20201202 ALL ARE INVITED TO THE MESSIANIC BANQUET IN GOD’S HOUSE
02 December, 2020, Wednesday, 1st Week of Advent
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour: Violet.
First reading | Isaiah 25:6-10 © |
The Lord will prepare a banquet for every nation
On this mountain,
the Lord of hosts will prepare for all peoples
a banquet of rich food, a banquet of fine wines,
of food rich and juicy, of fine strained wines.
On this mountain he will remove
the mourning veil covering all peoples,
and the shroud enwrapping all nations,
he will destroy Death for ever.
The Lord will wipe away
the tears from every cheek;
he will take away his people’s shame
everywhere on earth,
for the Lord has said so.
That day, it will be said: See, this is our God
in whom we hoped for salvation;
the Lord is the one in whom we hoped.
We exult and we rejoice
that he has saved us;
for the hand of the Lord
rests on this mountain.
Responsorial Psalm | Psalm 22(23) © |
In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell for ever and ever.
The Lord is my shepherd;
there is nothing I shall want.
Fresh and green are the pastures
where he gives me repose.
Near restful waters he leads me,
to revive my drooping spirit.
In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell for ever and ever.
He guides me along the right path;
he is true to his name.
If I should walk in the valley of darkness
no evil would I fear.
You are there with your crook and your staff;
with these you give me comfort.
In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell for ever and ever.
You have prepared a banquet for me
in the sight of my foes.
My head you have anointed with oil;
my cup is overflowing.
In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell for ever and ever.
Surely goodness and kindness shall follow me
all the days of my life.
In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell
for ever and ever.
In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell for ever and ever.
Gospel Acclamation | Is33:22 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
The Lord is our judge, the Lord our lawgiver,
the Lord our king and our saviour.
Alleluia!
Or: |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Look, the Lord will come to save his people.
Blessed those who are ready to meet him.
Alleluia!
Gospel |
Matthew 15:29-37 © |
The crowds praised the God of Israel
Jesus reached the shores of the Sea of Galilee, and he went up into the hills. He sat there, and large crowds came to him bringing the lame, the crippled, the blind, the dumb and many others; these they put down at his feet, and he cured them. The crowds were astonished to see the dumb speaking, the cripples whole again, the lame walking and the blind with their sight, and they praised the God of Israel.
But Jesus called his disciples to him and said, ‘I feel sorry for all these people; they have been with me for three days now and have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them off hungry, they might collapse on the way.’ The disciples said to him, ‘Where could we get enough bread in this deserted place to feed such a crowd?’ Jesus said to them, ‘How many loaves have you?’ ‘Seven’ they said ‘and a few small fish.’ Then he instructed the crowd to sit down on the ground, and he took the seven loaves and the fish, and he gave thanks and broke them and handed them to the disciples, who gave them to the crowds. They all ate as much as they wanted, and they collected what was left of the scraps, seven baskets full.
ALL ARE INVITED TO THE MESSIANIC BANQUET IN GOD’S HOUSE
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [Is 25:6-10; Ps 23:1-6; Mt 15:29-37 ]
Advent is a season of hope, not just for this life but life hereafter. Advent, which prepares us for the coming of Christ, is not just about commemorating His birth at Christmas but more importantly, to prepare us for the Second Coming at the end of history. This explains why the scripture readings in the first two weeks of Advent speak on the Second Coming of Christ rather than His First Coming. But what is heaven like that we should look forward to with hope and expectation. Most of us are frightened of death and we do not see death as the climax of our life on earth, the passport to enter into the fullness of life in heaven. This is why we continue to cling to this earthly life in spite of its imperfections, frustrations, pains, sufferings and trials because we are not too sure whether there is life after death or how this life after death could be even better than what we are enjoying now.
Heaven today is illustrated as a Messianic Banquet in the house of the Lord. This was what the psalmist prayed. “You have prepared a banquet for me in the sight of my foes. My head you have anointed with oil; my cup is overflowing. Surely goodness and kindness shall follow me all the days of my life. In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell for ever and ever.” This is a very beautiful imagery of what life in heaven is like. What brings us great joy in life? It is not money, achievements or success. These are the means to an end. The whole purpose of life is to be in fellowship with our brothers and sisters, enjoying each other’s company, loving and caring for one another, especially at a meal where we share with each other our joys, experiences and happiness. Happiness in life is about intimacy and union with our brothers and sisters, grounded and focused on God.
More intimate still is when this banquet is held in the home of our host. Most of us are invited to a restaurant for meals, but to be invited to the house to dine with the host, it means that the host is drawing us into the intimacy of his home. We only invite people to our home for meals when we know them well enough. All official dinners are held at institutions or in restaurants. So heaven is a place where we are all in the house of God, in His company and the company of our brothers and sisters, where there is security, trust, intimacy, comfort and love.
Of course, in a banquet, although the guests and the host are the most important, the food is also an important factor to make the celebration a success. We cannot imagine fellowship without food and wine. We always share and celebrate together with food and drinks. What is great about heaven is that the chef is none other than God Himself. Isaiah prophesied, “On this mountain, the Lord of hosts will prepare for all peoples a banquet of rich food, a banquet of fine wine, of food rich and juicy, of fine strained wines.” Not only would the food be delicious but it would be given in plenty. This is what we read in today’s gospel when Jesus the New Moses multiplied bread for 4000 people excluding women and children. We are told that “they all ate as much as they wanted and they collected what was left of the scraps, seven baskets full.”
However, it is often said that there are those who can eat but have nothing to eat and there are those who cannot eat but have plenty of food. Many are hungry but they lack the supply of food. There are many rich people who have plenty of food, any food they desire, but they are too sickly to eat, or are too busy with their business to eat. So it is not enough to have good food and friends around us, we must be able to participate in the joy. Again, that was what the Lord did by healing them of their illnesses and diseases so that they could enjoy the blessings of God again. “Large crowds came to him bringing the lame, the crippled, the blind, the dumb and many others; these they put down at his feet, and he cured them.”
Finally, what is significant about this Messianic Banquet is that because it is held in the House of the Lord, it will be eternal. Isaiah prophesied, “On this mountain he will remove the mourning veil covering all peoples, and the shroud enwrapping all nations, he will destroy Death for ever. The Lord God will wipe away the tears from every cheek; he will take away his peoples shame everywhere on earth, for the Lord has said so.” Indeed, when we rest in the House of God, there is only joy, love, fellowship, intimacy and union with one another. As a communion of saints in Christ, we share in the intimacy of the love of the Trinity. There will be no more death, no more separation but intense and perfect union.
All these prophecies of Isaiah were anticipated in the life and ministry of our Lord. The gospel made it clear that Jesus came to heal and to liberate us from all pain and suffering. When he cured all the sick and those afflicted with illnesses, we read that “the crowds were astonished to see the dumb speaking, the cripples whole again, the lame walking and the blind with their sight, and they praised the God of Israel.” Jesus was the messenger of God, His personal representative and hence, the people praised God. The healing miracles of course are not permanent because we will once again fall ill one day and die. But they are signs of God’s love and care for us so that we do not have to live in fear of death but are assured that He is with us, in life and in death.
So, too, the Lord has come to anticipate the heavenly banquet for us by feeding us with earthly bread. We read that the people were hungry. And the Lord said to His disciples, “I feel sorry for all these people; they have been with me for three days now and have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them off hungry, they might collapse on the way.” For us, besides the ordinary bread of life, we receive from Him, the blessings of daily life, Jesus comes to give us the Word of God and most of all, the Eucharist. This is the bread “which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” (Jn 6:33) The Eucharist indeed is the foretaste of the heavenly banquet. This explains why when a person is dying or critically ill, we give him the Viaticum, which means food for the journey.
Perhaps, the most significant promise and hope given to us in today’s scripture readings is that the Messianic Banquet is open to all, not just Jews but all Gentiles as well. Even we are invited to this banquet, which is no longer reserved for the Jewish people. This was what the prophet said, “He will take away his peoples shame everywhere on earth, for the Lord has said so. That day, it will be said: See, this is our salvation; the Lord is the one in whom we hoped. We exult and we rejoice that he has saved us; for the hand of the Lord rests on this mountain.” And in the gospel, we have the notation by the evangelist who remarked upon seeing the healing works of Jesus, “they praised the God of Israel.” Why did they praise the God of Israel if not for the fact that they were not Jews but Gentiles!
Scripture scholars suggest therefore that this miraculous multiplication of loaves for the 4000 thousand is not a duplication of the earlier miraculous multiplication of loaves for the 5000. (cf Mt 14:13-21, Mk 6:30-44; Jn 6:1-15) Whereas the feeding of the 5000 was directed at the Jews, the feeding of the 4000 was directed at the Gentiles. We see this clearer in Mark’s account of the feeding of the 4000 in chapter 8. Earlier on we read that Jesus, after leaving Galilee, “set out and went away to the region of Tyre (Mk 7:40), “then he returned from the region of Tyre, and went by way of Sidon towards the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis.” (Mk 7:31) These are Gentile territories. The mention of the seven baskets is also in reference to the Gentiles, just as twelve baskets symbolized the Twelve tribes of Israel. Furthermore, it is noted in the feeding of the 5000 that the people were made to sit on the grass, which meant it was spring, whereas in the feeding of the 4000, they were sitting on bare ground, which meant it was summer. So, these two miracles are not exactly the same but directed at different audiences. The point that the evangelists wanted to underscore is that the gospel of salvation is given to all, Jews first, and then the Gentiles. All of us are called to this Messianic Banquet. With this confidence and hope, we therefore must look forward to the eternal banquet, even as we celebrate His presence in our midst.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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