St. Matthew Catholic Church

Weekly Message     

God's Banquet and Our Baloney

Dear brothers and sisters,   

      We are invited to a grand royal feast. It is a striking image of God’s ultimate desire for us: a life of deep joy and abundance in His presence. God has laid the table and sent out the invitations to special invites.

     Yet, the most shocking part is how the guests respond. They don’t refuse out of open hostility or hatred. Instead, they refuse out of distractions. One goes to his farm; another to his business. They prioritize their daily chores, and worldly routines over an invitation from the King. How often do we do the exact same thing?

     We rarely tell God a flat "no." Instead, we offer polite excuses. “I’m too busy with work to pray today.” “The kids have sports, so we’ll skip Mass this weekend.” “I have too much on my plate to volunteer, etc.” We allow good things, ie: our careers, our families, our hobbies, to become enemies of the best thing: our time with God.

     Oscar Wilde, the famous writer, spent his life chasing worldly pleasure and fame while ignoring his deep attraction to Catholicism. However, as he lay dying from meningitis, he had a dramatic change of heart. Unable to speak, he signaled desperate desire for the Sacraments. A priest rushed to his bedside, baptized him, and gave him his first and final Holy Communion before he died.

     The tragic truth is that God does not cancel the feast; He simply invites others who will appreciate it. The banquet of God's grace will go on, with or without us.

     Let us look honestly at our daily lives. What "good" excuses are keeping you from God's "great" banquet, the Holy Eucharist? The invitation is in your hands today. Will you let your distractions get in the way, or will you pull up a chair? Whenever or wherever you have Holy Mass celebrated, try to receive Eucharist. No baloney to His invitation to Banquet! Grace to you!

  Msgr. Xavier Pappu                     

                     Insert:  Giving to God/Dar a Dios.pdf
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