Then the King said to his servants, “The feast is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy to come. Go out, therefore, into the main roads and invite to the feast whomever you find. The servants went out into the streets and gathered all they found, bad and good alike, and the hall was filled with guests. But when the king came in to meet the guests he saw a man there not dressed in a wedding garment. He said to him, My friend, how is it that you came in here without a wedding garment? But he was reduced to silence. Then the king said to his attendants, Bind his hands and feet, and cast him into the darkness outside, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth. Many are invited, but few are chosen." (Matthew 22:8-14)
Dear Friends –
Christ gave us this wedding banquet parable, to once again point out that His coming to earth was likened to a union of marriage, where the two being joined together here were Divinity and humanity. 
Almighty God had picked Israel to be His chosen people, to be an example for all of mankind as to what could transpire when a relationship with God was established. Part of that relationship was to accept His Son, Jesus Christ who was the prophesized Messiah and Savior the Jews were expecting. However, as history tells us, the Jews did not accept Christ as the real Messiah, and thus by His crucifixion of rejection, an invitation was extended past the Jewish nation to all inhabitants of the world to receive Jesus as The Son of God. That is why the King, representing God in the parable, declares, “those who were invited (the Jews) were not worthy to come,” so He sends out His servants (disciples) to the byways of life and invites all, "bad and good alike," to the banquet of wedded love. And so, "the hall was filled with guests" after another invitation was extended; however, when the King (God) came to greet the guests He finds an individual not garbed in suitable wedding wear. Shocked by the inappropriate behavior, the King (God) orders that individual "cast into the darkness outside, where there will be 
wailing and grinding of teeth." And that Dear Friends, is symbolic of what Almighty God will do to those come judgment day who are not wearing the appropriate garb of Christ’s righteousness… and sent into the darkness of eternal hell, you can bet there will be a lot of "wailing and grinding of teeth" by all of those who refused, like the Jews, the invitation to accept Jesus Christ as their Savior. Whether as a nation or an individual, when we refuse to cloak ourselves in the image of Jesus, we cannot expect to get into heaven where only those who image God reside. You may spend your whole life being “good” but, without the goodness of Christ radiating by your professed faith in Him, you will not be recognized as worthy to come into the eternal heavenly banquet. Christ must be acknowledged and professed for who He truly is… God The Father demands it… will you be "reduced to silence" because you will have no excuse to offer for disrespecting Almighty God and ignoring His invitation?
Everyone that exists on this planet, bad and good alike, has been given the opportunity to feast on God’s bounty, and yet they keep making excuses for not being able to attend His repast as in the earlier part of the parable where individual excuses were detailed, but God accepts no excuses. You can’t be too busy for God... nothing can be more important than God... and when repeated invitations offered are being ignored, well then, you have insulted and rejected the Creator of all life and His Word, and such deliberate ingratitude for all you have will be punished. What is so hard about meeting with God and His Son… 
why aren’t people even a little bit curious about the possibility of Divinity… and what harm can come from one Who is a Fatherly God of love? Fearing a relationship with God has no basis in fact to those who think erroneously that knowing Him would mean a loss of anything because, in fact, it actually means gaining so much more! Having faith, believing and trusting in Almighty God is certainly not a bad thing… it is a very good thing, especially for you because having a Heavenly Father affords you much more than you can ever acquire on your own! His love and graces can bring you to be Christ-like in all that you do or say, and thus being a righteous person of virtue instead of vice, will bring The Holy Spirit to reside in your being, and that can bring such peace to your existence knowing He is always with you.
This Easter, as images of Christ’s crucifixion are brought to the forefront of your being, gaze upon Jesus sacrificing Himself for all of us sinners and realize the tremendous depth of His love
to endure all of that for us. He knew our redemption from sin was the only way we could get to heaven, so He willingly paid the debt for us as the sacrificial lamb. Respect and gratitude are certainly due Him for loving us first and so completely, and the more we get to know Him through Bible study, we realize the magnitude and scope of His magnificence. Learn from Christ’s teachings and parables the creeds for good life, imitate His conduct with others and believe in the surety of what He reveals about God The Father. We must thoroughly cloak ourselves in the image of Jesus Christ, as God The Father requires, and then we can daily attend the heavenly banquet and enjoy every grace and blessing that only God can offer for the best life possible. You have been extended an invitation… you are never going to get a better offer anywhere in the world… so, RSVP if you haven’t already, and don’t forget to dress Christ-like!
“To fall in love with God is the greatest romance;
to seek Him the greatest adventure;
to find Him, the greatest human achievement.”
Saint Augustine
Such epic rewards bestowed upon those who persist in finding and knowing Almighty God. To achieve a personal relationship with Him can be likened to a roller-coaster adventure, for many twists and turns can take you breathlessly from the lowest depths of sorrow to the greatest heights of pure joy. When the whole experience of your life is shared with Him, a reciprocating love affair grows; so by seeking, finding and loving He who is The Supreme Being, nothing will ever top that!
THE PASSION OF CHRIST
The historical sites for Christ’s birth, teachings, miracles and most especially His death and resurrection, have turned into places of holy pilgrimage for devout Christians wanting to traverse exactly where He walked. During Holy Week, one particular sacred site visited is the Via Dolorosa (Way of Suffering), which is the street in Jerusalem traditionally considered the path Jesus took on the way to His crucifixion. Most Catholic Churches have reproduced that path Christ took with sculptured plaques or paintings along the sidewalls of the Church in order that parishioners may stop and meditate at each one for a moment of holy prayer with Jesus. While the accounting of Christ’s horrible ordeal is well known by repeated years of attending Easter Services, that familiarity can overlook the necessity to often relive on a personal level just exactly what He went through to bring us salvation. None of us will ever suffer a physical crucifixion as He did, but many hundreds of thousands of us have suffered a spiritual crucifixion, wherein, some of His exact occurrences have transferred similarly into our own time of sorrow. You may or may not experience a public trial as He did, but you have experienced ridicule, humiliation, and condemnation; you may fall under the weight of your cross many more times than the three that He did; and when God sends you your own Simon of Cyrene to help carry the burden your laden with, you will know God The Father is with you every step of the way just as Jesus did. You will also know the desolation Christ cried out, you will feel every ounce of spiritual life drain from your body, and you will know the sadness of entombment when it is all over… and eventually, you will have your own spiritual resurrection.
Sometime during Holy Week, go to Church if you can to meditate on the 14 Stations Of The Cross, or find a quiet corner at home or in the garden and put yourself in Christ’s place as you contemplate each Station. Try and feel the depth of the pain He endured in order that we might be redeemed from sin, and thus realize the magnitude of His passionate love for us that He suffered and died so that we might have eternal life. Jesus came down from heaven and gave up His Divinity to become human, so that we humans could become Divine… love Him for that.
STATIONS OF THE CROSS (Excerpt from Maryknoll Missal)
- JESUS IS CONDEMNED TO DEATH
MEDITATION. Jesus stands before Pilate.
The Roman Governor knows that Christ is innocent, but it is easier for him to allow our Lord to die than it is to save Him. Pilate stills his conscience, preferring only ambition and his own comfort. Can we condemn Pilate, when we have yielded to the intimidation of the world and looked only to our own advantage?
- JESUS RECEIVES HIS CROSS
MEDITATION. The rough wooden cross that Jesus receives is far heavier than it appears, because it contains the sins of all mankind. Shall I add to His cruel burden by my daily failings and weaknesses? Or shall I with courage lead a blameless life so that the cross will be so much lighter?
- JESUS FALL THE FIRST TIME
MEDITATION. Jesus grows weak and He falls beneath the weight of sin. I too shall stumble and fall. But with Christ I can always rise again and go forward.
- JESUS MEETS HIS MOTHER
MEDITATION. Long years before, Mary had heard Simeon prophesy that her Son was to be the salvation of all men. Now as she meets Jesus, weighed down and bleeding, she realizes that salvation is to be purchased only by pain and death.
- SIMON HELPS JESUS CARRY HIS CROSS
MEDITATION. Mankind is to help in the work of redemption. Simon, weary from his own labors, is to be pressed into service. His reward is the gift of conversion. And Jesus, with his aid, is able to go on to Calvary and death.
- VERONICA WIPES THE FACE OF JESUS
MEDITATION. When Veronica receives back her towel after wiping the sweaty, bloody, and spittle-marked face of Jesus, that face was forever imprinted upon her cloth. Jesus desired all men to see His face, and so He left for us a permanent record.
- JESUS FALLS THE SECOND TIME
MEDITATION. As the ordeal drags out, the strength of Jesus grows less and less. Once again He falls beneath the weight of the cross and the blows of His executioners. But through His fall He merits for us the grace to remain erect, or having fallen, to rise up promptly.
- JESUS SPEAKS TO THE WOMEN OF JERUSALEM
MEDITATION. Jesus tells the women of Jerusalem
not to worry about him but about their own children. His destiny is sealed and He knows that it will end with God. But even though He has purchased the salvation of all men, they in turn must co-operate with His graces. Many will spurn the ransom price out of ignorance or self-love.
- JESUS FALLS THE THIRD TIME
MEDITATION. Prostate once again on the 
street of Jerusalem, Jesus moves us to pity and to a new resolve to obey His commandments; “Thou shalt love thy God. Thou shalt love thy neighbor.” Are we ready to follow Christ’s example in loving God and our fellow men?
- JESUS IS STRIPPED OF HIS GARMENTS
MEDITATION. Humiliation upon humiliation! Jesus is left bereft of everything – His friends, His beauty, even His clothes. Yet in the misery He teaches us that the way to the Father is not through worldly possessions, but through obedience to the Divine Will.
- JESUS IS NAILED TO THE CROSS
MEDITATION. The burly executioners throw our Lord on the cross. His arms and legs are stretched out. Hammers fall and His body is nailed to the wood. The cross is raised for the whole world to see. The weight of His body tears at the nails. Rivulets of blood make their way Heaven and earth, willingly, lies helpless.
- JESUS DIES ON THE CROSS
MEDITATION. For three hours Jesus hangs suspended between earth and heaven. For three hours the terrible agony endures. Besides the physical suffering, there is an unquenchable mental anguish. He sees the souls lost despite His act of redemption. In His torment it seems as if even the Father has abandoned Him. Yet at the moment when all seems lost, there comes the time of triumph. Jesus is dead, but He lives eternally.
- JESUS IS TAKEN DOWN FROM THE CROSS
MEDITATION. At the foot of the cross stands Mary. Carefully the bruised and torn body is lowered to her waiting arms. Now that the work of redemption is over, once again Jesus belongs to her. The sin of mankind has cost her more than any other human being who will ever live.
- JESUS IS LAID IN THE TOMB
MEDITATION. Jesus is placed in a newly made 
tomb belonging to Joseph of Arimathea. His body is wrapped in linen cloths by the holy women. Then a huge stone is rolled before the doorway. On Easter Sunday the tomb will be empty. This final miracle will be the crowning proof of the truth of all Christ taught.
