Thursday of the Twentieth Week in Ordinary Time
Called To The Feast
Other Celebrations for this Day:
Liturgical Cycle: A | Lectionary Cycle: II
Introduction
Year II. Israel had profaned God’s name among the nations, making it look weak when he had to send Israel into exile. Now Ezekiel consoles them when they are in exile. He will restore his people again, giving them a new heart and a new spirit.
Gospel. All are invited to the kingdom of God, even repeatedly, the good and the bad alike. Salvation is open to all. But they should be willing; they must respond to the call. And once they respond, they should be consistent. They must share in the death struggle of Christ against evil, to live with the life of Christ. The force to live the Christ life is indeed given to us in the eucharistic meal. There, the Lord prepares us for the royal marriage feast.
Opening Prayer
Merciful Father of all people,
you open the doors of your kingdom
to invite us all, good and bad alike,
to share the life of Jesus, your Son.
Give us the wisdom and the strength
to respond to your generous call
with the whole of our being.
Help us to go the loyal way
to you and to one another
of Jesus Christ, your Son and our Lord,
who lives with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
First Reading
I will reveal the holiness of my great name, which has been desecrated among the nations because of you, and they will know that I am the Lord when I display my holiness among you.
I will gather you from all the nations and bring you back to your land.
Then I will pour clean water over you, and you will be made clean—cleansed from all your idols’ defilement.
I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you. I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.
I will put my Spirit within you and move you to follow my decrees and keep my laws.
You will live in the land I gave your ancestors; you shall be my people, and I will be your God.
Responsorial Psalm
R. (Ezekiel 36:25) I will pour clean water on you and wash away all your sins.
A clean heart create for me, O God,
and a steadfast spirit renew within me.
Cast me not out from your presence,
and your Holy Spirit take not from me.
R. I will pour clean water on you and wash away all your sins.
Give me back the joy of your salvation,
and a willing spirit sustain in me.
I will teach transgressors your ways,
and sinners shall return to you.
R. I will pour clean water on you and wash away all your sins.
For you are not pleased with sacrifices;
should I offer a burnt offering, you would not accept it.
My sacrifice, O God, is a contrite spirit;
a heart contrite and humbled, O God, you will not spurn.
R. I will pour clean water on you and wash away all your sins.
Alleluia Verse
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
If today you hear his voice,
harden not your hearts.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Parable of the Wedding Banquet
Jesus kept talking to them in parables:
“This story sheds light on the kingdom of heaven: A king hosted a wedding banquet for his son.
He sent his servants to summon the invited guests to the banquet, but they refused to come.
Once again, he sent out other servants, telling them to say to the invited guests, ‘I have prepared a banquet, slaughtered my fattened calves and other animals, and now everything is ready. Come to the wedding!’
But they paid no attention and walked away, some heading to their farms and others to their work.
Others captured the king’s servants, insulted them, and killed them.
The king was furious. He sent his troops to wipe out those murderers and burn their city.
Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet is ready, but the invited guests were not worthy.
Instead, go to the main streets and invite everyone you meet to the wedding feast.
The servants went out into the streets and gathered everyone they found, both bad and good, so that the hall was filled with guests.
The king entered to see the wedding guests, and he noticed a man not wearing a wedding garment.
So he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in without the wedding clothes?’ But the man stayed silent.
So the king told his servants, ‘Bind his hands and feet and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
For many are called, but few are chosen.”
Prayers of the Faithful
– That the Lord may gather all peoples in one common praise of his name, we pray:
– That the lives of all Christians may radiate joy and hope and bring a feast of happiness to others, we pray:
– That the communities without priests, isolated and abandoned as they often feel, may receive the word of the Lord as their food and occasionally also the Lord’s body, we pray:
Prayer over the Gifts
Lord our God,
in these signs of bread and wine
you invite us now to the table
of your Son Jesus Christ,
as a token and pledge
of your unending feast meal in heaven.
Give us the strength to respond to your call,
that we may become new in Christ
and live his life day after day,
until you let us share in his glory
for ever and ever.
Prayer after Communion
Loving Father,
we thank you for giving us your Son
as our food and drink
on the long road to you.
Through this eucharist
make us resemble him more and more,
that we may respect and love him
in one another,
that we may be his image to the world,
and that you may recognize his traits in us
when you welcome us
to the everlasting feast of joy.
Grant us this through Christ our Lord.
Blessing
All are invited to the Lord’s feast meal, but not all come. Are some absent because we do not make them feel welcome? Let us do all we can to make people feel at home with us. May God bless you all, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
REFLECTIONS
Matthew 22: 1-14
God Invites Us to His JoyIn today’s Gospel, Jesus tells us about a king who prepares a wedding banquet for his son—a feast, a celebration of love and communion (cf. Mt 22:1–14). This king is God himself, and his deepest desire is to share his joy with us. He does not force us; he invites us. He opens wide the doors of his banquet and waits for our response.
What a beautiful image this is of our God! He does not impose himself, but lovingly calls. He prepares everything, and yet leaves us free to accept or decline. As Saint Augustine reminds us: “He who created us without our help will not save us without our consent.” This is the dignity of our freedom. And yet, how often do we turn away from the invitation?
The Gospel says that many of those invited had their excuses —they were too busy with their own fields, their own businesses. And how often do we do the same? We fill our lives with noise, appointments, and distractions, and we miss the gentle voice of the One who calls us to something greater: to communion, to joy, to love.
But God does not give up. He keeps inviting. He goes out to the streets and gathers all—the poor, the forgotten, the broken. Those who know they need grace are the ones who come. And when they say “yes,” the banquet is filled.
Let us ask ourselves honestly: What space do I give to God in my life? Do I say “yes” to His invitation, or do I close the door because I am too occupied with myself?
Let us learn from Mary, who with her humble “yes” opened her life to God’s joy. May we do the same.
Amen.