When God calls, do we answer with our best?

In the hustle of our daily lives, from the rice fields to the busy streets of Manila, we often hear the call to something greater. But how do we respond? This Sunday's Gospel reminds us that God's invitation is open to everyone, yet our answer determines everything.

Robert Johnson wrote in his book The Fisher King and the Handless Maiden that grace is always available, but we must ask for it for it to have an effect in our life. The two Parables of the Kingdom in today's Gospel give us a similar message. God's invitation or call is offered to all, but we must say yes to it for it to transform our lives.

What do the wedding banquet parables teach us?

The invitation to the wedding banquet was an invitation to grace, to be part of the Kingdom. It is available to all. It is an invitation to all of us, whether we live in a small barangay or a bustling city.

Let us reflect on the three responses in the Gospel. The first two ignored the invitation. One group refused, some with no reason, while others chose to prioritize other concerns which were not bad: attending to a farm and to business. The other group did not just refuse but even inflicted harm and murdered some of the servants.

The third response, in the second parable, was different. The man came to the wedding feast but was not properly attired.

As is often the case in the parables of the Lord, these responses are all possible responses we ourselves can make. The question again is: What is the dominant response that we make at different points in our life?

How do our daily choices affect our faith?

Note that in the choice to ignore God's invitation, there are two influences. One is benign, and the other is malignant. The benign influence is being caught up in other concerns that we are unable to take part in the feast. This is what Ignatian spirituality would refer to as inordinate attachments.

This is the more subtle influence because it does not lay out to us in black and white that we are not responding to the grace of God's call. It can deceive us into thinking that we are not doing anything wrong or bad since we are attending to something seemingly good, like checking out one's farm and attending to business.

Attachments are not bad or evil in themselves. Psychologists, for example, would say we need relationships as we grow up. Owning material possessions is also part of our development. Being dedicated to our work is also healthy.

There is nothing bad or evil with caring for others, paying attention to work, a project, or a business. But when it prevents us from seeing and responding to God's invitation, then it becomes an inordinate attachment. This is what makes it a subtle temptation, if not a subtle evil. Insidious at times.

The malignant influence is clearer, more black and white. It is a choice between good and evil, right and wrong. Like in the parable, the invited guests chose to beat up the messengers and even murdered some of them. That is definitely wrong.

Why does God want our whole heart?

The third response reminds us of another important virtue in our effort to respond to God's invitation. The invited guest went to the feast, but he did not come in the proper garment.

When we respond to God's invitation, we give Him the best. No half-hearted measures, no half-baked offerings.

The song The Little Drummer Boy, a standard Christmas carol in school when we were younger, is a classic example of this total yes to God's invitation, an offering from the heart:

Little baby, I am a poor boy, too.
I have no gift to bring that's fit to give our King
Shall I play for you on my drum?
Mary nodded,
the ox and lamb kept time.
I played my drum for Him.
I played my best for him.
Then He smiled at me
Me and my drum

The Gospel ended with this line: Many are invited, but few are chosen. We are all invited to the banquet in heaven, but few are chosen not because it is an exclusive feast. The chosen few are the ones who respond to the invitation wholeheartedly.

Reorienting our entire life to respond to the invitation, giving ourselves totally to God's invitation, call, will, and mission for us, and choosing God is what makes us chosen.

Readings: Isaiah 25:6-10a; Psalm 23, R. I shall live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life.; Philippians 4:12-14, 19-20; Gospel - Matthew 22:1-14