From Season to Season

“The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments." —Matthew 22:40   One of the assignments that students find most challenging is condensing a chapter or book into a brief, concise summary. It’s quite difficult to take the words and ideas of another person, reflect on them, discern what is most important in the text, and then present the most important points or themes in your own words. And yet, as teachers and professors can attest, this is an invaluable way of helping students hold on to what is most important for their studies. In a sense, this is the task that is being presented to Jesus in today’s Gospel. On this Thirtieth Sunday of Ordinary Time, our Gospel is a continuation of the passages we have heard over the past two Sundays. Jesus is in conversation with the religious leaders of the Jewish people and they continue to question him, hoping to trip him up by asking for impossible answers. In this Sunday’s passage, Jesus is asked which of the com...

“The king said to him, 'My friend, how is it that you came in here without a wedding garment?' But he was reduced to silence. Then the king said to his attendants, 'Bind his hands and feet, and cast him into the darkness outside, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.' Many are invited, but few are chosen." —Matthew 22:12-14   This is a season of invitations. As the end of October approaches, many of us will be invited to Halloween parties and numerous parishes will send out information about special All Saints’ Day and All Souls Day services remembering those who have died in the past year. Then, only a short time later family and friends will begin making plans for Thanksgiving. Few of us will have a chance to take a breath before the invitations begin to roll in for the pre-Christmas parties. It almost seems natural, then, that our Gospel this Sunday is a parable that begins with an invitation to a party. In this passage, Jesus tells t...