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LINK TO SCRIPTURE READINGS
Jesus again replied in parables, saying,
"The kingdom of heaven is like a king who held a wedding feast for his son. He sent his servants to bring the invited guests to the feast, but they refused to come. Then he sent other servants, saying,
'Tell those invited: "See, I have prepared my banquet,
the calves and fattened cattle are butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the feast!"'
Some ignored the invitation and went away, one to his farm, another to his business. The rest laid hold of his servants,
mistreated them, and killed them.
Enraged, the king sent his troops, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city.
Then he said to his servants, 'The feast is ready,
but those who were invited were unworthy. Now
go into the main roads and invite anyone you find.'
The servants went out into the streets, gathering everyone they found, bad and good alike, and the hall filled with guests."
Matthew 22:1-10
On a human level, we can understand the King's anger. If you have ever planned a lavish party or large event only to have more "no-shows" than attendees, or if you hosted a wedding reception catering for guests who RSVP'd "Yes," but then never came, you were probably left with mixed emotions-- disappointment, frustration, and anger at the waste of food. In the United States, the average cost per head for a wedding guest at a formal reception is $292. Ten "no-shows," for example, can easily translate into a loss of upwards of $3,000. True, life "happens" and guests may sometimes fall ill or have some family crisis to navigate, but casual "no-shows" reflect the ultimate in inconsideration and rudeness.
The King in Jesus' parable, however, is dealing with more than "no-shows." He is not only a father wanting to celebrate his son's nuptials but also the King; those who refuse or ignore the invitation dishonor their sovereign, his family, and the Kingdom itself. Failing to understand the great privilege of being included on the guest list, they are uncouth, ungrateful, and completely unworthy of being the King's subjects. Worse still are those who mistreat or murder the King's heralds. In obeying the King's bidding and proclaiming that the banquet is ready, these servants are royal representatives; as such, their fate is an assault upon the King himself. We can understand why the King unleashes his fury upon their assailants.
What is less clear is why the improperly dressed wedding guest offends the King so deeply. After all, he was never on the original guest list, and the servants have dragged him from the streets to the reception. Interestingly, the King addresses him as "friend" and invites him to account for himself; it is the man's silence that condemns him and, bound hand and foot, he is cast into the darkness.
On an allegorical level, the Wedding Feast represents the Kingdom of God. Rejected by the original guests, the Wedding Feast then welcomes everyone, good and bad alike, provided they are dressed appropriately. Let's reflect on this further. There is always discomfort around not being dressed suitably for a particular occasion, whether we turn up for a "Black tie" event in blue jeans or for a community Clean-Up day in a Gucci suit. One of my greatest sartorial faux pas was showing up for an archaeological dig—my first —in a red wool skirt and matching jacket from Madam Pearl's Boutique. I was fourteen or thereabouts and was thrilled that my classmates from the Sacred Heart Convent and I would be digging for Punic tombs along with boys from St. Aloysius. The Jesuit leading the expedition was kind enough not to send me home; silently, he handed me a spade and told me where to dig. There I was, navigating rocky ground, in nylons, heels, and the aforementioned red suit. Needless to say, when I had planned my attire, my mind wasn't on burial sites and pottery shards; by the end of the day, I had blistered hands, shredded stockings, and a suit too soiled to salvage...
Clothing reflects belonging and not belonging, effort and lack of effort, right intention and wrong intention, respect and disrespect. By his attire, the poorly clad Wedding Guest shows he is spiritually unprepared and that he has turned up begrudgingly. He brings neither a gift nor goodwill, behaving like the rudest of gate-crashers, not even offering an apology.
Incapable of celebrating the royal nuptials, this reluctant guest brings his limited consciousness into the wedding hall. He experiences no mind-shift or moment of conversion, no sense of awe, wonder, or gratitude. While the King pronounces the sentence, it is the reluctant guest who condemns himself by bringing darkness into the place of Light...
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