Readings
for Proper 23 A:
Isaiah 25:1-9; Psalm 23; Philippians 4:4-13; Matthew 22:1-14
October 9, 2005
The Rev. Mary B. Blessing
St. Jude the Apostle Episcopal Church, Cupertino,
CA
“Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding robe?” And he was speechless (Mt.22:12)
Can you imagine the fear that guest must have felt—the “deer caught in the headlights” fear? Stopped in his tracks, as the King catches this person unprepared, disengaged from the wedding banquet. Then he gets cast out--booted out to the outer darkness.
“How unfair” we think. “This person did not have time to prepare”. It seems outrageous to us that this King represents God and the promise of the “heavenly Kingdom to come”. Jesus usually offers images of a loving God—unconditional love, showing tremendous mercy. Why, here, is God equated to a King who is first generous, then impatient, then extremely judgmental? What would compel us to want to be in the Kingdom of heaven if God is like this King who places conditions on us? It is passages like this that cause many of us squirm, and tempt us to dismiss God. Is God this inconsistent? What happened to God who “makes me lie down in green pastures, and leads me beside still waters”? (Psalm 23) Give me that God.
This parable has troubled me for years. Oh, I get that it is written in hyperbole, an exaggeration, as a warning to Matthew’s community about what has happened in Israel’s salvation history. This parable uses the core image of “the kingdom of heaven like a wedding banquet” and develops an allegory of Israel’s salvation history--from the sending of prophets to Israel to the renewed invitation by Christian missionaries.
The troubling part is the added the bit about the guest without a wedding robe. I have been troubled, as maybe many of you are, with the idea of a God who would reject someone on such superficial grounds. But I now see that maybe Matthew added this specifically to warn early Christians, to wake up those on the “inside”, not to threaten those on the“outside”of the community. Matthew warns early Christians that if they are truly part of the community, they must be active, spiritual partners “in the heavenly banquet”. Wearing the wedding garment is a sign of full participation. It is recognition that you appreciate what your host has spread before you; it shows you are part of this wedding party. In the theology of early Christianity the new identity of a faith conversion was pictured as donning a new set of clothes. Putting on the new set of clothes was a sign of giving up the old way of life and putting on the new.
Let me tell you a story that shows what this means not just to the individual, but to a faith community. Recently Jim and I attended a special retirement banquet—a banquet to honor the Rector at the parish that “raised me up” for ordination. The Rector and his wife gave us love and support throughout the toughest family years, cheerfully encouraging not just me, but my husband, and kids, with the hope that we, as a family, really could do seminary and ordained ministry. We definitely wanted to attend this banquet!
As the week of the banquet approached, I found myself obsessing over what to wear. I had never actually served as priest to this congregation. They mentored me as much as I served them. They got me ordained and off I went to minister other places. I rarely visited, and when I did, I was “incognito”. The banquet was a social event; I was guest, not honoree; I had no specific role and it was not a liturgy, so I honestly did not know if I should wear a nice dress or clericals. It seemed ridiculous to worry about it, but I worried.
The Rector’s wife is a woman of impeccable taste—she always wears the perfect outfit for any occasion. I, on the other hand, often struggle over what to wear. My first choice would be comfortable Dockers and a polo shirt. Dressing up in a priest’s outfit was a challenge. I remembered the Rector’s wife was pleased to see me in clericals after my ordination. She held a certain satisfaction knowing she had been a spiritual support, encouraging me along the way. She wanted me to wear clericals as a sign of the good work God was doing in our community, of which I was a visible representation. While I was rather self-conscious at first, she and others said they wanted me to wear these clothes as a reminder to the world that Christ is present. What I wore really wasn’t just about me. These clothes represented the transformation not only of my life, but also of their lives as they, too, responded to the Holy Spirit’s call for my ordination.
And so, for the retirement banquet, it occurred to me that I needed to wear the garment that was a sign of giving up the old way of life and putting on the new. The Rector and his wife beamed. She gave me a big hug, and let me know she appreciated my willingness to continue to honor that sign of the good work God had done through the community.
But, lest we forget, today’s parable is not really about what clothes to wear to a banquet. It is really a story about salvation. As the old testament prophet Isaiah says “... the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food…Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, so that he might save us. This is the Lord for whom we have waited; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.” (Is. 25:9) The parable uses the image of “wearing the right clothes” to represent the rejoicing, the joyful transformation of a person who truly accepts God’s salvation. Accepting salvation begins one’s participation in the holy process of “sanctification”—the process of being made holy through God’s grace. Sanctification is a process God wills for all creation. God wants all humanity to be holy.
“Sanctification” is one aspect of salvation. Remember, we receive salvation by grace. It is a gift, we cannot earn it. But this free gift is not to be taken lightly. Early Christians, such as the ones in Matthew’s community, began to realize that in order to be fully sanctified or made holy, a person needed to participate in responsible cooperation with the Holy Spirit. The New Testament message includes the imperative to manifest and grow in holiness, not just take it for granted, as shown by this parable of the guest without a wedding robe.
“Sanctification” is implied in much of the New Testament, but Christians have struggled with theological questions regarding just how much we actively participate with God in our own sanctification. During the Reformation of the 16th century a fundamental difference in emphasis appeared between Protestant and Catholic ideas of sanctification. Protestants drew a distinction between justification (being made right with God) and sanctification (being made holy by God). Protestants emphasized that justification is by grace and not merit. Catholics emphasized the unity of justification and sanctification by insisting that the gift of the grace of faith makes the believer righteous and holy, therefore acceptable to God. However, once the process of sanctification begins, Protestants and Catholics agree that it is a continuing process within a faithful person, in the context of community, influenced by the Holy Spirit and mediated by scripture and sacraments. Both Protestants and Catholics profess that the believer must responsibly participate with the Holy Spirit to allow the fullness of God’s sanctification. (Thomas, p. 222) We participate not just for the sake of self, but for the sake of all creation.
Jesus is the only fully sanctified person in human history. The life he lived and the death he suffered caused something new to happen in creation, giving us the hope that humanity can engage fully in cooperative sanctification with God. We look to Jesus to understand what sanctification means. We hold him up as the model of how we are to live our lives, and in spite of limitations, we are called to seek our own genuine ways to respond to God’s call to holiness. Whatever we do, we cannot take God’s gift of salvation for granted. We must engage in acceptance of our salvation, which began at our baptism, perhaps with promises made by others, but which continues in our lives as we participate in living out the Christian life. Whatever God calls you to do and be in God’s name, answer that call with an immediate “yes”. Don’t just show up at the banquet. Honor the host. Rejoice! Respond by cooperating with whatever the Holy Spirit may call you to do in God’s name.
AMEN (Owen Thomas, Introduction to Theology, p. 219-223)
| Updated 10/15/05 |
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