Many called, few chosen

When we hold a dinner, a party, or a celebration of some kind we send out invitations to those we wish to invite. And we normally anticipate a response – an RSVP – so we know that those we have invited will be attending.

On our part we are conscious that if we have received an invitation to an event it is good manners to inform the organisers that we will be attending.

Simply put: an invitation requires a response. An invitation requires a decision on the part of the person invited.

It is this very common human experience that the Lord uses as a basis for the parable we have heard today. It begins: “the Kingdom of Heaven may be compared to a king who gave a feast for his son’s wedding”. Firstly, it expresses something very significant: the God who created us invites us to join Him for all eternity.

This, in itself, is the wonderful revelation of the Christian religion. We are offered eternal life in union with God who made us. An invitation is offered to us. This offer does require a response from us. It is not automatically granted. It is not just an entitlement.

The parable goes on to describe people saying that they are too busy, too preoccupied. They have other priorities. And they choose not to attend the wedding feast.

Our decision to respond positively to the invitation to eternal life is formalised through the Sacrament of Baptism. Prior to Baptism a person is asked two sets of three questions:

The first set involves the decision to renounce sin:

• Do you reject sin so as to live in the freedom of God’s children?
• Do you reject the glamour of evil, and refuse to be mastered by sin?
• Do you reject Satan, father of sin and prince of darkness?

The second set involves a profession of faith:

• Do you believe in God, the Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth?
• Do you believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was born of the Virgin Mary, was crucified, died and was buried, rose from the dead, and is now seated at the right hand of the Father?
• Do you believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting?

We answer in the affirmative to each of these questions. The Church understands how important this decision is, and asks us each Easter to renew the decision of our Baptism. This can remind us that our life must be an ongoing affirmation of our decision for God and our desire that the promises made to us will be fulfilled.

In other words, we choose heaven and commit ourselves to the path to eternal life. We reject evil and choose the path of right living. We choose the good. We seek to grow in virtue.

And we walk the path of faith. We unite ourselves daily with God through prayer. We open our lives to the will of God for us. We seek first the Kingdom of God.  

The affirmation is important because we declare afresh that we will not allow ourselves to become pre-occupied with other things, things of this earth. We will not be distracted by our personal interests. We are affirming that God is and will remain at the heart and centre of our life.

There is an important final element to the parable. We are told that when the king comes into the wedding hall, he discovers a person who is not wearing a wedding garment, and throws him out.

This reminds us that it is not enough just to turn up at the wedding. We do need to be suitably attired. This echoes what we have just said. We choose to come to the wedding but we must prepare ourselves and we must conform ourselves to the expectations of the host.  We know this – often we check to find out the dress code for a particular function. It would be the height of rudeness to come to an important event dishevelled and in dirty clothes.

When we are attending a formal function, we shower and clean ourselves up. We bring out good and appropriate clothing. We are expected to conform to the expectations of the host.

Today there is much emphasis on the idea of the Church being a place of welcome and indeed it should be. Catholic parishes are often criticised for not being as open to the visitor as they should be. We have some way to go in making our parishes truly welcoming of the stranger and new-comer.

However, this does not mean that there is no expectation on the person who comes. As we saw, a person enters the life of the Christian community via the path of a renunciation of sin and a profession of faith. Both are needed. 

It is worth noting that when a person is baptised they receive a white baptismal robe, a sign of their dignity and new life as a Christian. The prophet Isaiah says, “He has clothed me with the robe of salvation” (Is 61:10).

This parable is encouraging as it presents God as one who invites, offering us eternal union with Him. All are invited. However, on our part a response is required. The final words contain a warning: “Many are called but few are chosen”.

Archbishop Julian Porteous

Sunday, 15 October 2023