I have to admit I had a difficult time with today's devotion. As many of you know, my belief is that all people - all people - are invited into the open arms of an unconditionally loving God. So, as I read today's passage I had to ask myself, "But if all are invited, why was one thrown out?"
The high school I work at is a "project-based" school. That simply means we put more emphasis in group and individual projects as a way to gauge and assess the student's learning than other schools. This is not to say we don't give exams and homework, it only means that projects are a different form of those exams and a culmination of homework. For instance, we are studying hotel operations this semester and something the students might have to do is create a brochure and ad campaign which "sells" rooms at their hotels.
The only problem, if we can call it that, is when someone in the group decides to take full credit for the work of the group without being a full participant in the work of the group. There will most often be someone like that, someone who joins a particular group because he/she knows that the group will do well and be too timid to say anything about she/he not participating.
A couple of years ago we discovered the best way to "flush" these people out. We simply ask the group to rate the individuals within the group on a few areas, one of which is group participation. What we discovered was that those who had someone in their group who was there only to bask in the glory without contributing to the success, were grateful to have a way to say they didn't think it was fair. As that year went on, the teachers gave permission to groups to come to them with any issues regarding the participation of any of their members and ask that the person who was not participating be asked to leave the group.
It worked. By the end of the school year everyone understood that if you join a group you must participate fully in that group's endeavors in order to share in its successes. Our wedding guest from today's passage is an example of that same thinking.
When the story of Jesus as told in the book of Matthew was written, the people of Jerusalem were in turmoil. It is widely believed that Matthew was written after the destruction of the temple in 70 CE and during a time when those who believed that Jesus was the true Messiah, "Christians", were being blamed for that destruction and persecuted for their beliefs. The Pharisees began to tighten their grip on the Jewish people, admonishing any who would not hold a strict adherence to their laws.
It had become a time when one was either a part of the in crowd, or they were thrown out of society. And yet, here we are told a story of when the king invites all those who are of the in crowd to a feast and nobody shows up. In response the king has all of them killed and invites the out crowd to join him at the table, which they do.
Here's where it gets complicated. The people who are now attending the banquet are the poor, destitute, outcasts of society. They would not have proper wedding attire as required by the rules of their day. And yet, this one guest is isolated for not dressing in the rightful way. Let's assume, then, that somehow everyone else is dressed properly, and they have become so because of the generosity of the king and the work of his servants. That would mean that this one guest either felt he didn't need to participate or flatly refused to.
He was there simply to be able to take the credit for being there.
God calls us to be a people who stand up for those who can't stand for themselves. God calls us to be the voice of the voiceless. So when God calls us to the feast and invites us to be at the table, we are expected to be full participants of the feast and not simply be there to say we were there.
Imagine a world where all do their part to improve the lives of those around them. Imagine a world where love and acceptance replaced greed and division. Imagine a world where all people participated to the best of their abilities, with the gifts God has given them, to bring joy and peace to all of creation.
Let's do our part and participate.
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