Welcome To The Party: well, except ‘those people…’
The way we live and breath and treat one another and the earth is scandalous. From forwarding political emails intended to evoke outrage and dissension to angry jabs, threatening gestures and unconscious use of resources, far too often we wear insult rather than honor, disrespect rather than devotion, selfishness rather than benevolence.
Are you a ranting republican, a grumpy democrat, a fell between the cracks working class American, a free thinking Millenial, a Tic Tok tuned Gen Z? To what ideology are you wed? What wedding garment do you wear?
Here’s the thing. Regardless of the tribe with which you align the sure and certain invitation offered by the master teacher Jesus to all of us is this. Join me in a new way of living, a way of living that invites everyone to the party, a banquet in which every one is welcome, respected and meant to fully participate. (See Matthew text of the parable below).
This of course begs the question. What does it mean to fully participate? I believe the answer is hidden in the most perplexing part of Jesus’ parable of the Wedding Banquet. Everyone who attends the wedding banquet is meant to be married to a new way of living, the way of living revealed by Jesus. Apparently the entire second round of the hypothetical king’s guests receive and understand this message, that is except the one person who shows up in street clothes instead of a wedding robe. It is easy to get flustered by the fuss the king makes about required attire, but this is a parable, a teaching tale. So the question is, “What does the wedding robe represent?”
I believe the wedding robe is the outward and visible sign of the wearers inner desire to participate in the new way of living emulated by Jesus, a way of life firmly rejected by the religious officials of his time because the people in authority are bent on protecting their power and position which depends on keeping the majority of people oppressed and definately not welcome to fully participate in the party (the fullness of life).
Which brings us to St. Paul’s counsel to the Philippians. “…whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” Do these things. (See text below).
“These things” are the garments in which we, the descendants of the parable’s banquet guests, folks who claim to follow a new way of life, must be dressed. People will recognize that we belong at the party because our robes radiate the way we live in truth, honor, justice, purity, “whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable… anything worthy of praise.”
Our robes are the way we appear in society. It is what people see when we walk into a room, it is what people read when they open our email or click on our social media post. Our robes (our behaviors) are the way we reveal who we are in the world. Are we truthful, honorable, just, pure, pleasing, commendable and worthy of praise? Or are we deceitful, untrustworthy, unfair, false, unpleasant, unethical and worthy of censure? And what about the people who send you messages? Are they wearing God’s wedding robe?
Many of us cringe when we hear this teaching tale because it implicates every one of us. It turns out that many of us are the religious elites and folks with power and position, people who claim to belong to God but who far too often fail to wear the wedding robe that announces, “I respect and welcome everyone to the party.” Let’s face it. The way we live and breath and treat one another and the earth is scandalous. From forwarding political emails intended to evoke outrage and dissension to angry jabs, threatening gestures and unconscious use of resources, far too often we wear insult rather than honor, disrespect rather than devotion, selfishness rather than benevolence.
I beg you, please, stop before you forward another inciting email, before you like or even dislike another polarizing social media post (do you know a dislike counts as much as a like to push a post to the top of the hit list?) Stop before you despise or disdain another person. Stop and say to yourself, “Like me, she or he is created in the image of God. Like me he or she may not be living into the fullness of their God given identity, but the bullets I aim at them inevitably ricochet to shatter my glass tower, sending me into terrible dark moods where all I can do is weep and fret and gnash my teeth.
We are caught in a cyclone of social, political, physical, emotional and spiritual upheaval. The only possible end to it is if we transcend it by choosing to be truthful, honorable, just, pure, pleasing, commendable, and excellent. Failing to do so, there is no doubt that we all will end up suffering, weeping and gnashing our teeth.
It is time for us to set aside our meaningless divisions, our tribal conflicts, our historical hostilities, our insolence, incivility and smug self righteousness and invite everyone to the party, respectfully welcoming all people to fully participate.
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Learn more about me at https://www.debraasis.org/ All words are generated by grace and the grit of a real human being. Debra Asis
Matthew 22:1–14
Once more Jesus spoke to the people in parables, saying: “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son. He sent his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding banquet, but they would not come. Again he sent other slaves, saying, ‘Tell those who have been invited: Look, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready; come to the wedding banquet.’ But they made light of it and went away, one to his farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his slaves, mistreated them, and killed them. The king was enraged. He sent his troops, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city. Then he said to his slaves, ‘The wedding is ready, but those invited were not worthy. Go therefore into the main streets, and invite everyone you find to the wedding banquet.’ Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered all whom they found, both good and bad; so the wedding hall was filled with guests.
“But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing a wedding robe, and he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding robe?’ And he was speechless. Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ For many are called, but few are chosen.”
Philippians 4:1–9
My brothers and sisters, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, my beloved.
I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. Yes, and I ask you also, my loyal companion, help these women, for they have struggled beside me in the work of the gospel, together with Clement and the rest of my co-workers, whose names are in the book of life.
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.
