COME AND EAT BUT PLEASE DRESS WELL. (Homily for August 18, 2016. Thursday of the 20th week in Ordinary Time.)

Bible Study: Ezekiel 36, 23 to 28 and Matthew 22, 1 to 14.


“Come and Eat” is a universal language. In any culture, the best way through which one is welcomed and honoured is an invitation to a meal. To eat with someone is to bring that person into your world and get to know each other better. Abraham was rewarded with the promise of a child when he played hosts to strangers by preparing a meal for them. Jacob received blessing from Isaac which was intended for Esau because he prepared a delicious meal. To this day, lives have been changed and destinies have been altered over a dish of food.

To be invited to a meal is a sign of honour on the part of the person being invited. To turn down an invitation on a flimsy excuse is a sign of mistrust and the end of a friendship. Again to go as far as beating up and even killing the person who brought the invitation is a call for war. No one takes such and insult likely.

If you have ever spent time and money organizing and event only to be given various sorts of excuses at the eve of the event, and then on that day itself, none of your significant guests are present, you would definitely feel depressed, angry and confused to say the least.

What kind of guests would hear “Come and eat” and refuse to show up? This is strange! But this is our story.

Some of us have been Christians right from our mothers’ womb. We grew up in the faith and we never had any supernatural experience that made us really converted. As a result, there is this tendency to underestimate what we have and begin to take for granted the values we ought to cherish.

We can become so used to the Church that we lose the sense of the sacred. We become so full of ourselves that there is no longer space for God in our time table anymore. We no longer go for confession because we start seeing the priest as too ordinary a man to stand in the place of Christ to absolve sins. Our hearts become workshops for the devil because we consume whatever comes our way such as immoral thoughts, idolatry, love for money, evil desires, etc. This is the point we literally turn down God’s invitation to his divine banquet.

Dear friends in Christ, the point behind this parable of Jesus is this: THAT SOMETHING IS FREE DOES NOT MEAN IT IS CHEAP. The fact that we have been invited to heaven does not mean we have a right to take it for granted. If we, who feel we deserve heaven by virtue of being called ‘Christians’ or by virtue of our regular church attendance play with this invitation, it would be given to ‘outsiders’. Matthew 21 verse 31. “In truth I tell you, tax collectors and prostitutes are making their way into the kingdom of God before you.” Even the prophet Ezekiel in our first reading today testifies that God will gather people from all nations.

Again, we see that even from among those who were brought in freely from the streets almost forcefully just to fill up the space, one of them was thrown out. Why? He was not properly dressed. Once more dear friends, the point is: That something is free does not mean it is cheap. That the guests were invited on a platter of gold did not give any of them the right to come in without a wedding garment.

Never take the things of God for granted. I recall mentioning this particular parable of Jesus recently when I was commenting on how people dress to Church. These days we see all kinds of fashion that are more suited for night clubs and beach party than for the house of God. Inability to dress yourself properly is a sign of disrespect for God. There are some dresses you cannot even wear to work where you are being paid but you want to wear them to Church. Why do you want to become the centre of attraction in the house of God? Are people going to Church to worship you or to worship God? Why be a distraction and a corruption on the minds of people in the house of God? A lady who dresses poorly in the name of looking for a husband will only end up attracting a hosts of boyfriends like sugar attracts ants, they only come in to eat the sugar and walk away. A man who dresses poorly is even worse. He is no better than the man who was thrown out in today’s Gospel passage.

Let us never take the things of God for granted.

Let us pray:
Create in me a pure heart, Oh God and renew your spirit within me. Cast me not away from your presence O Lord and take not your Holy Spirit from me.

Good morning. Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. God bless you.

To the glory of God, on this very day I was ordained a priest 4 years ago. Happy anniversary to me and all who are celebrating same this week. Mary, mother of priests, pray for us.


Fr. Abu

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