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It is a perennial question how people who are supposed
to believe in God actually live their lives as if there
is no God. God can give to humankind the fulfillment of
all blessings as in a sumptuous banquet (Isaiah
25:6-10a); still, human beings invited to the feast do
manage to be apathetic and secular (Matthew 21:33-43).
The
eschatological feast
If the
vine/vineyard metaphor, as we saw last week, is a
standard symbol of the chosen people of Israel, so is
abundant feasting an apt sign of divine goodness and a
pledge of the eternal reign of God. The prophetic scene
from Isaiah in the first reading is one of victory,
endless life and an abundant banquet. The rich banquet
described symbolizes fullness of life and the
joy-filled conviviality heavenly existence. To be noted,
a mountain is the special locus of this eschatological
feast, the mountain of the Lord where divine power and
munificence are made fully manifest.
“On that
day” refers to the day of salvation, the time when all
promises are finally fulfilled. The universal character
of the vision is underscored by the fact that not only
the people of Israel but all peoples will take part in
the eschatological feast. And this vision of salvation
has all rejoicing that the Lord, “to whom we looked to
save us,” has kept his word and saved all. The hand of
the Lord, the symbol of divine power, will rest on the
holy mountain, fulfilling all of God’s promises and
blessings.
Triumph
over death
And the
pall of death that veils all peoples shall be lifted.
The tradition of the springtime celebration of nature’s
victory of new life over the seasonal death of winter
will give way to the eschatological finality of the
destruction of death itself at the end of time. Death
will never hold sway again. And a lavish banquet
follows this cosmic victory, as in the ancient Canaanite
myth of the defeat of the god of death, Mot. The title
“Lord of hosts” (s’ba’ot) refers precisely to this
vision of God at the head of a large army of warriors
victorious over the forces of evil and death.
Then
there will be no more cause for tears. “God will wipe
away the tears from all faces.” There will be only
rejoicing, when the shroud of death that covered all
peoples will be destroyed. For the people and the
earth, the entire human race and the natural world, are
intertwined in their destiny. Now the reproach to the
chosen people will be lifted from all the earth, because
death refers not only to the final demise but everything
that negates and downgrades life, full life, in the
world.
The full
brunt of indifference
For the
third consecutive occasion, Jesus has a confrontation
with the leaders of the people. If last week the
tenants of the vineyard wanted to appropriate it for
themselves, now the unfaithfulness of those who have a
special relationship with God is seen in their refusal
to attend the royal wedding banquet. Allegorically, the
first servants sent to invite the guests were the
prophets and other religious leaders calling the people
to union with God. The second group of servants
represented the Apostles in their first mission to the
house of Israel. The maltreatment accorded the prophets
and the Apostles explained popularly the destruction of
the city, corresponding to the razing of Jerusalem in 70
A.D. The sending of the servants to the byroads “to
invite anyone you come upon” interpreted the extension
of the Christian mission from the Jews to the gentiles.
As a
parable inside a parable, Matthew, in accord with his
pastoral concern for his contemporaries, added a second
part about the guest found carelessly attired inside the
banquet hall. The “wedding garment” could be a
baptismal allusion. The guest without that garment
represented those who put on Jesus at baptism but have
not lived up to their Christian commitment. The
treatment of the improperly attired guest is a warning
to lax or nominal followers of Jesus.
Alálaong
bagá,
Jesus
subscribes to the ideal that a meal shared by friends is
a type for the messianic banquet and an image of
humanity’s intimacy with God. His habit of dining with
the poor and the pariah was a clear statement concerning
the universality of God’s call and the prerequisites for
sharing in the eschatological blessings. For the
end-time banquet, God spreads the table and invites us
all to the eternal joy. Incredibly, there are people
who ignore the invitation, or turn it down because their
other concerns leave them no time for it. Some people
even find it reasonable to attack those who deliver the
invitation to the feast. In the secularism of the world
today, the eschatological banquet may not be as
interesting as a sporting event or some social affair or
a business and a political enterprise. Alas, the time
is coming when all our plans and businesses and
distractions will come to an end and only the banquet
will remain. What counts then is: Have we heeded the
invitation of God? And wherever we may come from, do we
come in properly attired in the authenticity of our life
as baptized in Christ? |
