DO NOT DESPISE YOUR INVITATION TO THE MARRIAGE FEAST OF THE LAMB.

I WANT MY HOUSE TO BE FULL. 

"One of those at table with Jesus said to him, “Blessed is the one who will dine in the Kingdom of God.”

"He replied to him, “A man gave a great dinner to which he invited many. 

"When the time for the dinner came, he dispatched his servant to say to those invited, ‘Come, everything is now ready.’

"But one by one, they all began to excuse themselves.

"The first said to him, ‘I have purchased a field and must go to examine it; I ask you, consider me excused.’

"And another said, ‘I have purchased five yoke of oxen and am on my way to evaluate them; I ask you, consider me excused.’ 

"And another said, ‘I have just married a woman, and therefore I cannot come.’ 

"The servant went and reported this to his master.

"Then the master of the house in a rage commanded his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in here the poor and the crippled, the blind and the lame.’

"The servant reported, ‘Sir, your orders have been carried out and still there is room.’

"The master then ordered the servant, ‘Go out to the highways and hedgerows and make people come in that my home may be filled. For, I tell you, none of those men who were invited will taste my dinner." (Luke 14: 15 - 24).

Tuesday November 5th 2024 in the 31st Week of Ordinary Time.

The context of today's parable is the enthusiastic statement of a fellow dinner guest with Jesus:

"One of those at table with Jesus said to him, “Blessed is the one who will dine in the Kingdom of God.”

Dining in the Kingdom of God is the summit of blessings. It is the ultimate aspiration. 

The Marriage feast of the Lamb is the mother of all feast. 

"Blessed are you who are invited to the Supper of the Lord." 

"I want My House to be full." Jesus said. 

Why will anyone in his right mind turn down such an invitation? 

The answer is that there is something akin to insanity with regard to pride and sin. When the Prodigal Son came back to his senses, he wondered why he ever did what he did. Ran away from the gorgeous home of his loving father to live like a scum of the earth for a number of years. 

The Church is the seed of the Kingdom of God on earth. The Eucharist is the Marriage feast of the Lamb on this side of Heaven. 

If you have been avoiding the Eucharist, forget your foolish pride and ask the gracious Lord to rescue you from "the highways and hedgerows" before it is too late. 

November is the Month we pray for the Souls in PURGATORY. 

“I saw my guardian angel, who ordered me to follow him. In a moment I was in a misty place full of fire in which there was a great crowd of suffering souls. They were praying fervently, but to no avail, for themselves; only we can come to their aid. The flames, which were burning them, did not touch me at all. My guardian angel did not leave me for an instant. I asked these souls what their greatest suffering was. They answered me in one voice that their greatest torment was longing for God.” (St. Maria Faustina Kowalski). 

For Catholic Church teaching on the Souls in PURGATORY and how to help them, click the link below:

http://seekfirst.blogspot.com/2023/10/10-ways-to-assist-poor-souls-in.html

MEMORIAL OF ST CHARLES BORROMEO, BISHOP.

MEMORIAL OF ST CHARLES BORROMEO, BISHOP. 

"On a sabbath Jesus went to dine at the home of one of the leading Pharisees.

"He said to the host who invited him, “When you hold a lunch or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or sisters or your relatives or your wealthy neighbors, in case they may invite you back and you have repayment. 

"Rather, when you hold a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind; blessed indeed will you and because of their inability to repay you. 

For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.” (Luke 14:12 - 14).

Monday November 4th the 31st Week in Ordinary TIME is the Memorial of St Charles Borromeo, Bishop. (1538 - 1584).

St Charles Borromeo was Cardinal and Archbishop of the famous See of Milan, the See of St Ambrose. Borromeo was born into wealth and splendor but was not possessed by his wealth and patrimony.

St Charles Borromeo was one of the architects of the successful conclusion of the Council of Trent. A great reformer, he worked hard for the implementation of the decrees of the Council. He established seminaries and had catechisms produced. 

Thanksgiving Day is weeks away. It marks the beginning of the holiday season. Parties, dinners and invitations to family, friends and colleagues are being planned. 

Jesus looks forward to dinner invitations since it gives Him a teaching opportunity to meet the kind of crowd He did not reach on daily basis.  Here Jesus gives a difficult lesson to the aristocratic group gathered for the dinner and frankly to us as well.

Who do you plan to invite to your home this Thanksgiving, Christmas and parties? What are your motives behind your guest list?

"Invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind," advises Jesus.

Why this group?

"Blessed indeed will you be because of their inability to repay you."

Jesus challenges our self-centeredness. Why are humans so self centered? Even little children act always in a quid pro quo manner.  They give to only those who give them something. Jesus set a new standard in the Kingdom.  Act like your Heavenly Father, who is lavishly generous to All His children, Jesus admonishes.

"All you who are thirsty, come to the water!

You who have no money, come, buy grain and eat; Come, buy grain without money, wine and milk without cost!"  (Isaiah 55: 1).

Jesus offers the Bread of life free of charge.

Be generous to the poor and the disadvantaged this holiday season. 

"There is no problem or difficulty that cannot be solved or resolved by faithful persevering recourse to My Mother’s most holy Rosary. The Rosary is My Mother’s gift to the poor and to the simple, to the little ones who alone are capable of hearing the Gospel in all its purity and of responding to it with a generous heart. It is to such as these—the childlike and the weak, the poor and the trusting—that the Rosary is given. It is to such as these that the Rosary belongs." (IN SINU JESU).

November is the Month we pray for the Souls in PURGATORY. 

“The fire of Purgatory is the same as the fire of Hell; the difference between them is that the fire of Purgatory is not everlasting." (St John Vianney). 

For Catholic Church teaching on the Souls in PURGATORY and how to help them, click the link below:

http://seekfirst.blogspot.com/2023/10/10-ways-to-assist-poor-souls-in.html