Maybe its time to reconsider that “party invitation”…..Don’t short change yourself

Today at Holy Mass we hear in the Gospel of St Matthew Jesus tell his friends a parable about a King who prepared a huge party….He invited everyone - And no one showed up…..He concludes his story with…”Many are invited, but few are chosen”…When reading this story, one has to ask themselves - If they were objective and honest - Why would people not want to attend this great party?……‘Tell those invited: Behold, I have prepared my banquet, my calves and fattened cattle are killed, and everything is ready; come to the feast. Some ignored the invitation and went away, one to his farm, another to his business”…….If we are honest, we have to conclude that these people in the story simply do not think what is “offered” to them is any good…Because if they did, they would “go to the party” - Right? - Let’s be honest here!……What about today?…….Our world must encounter the Lord….Words will never make such an encounter happen…..And people today will not want to “go to the party” until they encounter the Lord - Period Full Stop!……This is why I promote Eucharistic Adoration all the time…If we take time each week and sit before the Blessed Sacrament in silence, we will encounter Christ…He will speak to us in a “language” only we can understand in the silence……Sadly, some reading this, still don’t believe me….And what a tragedy that is…It simply is a tragedy to behold.

“If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts”

Many in the secular world believe that those who enter religious life somehow could not make it in the real world…They are “running away” from “something”…..While there are some sadly who I believe do enter religious life for the wrong reasons....And are trying to “escape” the world or may even be trying to escape deeper personal issues they many have…And that is a problem - Full stop! - And that needs to be addressed but those individuals are simply not the majority - I am just being honest - So stop reading the New York Times!…...The overwhelming majority of Consecrated Catholic Religious (nuns, priests and brothers) have been called by God and have a true vocation….....”Polite Society” in America not only does not believe this, but has never experienced such an individual…I can only speak for me - I have…..These are the happiest people you will ever meet! - Believe me when I tell you that……..Allow me to give you an example…..I have made two missionary trips to Haiti….Haiti is the poorest country in the western hemisphere and life is hard there for everyone including those serving in the Catholic Church…..On one of my trips to that country I stayed with Mother Teresa’s sisters in Port au Prince. The city is a disaster, almost like a war zone!….Every day I would spend an hour in prayer with the nuns before the Blessed Sacrament…This one particular day I just watched for a time the face of this one older nun….The joy and peace that was on her face as she sat before the Blessed Sacrament was not only completely sincere but I remember it to this very day…It is a rare day that I would see a person like that in the secular world…Keep in mind, these nuns have a very hard life!…On that same trip, the nuns drove me to another one of the homes they run for elderly people who have been abandoned and can not take care of themselves…I was greeted at the gate of the compound by the Superior of the house….She was a small nun originally from the Philippines…The home literally was located in a “war zone” - Gang violence is very common in Haiti, in fact, one could say gangs run the country and are the rule of law……When I entered the gate of the property, this nun had the biggest smile I may have ever seen in my life on her face…….She says to me….”Joe - Welcome to Haiti”…Like I was walking into the Plaza Hotel in Manhattan - She meant every word of it!…I literally almost laughed out loud because the irony of her joy juxtaposed against the harsh conditions of the city was so illogical to my mind…..Once again, we can dismiss these little stories I tell….And as the secular world dismisses them…We simply short change ourselves!…Today the Lord tells us a story about a King who prepares a feast for his people - And no one attends the party…..What a tragedy!…Don't be one of those people and don’t short change yourself!

“Blessed the man who makes the LORD his trust; who turns not to idolatry or to those who stray after falsehood”

Today in the Gospel Jesus tells us something that contradicts our understanding of heaven…......”Many are invited, but few are chosen”….....Now these are not my words so don’’t shoot the messenger!!!…..God loves us and the door to heaven is open to EVERYONE…Like we heard today at Mass about “the party” a King prepared for his people…But no one wanted to attend…Step back and think about that for a second….If our world today rejects God - How can we possibly think we will even want to go to heaven?…..Is it because we have created “heaven” in our own image that we “think” we would want to go there?….Seriously, think about what I just wrote….Maybe its time to reconsider that “party invitation”…..Don’t short change yourself……………….JMJ