the world without allowing the world’s forces to determine everything we value and believe?

 

Many Christians because of this reading divide their lives into separate compartments and stand over and against the world. They see the world as bad and contrary to God’s plan. Jesus is not saying that. In fact, he challenges that division. Our relationship with God is not meant to be an isolated part of our lives. It influences how we work, how we treat and speak to people, how we exercise authority, and how we contribute to the common good. A Christian does not check one’s faith at the door when entering the workplace, in dealing with political actions or elections, paying taxes, raising a family, or dealing with people whose fundamental beliefs differ for one’s own. These are the places where one’s discipleship becomes visible. Faith does not separate us from the world but asks us to inhabit the world differently. 

 

Jesus acknowledges that Caesar has legitimate claims. Civil society requires people to share responsibilities, support necessary institutions, and contribute to the well-being of the community. Civil authority has a vital place in our lives. Government, institutions, and economic systems serve important purposes and assist the common good. It does not have ultimate authority over our consciences, human dignity, or our moral commitments. Civil society cannot take the place of God. Civic responsibility involves thoughtful participation, respect for legitimate authority, and a conscience formed by the Gospel. Civil governments often support fundamental human values. When laws, practices, or cultural customs conflict with moral responsibilities, we may need to speak, act, and sometimes, civilly refuse to cooperate. 

 

Let’s turn back to the coin for a moment. The image of Caesar is stamped on the coin. Jesus invites us to see beyond the coin itself and ask, “What bears the image of God?” The human person does. We owe God our very selves. Our minds, hearts, talents and relationships are not to be separated from God. Our capacity to love is an extraordinary gift. Our responsibility to God is inseparable from the way we treat others, and we do this is civic society. We cannot claim to know and to honor God while disregarding the dignity of our neighbor. We cannot say we know God and remain indifferent to injustice, discrimination, inequity, or suffering. The way we treat others shows how well we know God. Our commitment to God is concrete when we honor God’s image in one another. 

 

We do not only serve God through individual prayer and worship or practicing liturgy in a particular way. We serve God through the way we build society in which human dignity is respected, in which responsibilities are collegially shared, and in which people can flourish together. The two commitments of that coin are inseparable. We receive our fullness when we come together with shared lives. We are an above and beyond people who unite and integrate our worlds to the honor of God and neighbor.

 

Teresa ~ A Mega~Flower!

 

On October 15, the feast of St. Teresa of Avila will be observed in certain Catholic-Christian and Carmelite circles.  As Theresa of Lisieux referred to herself as the “little flower of Jesus," I suppose Teresa of Avila could be considered the “Big Flower” or “Mega-Flower” of Jesus!   She was a giant at the time she lived in the 16th century and her presence and force is still with us today!

Teresa of Avila (1515-1582) “is one of the most beloved spiritual figures in history . . . she is known around the world as a great mystic, saint, reformer” and the first woman to be named Doctor of the Church!!  After a special vision, she was moved to reform the Carmelite order. She founded the community known as the Discalced (shoeless) Carmelites in Avila.  “The sisters wore hemp sandals, but their name referred to the strict poverty that was a feature of Teresa’s reform.”

She was the foundress of 17 Carmel convents, the author of four books, and considered one of the outstanding religious teachers of Christian prayer.  She was known to have a charismatic personality, along with wisdom and courage that was deeply rooted in a special love relationship with God.

Throughout her life, she suffered from migraine headaches, and other physical ailments, and experienced dryness in prayer for much of her life. However, it is also written that Teresa had the privilege of hearing God speak to her. She also began to see visions and Jesuit and Dominican priests came to see if this was true. They were convinced and declared that the visions were holy and authentic. 

In accounts of her life, it is said that when she would move into a prayerful ecstasy, there were always a couple of sisters that were appointed to hold onto the hem of her habit so that as she was lifted up in prayerful rapture, she wouldn't injure herself.

There also is the great story told of her on her travels where she encountered all the hazards of donkey carts which was one of the means of transportation of her time.  “One time her cart overturned, throwing her into a muddy river.  When she complained to God about this ordeal, she heard a voice from within her say, ‘This is how I treat my friends.’ “Yes, my Lord,” she answered, “and that is why you have so few of them.”

Prayers of Teresa:

Christ Has No Body
Christ has no body but yours,
No hands, no feet on earth but yours,
Yours are the eyes with which he looks
Compassion on this world,
Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good,
Yours are the hands, with which he blesses all the world.
Yours are the hands, yours are the feet,
Yours are the eyes, you are his body.
Christ has no body now but yours,
No hands, no feet on earth but yours,
Yours are the eyes with which he looks
compassion on this world.
Christ has no body now on earth but yours.
+  + +

May today there be peace within.  May you trust God that you are exactly where you are meant to be.  May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith.  May you use those gifts that you have received, and pass on the love that has been given to you.  May you be content knowing you are a child of God.  Let this presence settle into your bones, and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise, and love.  It is there for each and every one of us.
+ + +

Let nothing disturb you,
Let nothing frighten you,
All things are passing away:
God never changes.
Patience obtains all things
Whoever has God lacks nothing;
God alone suffices.

Guide me, Teach me, Forgive me . . .

 

 

 

Breathe Into Me the Courage to Make Something New

Thank you for all I forget are gifts, not rights.
Forgive me for all the grievances I remember too well.
Save me from the self-pity, the self-seeking,
the fat-heartedness which is true poverty.

Guide me, if I’m willing, (drive me if I’m not),
into the hard ways of sacrifice which are just and loving.
Make me wide-eyed for beauty, and for my neighbor’s need and goodness;
wide-eyed for peace-making,
and for the confronting power with the call to compassion;
wide-hearted for love and for the unloved,
who are the hardest to touch and need it the most.
Dull the envy in me which criticizes and complains life
into a thousand ugly bits.

Keep me honest and tender enough to heal
Tough enough to be healed of my hypocrisies.
Match my appetite for privilege with the stomach for commitment.

Teach me the great cost of paying attention that,
naked to the dazzle of your back as you pass,
I may know I am always on holy ground.

Breathe into me the restlessness and courage
to make something new, something saving, and something true
that I may understand what it is to rejoice.

Author: Ted Loder, Guerrillas of Grace

A Prayer for the World and More!

 

A Prayer by Rabbi Harold Kushner – 2003

 

Let the rain come and wash away
the ancient grudges, the bitter hatreds
held and nurtured over generations.

Let the rain wash away the memory
of the hurt, the neglect.
Then let the sun come out and
fill the sky with rainbows.

Let the warmth of the sun heal us
wherever we are broken.
Let it burn away the fog so that
we can see each other clearly.
So that we can see beyond labels,
beyond accents, gender or skin color.

Let the warmth and brightness
of the sun melt our selfishness.
So that we can share the joys and
feel the sorrows of our neighbors.

And let the light of the sun
be so strong that we will see all
people as our neighbors.

Let the earth, nourished by rain,
bring forth flowers
to surround us with beauty.

And let the mountains teach our hearts
to reach upward to heaven.
Amen.
 

The door . . .

 

You came down from your throne and stood at my cottage door.
I was singing all alone in a corner, and the melody caught your ear.
You came down and stood at my cottage door.

Masters are many in your hall and songs are sung there at all hours.
But the simple carol of this novice struck at your love. One plaintive
little strain mingled with the great music of the world, and with a
flower for a prize you came down and stopped at my cottage door.
Tagore
Song Offerings

Leaf mutterings. . .

 

 

A blade of grass  . . .

Said a blade of grass to an autumn leaf, “You make such a noise falling! You scatter all my winter dreams.”

Said the leaf indignant, “Low-born and low-dwelling! Songless, peevish thing! You live not in the upper air and you cannot tell the sound of singing.”

Then the autumn leaf lay down upon the earth and slept. And when spring came she waked again — and she was a blade of grass.

And when it was autumn and her winter sleep was upon her, and above her through all the air the leaves were falling, she muttered to herself, “O these autumn leaves! They make such a noise! They scatter all my winter dreams.”

K.Gibran – The Madman Chapter 30

Feast of Pope John XXIII - Saint and Prophet!

 

October 11 . . .

Feast of Pope John 

XXIII - Saint and Prophet!

Not long after being elected to the papacy, Pope John took up residence in the papal apartments. These private apartments are hidden well inside Vatican City. John felt a little like a prisoner there, unable to come and go as he pleased and, more important to him, unable to invite friends to daily meals. It had become a custom for the pope to dine alone.

Pope John confided to his secretary, Monsignor Loris Capovilla, that he was unable to sleep through the night anymore. He felt lonely, and this kept him awake. He needed more conversation and more social stimulation to help him lose this feeling of being deserted . . .

Pope John simply could not accustom himself to the habit of eating all by himself, a practice which Pius XII had always maintained. In a very short time Capovilla was invited to join him at the table. The Pope’s appetite improved immediately. Shortly afterward he invited the cardinals of the Curia to be his table companions, one after the other. Little by little, bishops from all over the world, when they made their ad limina visits to Rome, were invited to join him for lunch or dinner. (Klinger, p. 29)

+  +  +

Once a distinguished luncheon companion ventured to remind John of the solitary eating habits of Pius XII. “Well and good,” John replied. “I value tradition and I grant that my predecessors did, too.  I must confess, however, that I have never found any place in the Bible which suggests that the Pope should eat alone." (Klinger, p. 29)

(Above selections from: Praying with Pope John XXIII by Bill Huebsch)

Quotes from John XXIII

• “It often happens that I wake up at night and begin to think about a serious problem and decide I must tell the Pope about it. Then I wake up completely and remember that I am the Pope.”

• “Anybody can be Pope; the proof of this is that I have become one.”

• “The feelings of my smallness and my nothingness always kept me good company.”

• “To have accepted with simplicity the honour and the burden of the pontificate, with the joy of being able to say that I did nothing to obtain it, absolutely nothing; indeed I was most careful and conscientious to avoid anything that might direct attention to myself. As the voting in Conclave wavered to and fro, I rejoiced when I saw the chances of my being elected diminishing and the likelihood of others, in my opinion truly most worthy and venerable persons, being chosen.”

• "See everything, overlook a great deal, correct a little.”

• “Here I am at the end of the road and at the top of the heap.”

• ”Prayer is the raising of the mind to God.
We must always remember this.
The actual words matter less.”

• “Consult not your fears but your hopes and your dreams. Think not about your frustrations, but about your unfulfilled potential. Concern yourself not with what you tried and failed in, but with what it is still possible for you to do.”

Indifference – The Enemy of Faith:

 

Indifference – The Enemy of Faith: 

                                 

The Twenty-Eighth Sunday of Ordinary Time 2026 

October 11, 2026

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Isaiah 25:6-10; Psalm 23; Philippians 4:12-20; Matthew 22:1-14

  

Scripture today begins with this enticing invitation to engage in God’s banquet of rich foods and tasty drinks and to gather with loved ones free from harm of death, fear, and suffering. The message is that God is going to abundantly care for you and make sure all your needs are met. Saint Paul and the Psalmist remind us that God will supply whatever we need. In the Gospel, God invites us, through a parable, to a banquet, and we are told how people respond. We are invited to respond personally now. We hear the responses from people in the parable, and they are responses that we also hear now.

 

The first responses show us that the invited guests do not care enough to accept the offer. They have other things to do. Their farms, businesses, and family life are more compelling to them than an invitation to the wedding feast. They do not think they are rejecting the king with hostility. They say, “I have other things to do,” or “I’m too busy.” We, too, become preoccupied with work, possessions, entertainment, ambitions, and responsibilities, and a consequence is that God can gradually become less important. The danger is that good things can become substitutes for God. We become indifferent, as though God’s presence makes little difference to the way I live. God is no longer important enough to interrupt my life. We cannot see what is being offered: joy, celebration, and communion. 

 

Indifference is a progression that can become resistance, and this resistance can become hostility. Our hearts gradually become accustomed to not listening and to being closed. When we repeatedly say “no,” we stop noticing, then we stop valuing, and then we reject. When we do this in our relationship with God, we become less receptive to God’s presence and less prone to even hear the invitation. Indifference becomes the enemy of the faith.

 

So how do we make certain we do not become indifferent? We develop a habit of attentiveness. We might not hear God’s explicit voice, but it is present when we ask ourselves these questions? What is God doing in my life today? What is God asking of me now? Who did God place before me and why? Where do I need to be open to change? We may not realize we are being invited to a banquet or that God is trying to tend to one of our needs because these invitations may not be explicit and they may not come dramatically. They may come through an encounter, an insight while reading a Scripture passage, a chance conversation, a moment of discomfort, a sudden awakening, a request by someone in need. The question is whether we are woke enough, aware enough, to recognize the invitation. 

 

Notice that God’s invitation is wider than we think. The king tells his servants to “invite to the feast whomever you find.” The good and the bad alike are invited. So, this is not about worthiness to accept the invitation because someone unworthy might see it for what it is worth. This is not about goodness or badness. A good person may miss the invitation while a bad person accepts it. A person can be imperfect and still be deeply open to God, while an outwardly religious person may be inwardly closed. God’s generosity is extraordinary. It is about a proper disposition before God. The disposition is willingness to say “yes.” There are already people at the feast, not because they have achieved perfection, but because they have said “yes.” 

 

          God only asks for a receptive heart. We must be woke. We must be open to listen to receive, to change, and to respond. Missing the invitation to this feast would be a tragedy. Am I willing to recognize the invitation or am I too busy with other things that my heart and mind have become closed? What would it take for me to recognize that I am invited here and now? Remember the king’s words: Everything is ready; come to the feast.

 

Come clothed in garments of grace!

October 11, 2026

Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Katie

Glenn Brown

I grew up in the South, where there were lots of rules around what we could wear to Sunday Mass. No drawstrings, no jeans; any shorts, dresses, and skirts had to be longer than your fingertips; shoulders must be covered, etc.

I remember constantly complaining, especially as my 10-year-old tomboy self was forced into another frilly dress. I would say that the God we learned about in school didn’t seem like someone who would care what we wear. God is endlessly loving and merciful, right? Jesus prioritizes the poor, flips tables, tells off the Pharisees … I don’t think he would care whether my shoulders were covered or not. I still think I had some valid points for a 10 year old theologian.

That’s part of why this week’s gospel is so troubling for many of us. Jesus tells us a parable of a King - representing God - who seems to be more angry and vengeful than loving and merciful.

In the parable, the King is throwing a wedding feast for his son, so he sends his servants out to hand deliver the invitations. At first, the guests refuse to come. So the king sends out his servants again, reminding the guests that everything is prepared and ready, they just need to show up. Some of them ignore the invitation and choose to go to work instead. Others decide to just go ahead and kill the servants who brought the invitations. In response, the king sends his troops to kill the murderers and burn their entire cities.

Then, the King sends his servants to invite anyone out on the roads to the wedding feast. The good, the bad, the poor, the rich. All are welcome. This is behavior we can get on board with, right? Sounds a little more like our God.

But then the King finds a man at the feast not dressed in proper wedding attire. The man has no answer for why he is dressed this way, so the King tells his servants to bind the man and cast him out into the darkness, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth. Just a tad harsh towards someone who didn’t abide by the dress code. Needless to say, this parable can be quite confusing if taken literally. But let’s take a step back.

In Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus is telling this story to the chief priests and elders at the Temple in Jerusalem. Just before this, he was flipping tables of money lenders, healing the blind, and cursing fig trees. The chief priests were not thrilled about the stir Jesus was causing and began to publicly question him and his authority. He responds with parables about the Kingdom and final judgement, calling out the religious leaders’ hypocrisy and their tendency to cast judgement on the marginalized. They apparently weren’t really getting it, because this is the third parable Jesus tells in a row, which may be why he felt like he needed to tell a story that was a bit more shocking, that really got these guys to listen.

Keeping in mind that Jesus was perhaps trying to add some dramatic flare, and that parables shouldn’t necessarily be interpreted literally, helps us better understand what’s going on here. Within the parable, it’s also helpful to remember what a big deal this feast would have been. It’s the wedding of the king’s son. Can you imagine getting a hand delivered invitation to the royal wedding, and ignoring it or saying “No, I’m good, I have some work to catch up on?” Then you get a second invite, and you murder the mailman?

Throughout the Old Testament, the wedding feast is a common symbol of the Kingdom of God - the chief priests would have certainly recognized this as a parable about the Kingdom and final judgment. Jesus is reminding them, and all of us, just how irrational it is to reject God’s free invitation to participate in God’s Kingdom. And that when we do reject this invitation, and turn instead towards worldly desires, preoccupations, and systems of violence, there are repercussions. I don’t think Jesus is saying that God is going to burn down our houses and cities (in fact, the burning of the cities is likely a reference to the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 AD).  But rather, he is reminding us that when we live not as participants in God’s Kingdom but instead as participants in the structures of sin, poverty, violence, and oppression which actively oppose the coming of God’s Kingdom here on earth, we shouldn’t be surprised when we are met with death and destruction.

The ecumenical church is in the middle of celebrating the Season of Creation, remembering our calling to be stewards of God’s earth. Just think about the structures and systems that the wealthiest nations have invested in … should we really be surprised that forests are burning, that clean water is disappearing, and that extreme weather is worsening, given our systemic reliance on fossil fuels, endless cycles of consumption and waste, and disregard for the most vulnerable? This isn’t a wrathful punishment from God, it’s a consequence of our actions. It’s no wonder that the Kingdom of God described in both our first reading and in the Gospel feels so far away.

However, this parable also reminds us that what our systems of power reject and oppose, we can still embrace and build up. We can participate in God’s abundant feast here and now. Remember, the king wasn’t sending a save the date for some party years in the future - it’s a feast going on right now. Come join, he says! There is more than enough to go around, and all are welcome.

There’s only one catch - and I don’t think it’s really about dress code. Jesus is very clear throughout the gospels that you don’t need to be rich or have a black-tie appropriate outfit to attend this feast of the Kingdom, far from it. It doesn’t matter what you show up in, but it does matter how you show up. We are asked to show up with arms open to God’s grace and love, open to one another, ready to be active participants in the Kingdom. I imagine this man without a wedding garment wasn’t really present at the wedding, if you know what I mean. Maybe he was sneering and judging people’s dancing from the corner or doing the first century version of scrolling on his phone the whole time. Maybe he was in the right place, with the right people, even saying the right things, much like some of the chief priests and elders. But spiritually? He was just like those who rejected the invitation in the first place, refusing to truly participate in the Kingdom.

So, no, I still don’t think that God cares if we wear jeans to church, but if dressing a little nicer is a way to prepare ourselves for entering a space where we are going to receive God and celebrate with our brother and sisters in Christ, then I sure do get where my mom was coming from when she made me put on those dresses. But let us remember that we are invited to be active participants in God’s Kingdom not just inside the walls of the church, but everywhere we go. Let us accept, every day, God’s invitation to this feast of abundance, and reject the temptation to participate in systems of death, destruction, and oppression. Let us dare to show up, not perfectly dressed or without flaws, but with openness, with willingness, clothed in garments of grace and love, and ready to dance.