Do you not see all these things?

Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and his disciples came up to show him the buildings of the temple. And Jesus said to them, "Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down."

Now as he sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, "Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?" And Jesus answered and said to them: "Take heed that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, saying, "I am the Christ, and will deceive many. And you shall hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows."

"Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for my name's sake. And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come."

- Matthew 24:1-14

Jesus has just finished a long discourse of accusations regarding the scribes and Pharisees and their practices, which, he says, keep those whom they would lead far from God. See the readings for Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday for this complete speech to the multitudes and to his disciples (Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, Fools and blind!, and But you were not willing!). This assertive indictment of their faults as leadership to the people of God came after the leadership tried to trap Jesus with their own questions, made with the intent to have him arrested. In the final verses of this indictment or list of faults, Jesus predicted the destruction of Jerusalem and expressed his deep sorrow over their choices.

Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and his disciples came up to show him the buildings of the temple. And Jesus said to them, "Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down." My study bible notes here: "This is a prediction of the destruction of the temple in A.D. 70, which sets the tone for Jesus discourse on the end of the age (chs. 24-25). The New Testament describes the end time in a variety of ways, so that no precise chronology can be determined (see Mark 13; Luke 21; 1 Cor. 15:51-55; 1 Thess. 4:13-17; and the Book of Revelation). Jesus' emphasis is on being prepared through watchfulness and stewardship rather than on constructing exacting chronologies. In this chapter the end is described as a process with three overlapping stages: (1) the beginning of sorrows (vv. 4-14), (2) the Great Tribulation (vv. 15-28) and (3) the coming of the Son of Man (vv. 29-31)." At the time of the destruction of the temple by the Romans, it was believed that the temple stones, which were massive in size, were lined with gold. So "not one stone shall be left here upon another" is a rather remarkable prediction. The temple itself was completely destroyed. Out of a huge complex of grand designs, only a small part of a retaining perimeter wall remained standing, which became known as The Wailing Wall.

For the rest of today's reading, my study bible has the following general note: "The question about the signs and the persecutions is connected in Matthew with the sign of his coming and the end of the age. The disciples dream of the hoped-for earthly kingdom, which they expect to appear almost immediately. Jesus knows their anticipation and sets out to prepare them for what is to come. He warns them to take heed (v. 4) not to (1) be seduced by any deception (v. 5); (2) be overpowered by the violence of afflictions which will come (vv. 6-9); or (3) stumble because of the false brethren (vv. 10-12)."

Now as he sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, "Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?" And Jesus answered and said to them: "Take heed that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, saying, "I am the Christ, and will deceive many. And you shall hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows." My study bible notes, specifically regarding verse 6: "Jesus and the disciples are sitting on the Mount of Olives looking out over Jerusalem (v. 1). The immediate reference here is not to the wars of the world over the centuries, but to wars in Jerusalem." Clearly, in this beginning of his discourse to his disciples, Jesus is referring to what will take place in Jerusalem in their lifetimes. We can imagine the difficulties these men will endure in Jerusalem itself - just as Jesus has described above. The word for "sorrows" ("All these are the beginning of sorrows") comes from a word that also means "pain" or "birth pang" or "agony." Its root is the word for "grief." So, Jesus is clearly initiating them into the time to come: not one of the glory of the final kingdom - but rather one of travail and hardship, and endurance.

"Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for my name's sake. And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come." My study bible notes here: "All these calamities and tribulations will not prevent the progress of the gospel; the Good News will be preached everywhere (Rom. 10:18; Col. 1:6, 23)." So, Jesus' disciples are being initiated into a time of great sorrow, travail and affliction, difficulties -- but also of the endurance that comes from fighting the good fight. We will come to know this fight as one that defines strength, persistence and courage as those skills with which we bear our faith and in which we pursue it. We will continue with this discourse in the next several readings, as Jesus expands on the question posed to him in today's reading. We understand Jesus' reference to the sorrows they will endure. In many ways, they remain the sorrows and difficulties of the world that we endure and that the history of the Church has known. We are still in this time of "the good fight." We wage it with weapons of peace and love and hope and truth. It is a war that takes place within each of us. May you be equipped for it well, and strong in all the gifts that teach us what these things truly mean, and what it is to endure with the help we give to one another and that comes from above.

But you were not willing!

"Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel! Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisees, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also."

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness. Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! Because you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, and say, 'If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.' Therefore you are witnesses against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers' guilt. Serpents, brood of vipers! How can you escape the condemnation of hell? Therefore, indeed, I send you prophets, wise men, and scribes: some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from city to city, that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. Assuredly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation.

"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! See! Your house is left to you desolate; for I say to you, you shall see me no more till you say, 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!' "

- Matthew 23:24-39

In the readings for Monday (Whoever exalts himself will be humbled) and Tuesday (Fools and blind!) we have been going through Jesus' indictment of the scribes and Pharisees, and the practices with which he feels they are misleading those they are meant to lead in worship. Today, we continue with this list of faults that Jesus names for the multitudes and his followers. This is an open assertion against the leadership, after they have begun to seek to arrest Jesus and entrap him with their own questions.

In the past couple of commentaries, I have quoted from a note which applies across the board to this series of readings, and here I will repeat again: "In his eightfold indictment of the Pharisees (vv. 13-36), Jesus charges them with inverting God's values and with being mean-spirited, greedy, ambitious, absorbed in externals, hypocritical, and blindly self-righteous. How much worse will it be for Christians who lapse into patterns of religious life similar to the scribes and Pharisees'!"

I've included verses 24-26 in today's reading although they aren't part of the Lectionary reading. "Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel! Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisees, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also." My study bible notes, "In the ancient world, strainers were attached to the mouths of decanters, because any liquid might contain foreign matter. Pharisaic observance used the strainer also to strain out any ritually unclean substance which one might accidentally consume. This gnat and camel analogy points out how carefully the scribes and the Pharisees observed the minutiae of the Law, while neglecting its most significant aspects." It is, in fact, similar to Jesus' teaching of the two great commandments to the Pharisee lawyer who had sought to quiz him. With endless debating about the minutiae of the Law, they lose sight of the forest for the trees. It is the same criticism continued from yesterday: "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone." The greater matters remain unseen and undone. The "inside of the cup" is the inner life of the person. Being fastidious about sin or error is much more than following the Law, observing ritual - the true aim of all law or ritual is that the inside of the person, devoted to God with all their heart and soul and mind, becomes cleansed. They are aids in that goal of the transformation of the heart, worship with the heart. In this relationship, we are led to change, to transform - to practice repentance or "metanoia" in the Greek, which means "change of mind." It is this cleansing the inside of the cup to which Jesus refers. The outside is again "acting" for show, for appearance, as in the true meaning of the word hypocrite ("actor").

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness. Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness." This is an indictment indeed. To be dead is to lack the "life in abundance" which Jesus has sought to bring to his followers. But there is more to this than what they lack, there is also their predatory spirit - the greed and self-centeredness, and the loss to those upon whom they would prey in their selfishness. It is not only the burdens that impose hardship on those whom they would lead, but leading astray the "little ones" is to lead them away from life as well. The "whitewashed tombs" are signs of the greatest hypocrisy, religion of appearance and not true substance of love and righteousness.

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! Because you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, and say, 'If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.' Therefore you are witnesses against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers' guilt. Serpents, brood of vipers! How can you escape the condemnation of hell? Therefore, indeed, I send you prophets, wise men, and scribes: some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from city to city, that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. Assuredly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation." And, as we have come more and more deeply into Jesus' assertions of outrage at their behavior, we get into the most serious territory here. He calls them the descendants of those who murdered the prophets, who refused to hear criticism, and practiced even murder between the temple and the altar. Jesus will send his own prophets, wise men, and scribes whose blood will testify against their true identities as sons of the other murderers. For show, they hold up the martyrs of the past as those whom they themselves would have honored, but their actions belie their true intent, their murderous nature. There is an important understanding here of justice and of judgment - as well as what we choose to truly love. If we are not honest with ourselves, if everything is for outward appearance, then we have failed to understand who we are and we have no chance of practicing repentance or change. Our hearts are untouched by relationship, except to that which we uphold - in this case, the actions of those who murdered the prophets who came before Christ. This is, in effect, Jesus' indictment made directly to the Pharisees that was also reflected in the parables he put to them about the wedding feast (see Many are called) and The Vineyard. They choose to be what they deny: they are allied with those who have refused to hear the word of God, who have denied the action of the Spirit in the past. Thus, Jesus calls them "the fathers" of the Pharisees. We must be careful what we choose - for in that participation we also define ourselves.

"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! See! Your house is left to you desolate; for I say to you, you shall see me no more till you say, 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!' " And finally, the prediction of the destruction of Jerusalem. Tied together with his indictment of the Pharisees - especially the preceding verses about the murder of the prophets and their identification with those who did the same before them - this places the blame on the leadership for what is to come. They have misled the people, repeatedly rejecting those who have "come in the name of the Lord." And finally, the Son is rejected, just as in the story of the Vineyard. By seeking to hold onto what they have, and refusing to see what has been offered, they will lose all. The great love expressed here in these words, "How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!" tells me of Jesus' own pain here. This is not something that he wants, but it is truly the result of the choice accepted by the leadership, and their alliance with those who have done the same before.

I think we get a sense of Jesus' pain here over Jerusalem, in his words describing himself as a mother hen who wishes to gather her chicks and protect them under her wings. But it is his children, in effect, who have rejected him. They were not willing to listen, nor to follow, nor to accept the great love and the great gift that was offered. This is leadership that has led astray those under their care through such rejection, through hard-heartedness. And the power of judgment and of our free will choices is clearly absolute, in the sense that Jesus can do nothing to change what they have chosen. Their free will is all. His pain does not matter in this sense - no matter how deeply he would desire things to be otherwise, to take them all under his wings of protection and guidance. His love cannot save those who do not accept it. They must, in fact, accept him in order to realize that love and care, that salvation which is, in fact, restoration to the relationship of love. Your house is left to you desolate; for I say to you, you shall see me no more till you say, 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord! This expresses the sadness of the One who knows they must choose for themselves, no matter how he wishes it were otherwise. Even Christ cannot and does not compel others to love him. Our free will is absolute - and we reap what we sow. Mercy is infinite, but in terms of our ability to choose perhaps we are limited: we lead ourselves down a long road of refusal and rejection to the point of hard-heartedness that may not be reachable. But we always have a choice. We have to listen to our hearts. Greed, envy, and selfish desire get in the way, and so do the choices we have made which we no longer wish to face - and so they remain unchanged, untransformed. It is like the rich man for whom entry into the kingdom was compared to a camel going through the eye of a needle. For men, this capacity may become impossible. But with God all things are possible.

Fools and blind!

“But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. Therefore you will receive greater condemnation. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.

Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘Whoever swears by the temple, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple, he is obliged to perform it.’ Fools and blind! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that sanctifies the gold? And, ‘Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gift that is on it, he is obliged to perform it.’ Fools and blind! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that sanctifies the gift? Therefore he who swears by the altar, swears by it and by all things on it. He who swears by the temple, swears by it and by Him who dwells in it. And he who swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God and by Him who sits on it.

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.”

- Matthew 23:13-26

In yesterday’s reading (see He who exalts himself will be humbled), Jesus began the first part of a long discourse on the problems of the Pharisees and the way they practice their religious leadership in the temple. In today’s reading, he continues his criticism. He is “going on the offensive” after having been questioned by the leadership: Pharisees, scribes, Sadducees, Herodians.

My study bible had a long note on this section that combines several readings, starting with yesterday’s. I quoted from the part that applied in yesterday’s commentary, and here is the part of the note that applies today: “In his eightfold indictment of the Pharisees (vv. 13-36), Jesus charges them with inverting God’s values and with being mean-spirited, greedy, ambitious, absorbed in externals, hypocritical, and blindly self-righteous.” And, to repeat the warning in the note: “How much worse will it be for Christians who lapse into patterns of religious life similar to the scribes’ and Pharisees’!”

“But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.” My study bible notes here: “The Pharisees perpetuate a systematic hypocrisy which creates a wall between people and God.” In the past several readings and commentary, we have discussed the importance, in Jesus’ teaching, of the relationship with God – that nothing should stand in the way of the individual believer’s restoration to this place. Indeed, we could say that the purpose of religious leadership is to lead each one of us to this place. Jesus indicts the scribes and Pharisees here, not only for their own failure to engage in practices that allow themselves to do so; that is, when he called them “hypocrites” in yesterday’s reading, he was alluding to their practices that simply engage in a kind of idolatry of authority, and a show before others (as “hypocrite” means “actor”) rather than truly engaging in that relationship in which we “love God with all our heart and soul and mind.” But, in their own failure to engage in this true relationship of the heart, they also mislead others. As teachers, they hinder those who would “go in” to this deep place of the kingdom in the heart, and so they mislead their flock, the “little ones” who truly desire this relationship.

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. Therefore you will receive greater condemnation. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.” The Pharisees’ practices penalize the poor, making them subservient to their own ends. In prayer, Jesus seems to be saying, one expresses a kind of righteousness for others to see – and to be devout is to practice righteousness, to gain that which comes from loving God: the second great commandment, or love of neighbor as oneself. They are hypocrites – who will “travel land and sea” to win one follower – but that follower is then taken down the same road. “A son of hell” is indeed a profound pronouncement; to follow this leadership’s practices is to become like them – not a child of God, but a son of hell instead.

“Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘Whoever swears by the temple, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple, he is obliged to perform it.’ Fools and blind! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that sanctifies the gold? And, ‘Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gift that is on it, he is obliged to perform it.’ Fools and blind! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that sanctifies the gift? Therefore he who swears by the altar, swears by it and by all things on it. He who swears by the temple, swears by it and by Him who dwells in it. And he who swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God and by Him who sits on it.” Here, Jesus seems to emphasize the purely materialistic perspective that misses the whole point or the purpose of the practice in the first place. While Jesus notes specific practices that directly exclude the altar and the temple, and include the “gifts” of great material value, we can apply our own sense today of the purpose of his teaching. To take seriously the altar, the temple and heaven itself is to understand the reality of the kingdom, its presence, its immediacy – and the relationship it confers.

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.” My study bible has an important note which applies to the last two verses of today’s reading, and also to those we will read tomorrow. But I will include it because it is important for our understanding. We remember that I quote from the Orthodox Study Bible, and so the practices it is concerned with in this note apply to the Eastern Churches – however we can take it in the spirit in which it is given for all the ways in which we worship God by religious practice. “These warnings are especially important to Orthodox Christians. This historic Church has maintained the ancient liturgical obligations (vv. 23, 24) . . . and imposing tradition, handed down through God-fearing fathers. These rites can be performed, invoked, defended and passed on without ever being taken by faith to heart; or they can be helps, safeguards and doorways into the true life of Christ in us, which transforms us from glory to glory.” It further adds, for verse 23, “Jesus is not against externals, but considers them of lesser significance. The weightier matters are of trust and obedience to God in justice, mercy and faith.” “Weightier matters” is a kind of play on words, which refers to the tithing of goods which are weighed in order to gauge their amounts. The weightier matters, then, are those things that are of far deeper importance than the money, the tithing, the gifts, and that is the practice of true righteousness: the justice, mercy and faith we learn in relationship to God, and which we seek to embody in our lives.

As I say above (and have said in the previous readings), I don’t believe these words are to be taken at face value for a specific time and place, but for all of us who seek this worship – especially we who call ourselves Jesus' followers. As far as I personally can see, I think that it little matters how we choose to worship in terms of how important these words are. Every worship practice is just that – a practice – that is designed to take us closer into relationship with God. This is the purpose – that this kingdom lives in each of our hearts and enlightens our lives, gives us guidance and steers us through a “Way” of righteousness. Certainly the study bible is right to note that it is exceptionally important for those denominations in which there is tremendous historical and traditional effect of practice, ritual and beauty – including great adornment. But no matter how we worship, or how we pray, to “take it by faith to heart” and to allow all forms of our religious practice to be “helps, safeguards and doorways into the true life of Christ in us, which transforms us from glory to glory” is really the whole point. Where are we on that road? We can all use every “form” to be an actor or a hypocrite – no matter how beautiful or faithfully created, no matter how it has served generations and centuries of believers, of saints, of those who truly love God. The point is to take it all to heart in faith. I truly believe this is what Jesus is teaching us. Otherwise we, too, may be led by the "fools and blind." And we will continue with Jesus' criticisms – and his indictment of the Pharisees – in tomorrow’s reading.

Whoever exalts himself will be humbled

Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to his disciples, saying, "The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works, for they say, and do not do. For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers. But all their works they do to be seen by men. They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments. They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, 'Rabbi, Rabbi.' But you, do not be called 'Rabbi'; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven. And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ. But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

- Matthew 23:1-12

On Saturday, we read of Jesus' questioning, first by the Sadducees, and then the Pharisees. It was quite interesting to explore the different attitudes and interpretation of Scripture by both groups - and to see Jesus' reply to each. Neither of them, in Jesus' view, had got it right. (See You are mistaken.) Today, Jesus begins to teach, himself, to the crowds and to his disciples, referring critically to the temple leadership of the scribes and Pharisees.

My study bible has a note that pertains to the next several readings in this chapter of Matthew's gospel: "Jesus spoke his grand critique of the Pharisees in this chapter. (1) They have God-given authority and many God-given commandments, but they are personally ungodly, coldhearted and vainglorious. Their teaching is to be honored, but they are not to be imitated (vv. 2-7). (2) God is our true Father. A true teacher leads his people to God. The Pharisees do the opposite, placing themselves in God's stead (vv. 8-12). . . . How much worse will it be for Christians who lapse into patterns of religious life similar to the scribes and Pharisees'!" Tomorrow's reading will continue with verses 13-26, and I will include the part of this note that applies to that section.

Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to his disciples, saying, "The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat." My study bible notes here that "Moses' seat was a special chair in the synagogue assigned to the most famous rabbi of the town." So, we begin with the positions of authority - handed down from Moses. "Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works, for they say, and do not do." My study bible notes here: "The rabbinic teachers assumed an intrinsic value for their own office as the seat of authority. According to the prevailing system of the Pharisees, the student in rabbinic tradition submitted himself to his master's authority in a total and servile manner. The call of Jesus to his disciples differed radically from the rabbinic system in that (1) the disciples were not merely servants but beloved friends; (2) their calling did not imply they would themselves become independent masters; (3) the brotherhood of disciples would remain unified and loyal to Jesus." This note has an important bearing on what will follow in Jesus' discourse, regarding the idea of a teacher or rabbi. But significantly, we also must pay attention to what he is saying about authority. In the past, when questioned about his authority (see Who gave you this authority?), Jesus' answer teaches us that authority is embodied in righteousness. Here his criticism focuses expressly on their failure to do as they say.

"For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers. But all their works they do to be seen by men. They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments." My study bible notes here: "Phylacteries and borders of their garments refer to articles worn by pious Jews to remind them of God's law." To bind a heavy burden that is hard to bear is an implication of the imposition of guilt: that if one does not follow this rule or teaching, there is a price to pay - and that even in the teaching there is a difficult price to pay. But they fail to practice mercy, to help. And they are hypocrites at the same time: rather than the practice of righteousness, all their works are for show, for appearance's sake. We remember that the word "hypocrite" means "actor" - and here, Jesus is saying that these acts for show are the embodiment of the word "actor."

"They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, 'Rabbi, Rabbi.' But you, do not be called 'Rabbi'; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven. And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ. " My study bible notes, "Jesus warns against calling hypocrites father and teacher. Far from being a prohibition against using these terms under any circumstances, it is a warning not to use them undeservedly. Both terms are applied to men in the New Testament. 'Father' is used in Luke 16:24; 1 Cor. 4:15; and Col. 3:21. In the earliest Christian communities, this term was applied to bishops and presbyters, because they represent the Father in the Church. 'Teacher' is used in John 3:10; Acts 13:1; 1 Cor. 12:28; Eph. 4:11; and 2 Tim. 1:11." Again, to my mind, this passage goes back to the discussion of just what constitutes authority, and the temple leadership Jesus criticizes fails in this measure: that righteousness is what is missing. Instead, there is only the pose of authority - the outward signs of authority which they crave. Ultimately, what we are getting here is a failure of humility and its proper understanding. It's not before Moses or the signs of authority of the temple or religious practice that we are servile or humble; we don't exalt the leadership in itself. Rather, it is the Father who is One, and Christ who is One - and all must point back to this origin and these Persons with whom we wish to be in relationship. It is the leadership's job to serve that end, and yet they do not. Neither do they embody that practice in themselves.

"But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant." Jesus repeats here what he has already taught several times. The emphasis on humility in the leadership is essential for proper authority. Without humility - that which serves the One which is the Father and also the Christ, and so by extension becomes servant to all in righteousness - there is no leadership! There is no authority, no proper teaching at all. If we think about this, we can apply it to so many situations in the present day. What is leadership, after all? Where does it come from - and just what confers authority? These are central questions to Matthew' gospel and to all the gospels - and Jesus embodies this authority in himself, in his righteousness and his unity with the Father. The Pharisees, who will not lift a finger in the practice of mercy toward those whom they teach and lead, do not embody righteousness nor humility - they are actors, who love to make appearances for the authority it gives them. How easy it is for we human beings to be caught up in a role.

"And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted." Those who lift themselves up will be brought low, but those who can attain the virtue of humility will be lifted. In righteousness, the virtue of humility is all. It opens the gate for true virtue and true authority, the ability to teach and to lead. This seeming paradox embodies the reality of Jesus' teachings on authority; and in particular, on the authority that he wishes to see in his Church and in his followers. This is not the first time he has taught along these lines - but in this instance it is a direct criticism of the temple leadership, before all of the people, to the multitudes and to his disciples.

So, what do we learn from today's teaching? Is this just about what happened 2,000 years ago? Is it an indictment of a system or a practice in one particular time and place? No, not at all, to my way of thinking. Jesus' teachings apply to ourselves and our time just as much today as any time or any place else. Most assuredly, his teachings are for the benefit of his own followers and his own Church that is to come - just as they are in so many other places in the gospels. What does it mean for us to beware of hypocrisy? What does it mean for us to learn how to embody authority through the practice of righteousness? To embody humility through the seeking of the will of the One - the true Father and true Teacher? To submit ourselves in relationship is the humility that is required of us so that we, too, may "receive those like the little children in his name" and not "despise the little ones, whose angels in heaven always see the face of my Father who is in heaven." Repentance (metanoia, or "change of mind") is the process whereby we become as God wishes us to be, and this is practiced through relationship to the One, and the cultivation of humility necessary in order to hear and know what needs to change. To embody righteousness is to create the necessary humility for this practice and this process. This is why Jesus' teachings are so important. We think of repentance as merely a negative term but this is not so in the original Greek. Repentance means that we are willing to change, to question ourselves. This can mean that we bear the burden, for example, of false teaching or unnecessary guilt - which, when excessive becomes a kind of inverse form of self-centeredness. God teaches us love and mercy in its place. Righteousness, then, becomes the practice of what we learn through this relationship with the One and humility to the One - which will lead us into the things that we need to change. But if we are caught in appearances, in the love of authority for itself alone, we can't get there. And Christ requires of those who would be greatest among his followers that they must be servants of all. Let us consider then, the words in the note of my study bible, above. "How much worse will it be for Christians who lapse into patterns of religious life similar to the scribes and Pharisees'!" And, what does it mean when the rules or teachings or behavior - any rules or teachings or behavior - get in the way of bringing this relationship of love to the little ones?

You are mistaken

The same day as the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him and asked him, saying, "Teacher, Moses said that if a man dies, having no children, his brother shall marry his wife and raise up offspring for his brother. Now there were with us seven brothers. The first died after he had married, and having no offspring, left his wife to his brother. Likewise the second also, and the third, even to the seventh. Last of all the woman died also. Therefore, in the resurrection, whose wife of the seven will she be? For they all had her."

Jesus answered and said to them, "You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God. For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels of God in heaven. But concerning the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was spoken to you by God, saying, 'I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living." And when the multitudes heard this, they were astonished at his teaching.

But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. Then one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question, testing him, and saying, "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the law?" Jesus said to him, " 'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets."

- Matthew 22:23-40

In yesterday's reading (Render unto Caesar), Jesus continued his confrontation with the leadership of the temple. He was questioned by the Herodians with disciples of the Pharisees, in order to be trapped so that they could have him arrested - but he eluded the trap. Today, the questions continue from other factions representing the leadership.

The same day as the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him and asked him, saying, "Teacher, Moses said that if a man dies, having no children, his brother shall marry his wife and raise up offspring for his brother. Now there were with us seven brothers. The first died after he had married, and having no offspring, left his wife to his brother. Likewise the second also, and the third, even to the seventh. Last of all the woman died also. Therefore, in the resurrection, whose wife of the seven will she be? For they all had her." My study bible notes that, "Unlike the Pharisees, the Sadducees do not believe in the resurrection of the dead and try to ridicule this doctrine." The Sadducees were a party of mostly a wealthy landowning class, which disappeared after the destruction of the city of Jerusalem. This question reflects a rather literal perspective, about life as well as religious practice. Their rejection of a spiritual life beyond a worldly one is reflected in the question.

Jesus answered and said to them, "You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God. For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels of God in heaven. But concerning the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was spoken to you by God, saying, 'I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living." And when the multitudes heard this, they were astonished at his teaching. My study bible notes here: "You are mistaken: There will be a resurrection, but not of the sort they think. (1) They are ignorant of the Scriptures, which say nothing about earthly laws of marriage being applicable to the future Kingdom. The resurrection is not merely life resuming where it left off, but a complete change of life. (2) They do not know the power of God, which transforms us from death to life. The 'dead' even now are living before God (v. 32)." As opposed to the Pharisees, the Sadducees rejected Oral Torah tradition (later known as The Talmud), and took the Hebrew Scriptures literally. So, Jesus is pointing out here that they really don't understand the Scriptures at all. Actually, in verse 29, "You are mistaken" can also be read as "you are deceived or led astray." They are missing, entirely, the whole impact of the spiritual life - and, of course, what that means in terms of Holy Scripture. Without this perception of a spiritual reality, even our spiritual texts are misunderstood, misinterpreted - we can't know nor understand that to which they refer. Jesus points out this great spiritual reality that is nothing like worldly reality in the sense that our natures are changed, and there are different rules in that Kingdom than in the worldly one which we inhabit. Without this understanding that comes from spiritual experience, we fail to know what our holy texts have to teach us. So the words Jesus quotes, "I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob" are interpreted correctly through an understanding of the spiritual reality the Sadducees fail to perceive: "God is not the God of the dead, but of the living." In this kingdom, all are alive - time is an eternal present, and this is the communion of saints rather than the worldly life they limit themselves to in their understanding of life.

But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. Then one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question, testing him, and saying, "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the law?" My study bible notes here: "The Pharisees, lay experts on the Scripture and the Law, had found 613 commandments in the Scriptures and argued interminably about which one was central. Thus they ask about the great commandment." As opposed to the Sadducees, the Pharisees uphold the oral tradition that would come to be the written Talmud (about 500 A.D.). So, for them there is this great focus on the Law and the commandments of God. In some sense, we are getting a parallel in today's reading to yesterday's. In yesterday's reading, there is a trap set for Jesus by offering two possible answers to a question that represent the thinking of different parties in Jerusalem. But Jesus chose neither as his correct response. Today we are getting two opposing perspectives on Scripture and spiritual understanding - and Jesus answers each one in his own way.

Jesus said to him, " 'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets." My study bible notes, "Jesus sets forth the first . . . commandment (v. 37) and the second (v. 39) as well, which together constitute the grand summary of the Law. He knows they are asking him maliciously." While the Sadducees fail to understand Scripture because they take it (and worldly life) too literally, the Pharisees with their endless debating and Oral Torah are stuck in the minutiae of interpretation. A spiritual orientation takes a "middle way" as in yesterday's reading - or perhaps we should read Jesus' way in both readings as one in which the perspective of a deeply experiential relationship with the Father leads one's understanding and practice. Appropriately, we begin with the first great commandment here - that of the love of God with all one's heart and soul and mind. And this is inextricably tied to the second and leads to its practice: "Love your neighbor as yourself." Jesus summarizes that "on these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets."

So, once again, we get Jesus' Way. And that Way teaches us once again about the paramount importance of the spiritual reality of relationship deep within ourselves. We can't just read these books, even these gospels - the holy texts we have of Jesus' life - and get the whole picture. The Sadducees fail to understand in their literalism and lack of spiritual experience of another reality, that "life in abundance" that Jesus wishes to add to our lives. The Pharisees are lost in endless debate and so in their own sense take the Scriptures themselves too seriously: there is more to this that they miss in their endless minutiae and counted commandments -- the more is less, as befits our paradoxical spiritual reality. Or perhaps we could say that Jesus' "less" is really "more" -- the two great commandments sum up all that we need to understand, and they give us the proper direction for what is so much more than all the endless debating and the details. They "can't see the forest for the trees." The "forest" is the love of God and the relationship that we all need in order to truly understand and experience these "books of the Church." We need it all: the Scripture, the Tradition, the historical understanding and experience that those who have come before have given us as well. But there is always one thing Jesus points us to, and that is our own relationship with God. My study bible has called the Church a "divine-human organism" and in this sense we - each one of us - is also a microcosm of the whole great Church in its eternal and cosmic sense. We need to love God "with all our heart and soul and mind" and bound up in this source that is Love is the love of our neighbor, our comprehension of what makes for righteousness in our lives. We have so much to help us, but we can't forget this. It is the thing that Jesus constantly brings us back to, and it is the thing he came to teach us. God, who loves us so dearly, wants us back, and he won't take second place to anything; he wants entry into our hearts and soul and mind and to dwell there with us, and the Son's mission is to rectify this situation and address our separateness, our alienation from that relationship. It always comes down to this. For the Sadducees, it is this spiritual experience that is missing from their perspective. For the Pharisees, it is this simple return home that is the whole of the Law and the Prophets. Where is this middle way for us? It is the "middle" in the sense that it cuts right down to the heart that is at the center of all that we are, each one of us, and takes us to a dwelling place in the heart of God, in the Kingdom. This is the narrow gate by which we enter, and where we dwell in order to learn to love our neighbor as ourselves, and the ways of righteousness, humility, authority and all the things that are of Grace Itself. Without it, we miss all that these books have to offer and to teach. We miss the relationship with Him that he asks of us, and for which he awaits our response. You can follow all the rules and theories you want to, you can study the hard-headed reality of the "real world" all you want, but you still need Love Itself. On this hangs all the rest we claim to seek.

Render unto Caesar

Then the Pharisees went and plotted how they might entangle him in his talk. And they sent to him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, "Teacher, we know that you are true, and teach the way of God in truth; nor do you care about anyone, for you do not regard the person of men. Tell us, therefore, what do you think? Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?" But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, "Why do you test me, you hypocrites? Show me the tax money." So they brought him a denarius. And he said to them, "Whose image and inscription is this?" They said to him, "Caesar's." And he said to them, "Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." When they had heard these words, they marveled, and left him and went their way.

- Matthew 22:15-22

In yesterday's reading, Jesus told a parable to the temple leadership - about those who are invited to the wedding banquet and who fail to answer the call. The invitation will be extended into the highways - to all the world, we are to understand. But even those who are called must be prepared, wearing the wedding garment when the king arrives, for "many are called, but few are chosen." In today's reading, the temple leadership (in this case, we are told, the Pharisees) begins its attempts to trap Jesus, sending to him their disciples with some Herodians to ask him a question.

Then the Pharisees went and plotted how they might entangle him in his talk. My study bible says that, "The Pharisees wish to entangle him by showing Christ to be either a revolutionary against or a collaborator with the Romans." I think that the way the gospel is written tells us that it is important to understand the motives of people who question Jesus. Why are they asking this question? What are they really doing? This is something that we need to pay attention to. And the text bears out this importance of motivation.

And they sent to him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, "Teacher, we know that you are true, and teach the way of God in truth; nor do you care about anyone, for you do not regard the person of men. Tell us, therefore, what do you think? Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?" But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, "Why do you test me, you hypocrites?" First of all, we understand that the Pharisees are here allying themselves with the Herodians, who were for the most part a political party aligned around Herod, his court, and the particular part of the aristocracy he represented. So, this is an alliance of the powerful, the ones who control what happens in the region. They both work with the powerful Roman rule. It's kind of ironic, then, that they preface their question with the phrases that praise Jesus for the fact that he does "not regard the person of men." That is, he is straightforward with everyone, he doesn't say one thing to one person because of his position or identity, and another thing to someone else. This, in my opinion, must be in great contrast to the identity of his questioners, who by definition are those who have aligned themselves with the powerful. My study bible notes that "Jesus constantly demonstrates he is divine as well as human. Here again he does so by (1) revealing the secrets of their hearts, and (2) silencing them through his questions." So, what is the most important aspect of this scene for the historical religious perspective of the church is in Jesus' understanding of the motivations of these people. He calls them "hypocrites," and we know that the original meaning of this word is "actor." In contrast to Jesus, who does not regard the person of men, these people simply play a role that is asked of them: there is one thing in their hearts, but their question is posed as if it were an honest spiritual or religious question.

"Show me the tax money." So they brought him a denarius. And he said to them, "Whose image and inscription is this?" They said to him, "Caesar's." And he said to them, "Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." When they had heard these words, they marveled, and left him and went their way. My study bible notes, "The distinction between the things that are Caesar's and the things that are God's does not imply a division of life into two domains, the secular and the sacred. Rather, God is Lord over all. We must fulfill legitimate governmental requirements which do not conflict with our responsibility toward God (Rom. 13:7). Paying taxes and similar duties are not detrimental to godliness. The fact that the Jewish establishment had a Roman coin in hand proved they accepted and used this coin, thereby accepting the earthly rule of the one who issued it." What I like about Jesus' response is that it is indeed, a "middle way." Jesus teaches us how to live in this world and at the same time to be faithful to God. The extremes are not for him. There is no doubt that all he does and all that he would instruct us to do is that which serves God - but worldly life must have good government or organization, good ways to live in this world, and beyond that we also remember that he avoids scandal when it is not necessary - and when it is not what his mission in the world is concerned with. Jesus is here on a spiritual mission, sent first to "the lost sheep of the house of Israel" and then his gospel will be sent to all the world (see yesterday's reading). All things, indeed, must serve the Lord, and righteousness is for all - but that does not begin and end with political questions, nor with a kind of extreme religious orientation that in the end is simply political. The spiritual reality that we live in our hearts will teach us another way - one that negotiates this world while not giving up "the things that are God's."

So, this reading gives us a lot to consider when it comes to motivation, and to corruption. Jesus is neither a revolutionary - an insurrectionist concerned with nationalist aspirations against the Roman rulers, nor is he a collaborator with Rome. He is a spiritual leader, or rather the spiritual leader, the Son who wishes to lead all home to the Father, into right-relatedness. In his commentaries on the Law, especially as given in the Sermon on the Mount in the gospel of Matthew, he repeatedly attempts to teach that the Law is not simply there for itself, but that the spirit of the Law in which it was given to Moses is what we wish to ally ourselves with as his followers. And he is always and consistently teaching from this perspective. His choices always reflect that perspective: so to ally with one side of this political question or not is not really the point for him. We render our full hearts to God, and from there we do what we do. Is it the taxes to the temple or to Caesar that are important - or is it that which keeps us from knowing God? This is the real question. And that leads us to the deeper perspective that is in this reading: what is the motivation in the hearts of those who ask him this question? Have they rendered their hearts to God, or are their hearts far from God? Jesus clearly answers with one perspective in mind - that they are those "hypocrites" who focus not on the questions that will bring themselves and others more close to God and in relationship to God, but by their hypocrisy they blind others to the reality of God, and keep them from relationship to God. It is in this spirit that they are called hypocrites. Do they render unto God what is God's or are they out for themselves? Do they ask Jesus in honesty, seeking spiritual guidance, or is this question merely a trap? Let us be cautious as we go about our lives to consider the same questions for ourselves - and render unto God first what is God's, and live our lives on that basis as does Christ. We will find his way in what we do as well. This is part of what it means for us to be alert, to be watchful. And the "obvious questions" may not be the right questions, after all.

Many are called

And Jesus answered and spoke to them again by parables and said: "The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come. Again, he sent out other servants, saying, "Tell those who are invited, "See, I have prepared my diner; my oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready. Come to the wedding.' " But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business. And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them. But when the king heard about it, he was furious. And he sent out his armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city. Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.' So those servants went out into the highways and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good. And the wedding hall was filled with guests.

"But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. So he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?' And he was speechless. Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' For many are called, but few are chosen.

- Matthew 22:1-14

Yesterday, Jesus told the parable about the Vinedressers and the Vineyard (see The Vineyard), in which the landowner sends his servants repeatedly, and then finally his son, to gather the fruits that are due. To this parable was also attached the scriptural reference to the stone that the builders rejected. The leadership in the temple were outraged when they realized that Jesus was referring to them, who have failed to gather the fruits and plot to kill the son. Today Jesus responds to their outrage with another parable - even as we were told that the leadership must plot against him in secret, because the people think of Jesus as a prophet.

My study bible has a note that applies to the whole of the passage, as follows: "This is another parable proclaiming the transfer of the Kingdom from Jews to Gentiles, depicted as a joyful wedding banquet (see 25:1-13). John the Baptist calls Christ the 'bridegroom' (John 3:29) and Paul also uses the marriage analogy (Eph. 5:22-33). Ancient tradition applies these two parables in Matthew to the process of initiation into the Church, because the sacraments of baptism and chrismation bring us into marriage or union with Christ, a union fully realized in the age to come." (In the Eastern Churches, chrismation is the sacrament that completes baptism, whereby one receives the gift of the Holy Spirit through anointing with the Chrism, a specially prepared oil which must be consecrated by a bishop. Chrismation is considered a continuation of an ancient practice in the Church of the laying on of the hands by an Apostle, which we read of on several occasions in Acts - 8:14-17; 19:6.)

And Jesus answered and spoke to them again by parables and said: "The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come. Again, he sent out other servants, saying, "Tell those who are invited, "See, I have prepared my diner; my oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready. Come to the wedding.' " But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business. And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them." Of course, the Bridegroom is also a familiar image from the Scriptural tradition which the leadership understands; it is that of the awaited Messiah with his people, his bride who is, spiritually, Jerusalem. This parable is similar to the one about the Vineyard, in yesterday's reading, in that those who are invited to the wedding are too preoccupied with their own business to attend, and they also kill the king's servants who call them.

"But when the king heard about it, he was furious. And he sent out his armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city. Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.' So those servants went out into the highways and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good. And the wedding hall was filled with guests." My study bible notes that burned up their city refers to the destruction of Jerusalem which would happen in A.D. 70, when under siege by the Roman army led by the future Emperor Titus. It further notes that "The highways are the Gentile world. Though the Apostles do not immediately understand it, this parable proclaims beforehand both the casting out of the unbelieving Jews, and the calling of the Gentiles into the wedding hall, the Kingdom of God. God calls all peoples to salvation in Christ -- Jew and Gentile -- carrying forth the plan of salvation to all humanity." This parable goes further than the last one, about the Vineyard. In it, the guests are not only destroyed in their city, but the call or invitation is sent out into the highways, among others. This gospel will be spread among the whole entire world, as it continues to be today. All are invited.

"But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. So he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?' And he was speechless. Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'" My study bible notes that "Jesus is speaking here of the judgment which is to come. The wedding garment is provided by the host. To be at the wedding improperly dressed indicates one who is uninvited or who, having been invited, rejects the host's hospitality. In the Church, the wedding garment is true repentance and righteousness -- the way of salvation -- gained only by the grace of God." Clearly, we have a picture here of everyone invited to the wedding - but those who will be welcome are those for whom the king's grace is of paramount importance, those who are truly ready for the union. Earlier in commentary in Matthew's gospel, my study bible noted: "Outer darkness and weeping and gnashing of teeth are not Old Testament references but descriptions of the state of the unrighteous dead in Sheol recorded in Jewish tradition (see Enoch 103:8; Parables of Enoch 60:12). These are common expressions in Matthew (13:42, 50; 22:13; 24:51; 25:30) - also occurring once in Luke (Luke 13:28)." So, while this invitation is issued to the whole world, there is still a paramount importance placed on those who will accept with the proper spirit - who will be prepared, and put on the wedding garment of righteousness, the stuff of which is the substance of all of Jesus' teachings. I find it interesting to consider this in the sense that the Jews - especially the religious leadership of Jesus' day - were those prepared for this wedding feast, yet in the context of the gospels and this reading they are those who fail to attend. But all then who are called are equally expected to be properly prepared themselves.

"For many are called, but few are chosen." All have been called, but who will be chosen? The entire world is called to this banquet, from, in some sense, the history of the world as given in holy scripture. The "many" who are called include the leadership in the temple, and the preparation of the people of Israel since Abraham. In our introduction to Jesus' use of parables, we are given this saying as illustration of what Jesus is doing: "I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world." The quotation is from Psalm 78:2. In some sense, today's parable echoes even more deeply the quotation from the Psalm than any other. For the centuries of the existence of those who have been prepared for the Messiah, until today, this parable echoes its words to us. All - "from the foundation of the world" - are called. We are all called back to union with God, to salvation. But who will hear? Who will prepare properly and be chosen? Poignantly, it is those with spiritual eyes and ears to hear, the ones who will understand the things "kept secret from the foundation of the world" and who hear their "Father who is in the secret place." All have been called, all are invited. But who responds properly to the invitation? Who will arrive properly dressed in the clothes of salvation? We know what those clothes are; we have been prepared through this gospel about righteousness, humility, the desire for God to call his own back to himself through Christ. This king, "Our Father," wants us back in communion with him, and he has called us all to engage in this invitation, to come to the feast. It is a call of love. But he awaits our response, our interest, our preparation. What do we want most of all? For how many centuries has this call gone out amongst the world? We are all called. All we have to do is answer with a "yes" - and things hidden from the foundation of the world are ours, if we but listen and seek to properly hear. The question is, do we have time for that? How will we answer the invitation?

"Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me." Revelation 3:20