Search

Results

In other words

12 Oct 2014 - Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle A

God’s kingdom is like a king who threw a wedding banquet for his son. He sent out servants to call in all the invited guests. And they wouldn’t come! “He sent out another round of servants, instructing them to tell the guests, ‘Look, everything is on the table, the prime rib is ready for carving. Come to the feast!’ “They only shrugged their shoulders and went off. The rest, with nothing better to do, beat up on the messengers and then killed them. The king was outraged and sent his soldiers to destroy those thugs and level their city. “Then he told his servants, ‘We have a wedding banquet all prepared but no guests. The ones I invited weren’t up to it. Go out into the busiest intersections in town and invite anyone you find to the banquet.’ The servants went out on the streets and rounded up everyone they laid eyes on, good and bad, regardless. And so the banquet was on—every place filled. “When the king entered and looked over the scene, he spotted a man who wasn’t properly dressed. He said to him, ‘Friend, how dare you come in here looking like that!’ The man was speechless. Then the king told his servants, ‘Get him out of here—fast. Tie him up and ship him to hell. And make sure he doesn’t get back in.’ “That’s what I mean when I say, ‘Many get invited; only a few make it.’ ” (from Matthew 22). Taken from The Message: Catholic/Ecumenical Edition by Eugene Peterson (ACTA Publications, 2014 ); actapublications.com; 800-397-2282.

wedding banquet invitation

Restricted
Sign & sacrament

12 Oct 2014 - Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle A

Jesus tells perhaps none more masterful a parable than the one about a wedding feast. Parables compare something in a story to something outside the story. As a parable unfolds, the comparison becomes clear and listeners realize they are being challenged to change their behavior or outlook. The parable of the wedding feast has not one but two such moments. First, Jesus’ hearers realized he was pointing out how their rejection of him meant rejecting the Father and the prophets as well. The lucky new invitees to the feast, however, don’t have it much easier, as they find out that merely showing up isn’t enough. What gets you a seat at the table is not who you are or aren’t but whether you have faith and live it.

wedding banquet invitation

Restricted
Homily stories

12 Oct 2014 - Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle A

A clever wedding invitation read, “Thank you for the pleasure of being your company,” an obvious play on the formal expression. In our culture of informality, such words sound stiff. But if you look closely they are intimate, tender, and warm. They suggest a profound beauty and respect: Your very presence at our celebration would make it complete. Please come. In ancient times it would be a great offense not to accept such an invitation. And yet, in the end, then and now, it is still an invitation, not a demand. Such is God’s invitation to Israel in Isaiah’s time, and Jesus’ invitations as well: “Come, follow me,” and “Come to me, all you who are weary,” and “Come and see.” Always an invitation, never a demand. It sounds strange that the all-powerful creator God would humbly invite us, God’s creatures. But we are created free. God does not coerce. You can always refuse. But say you don’t refuse. You send in your RSVP (your Baptism?) and say, “I’m looking forward to it. I’ll be there.” But then life goes on. Things happen, and often when the time comes to actually take the time, set other concerns aside, change your plans, break your patterns, and act on your Baptism by feeding, clothing, forgiving those in need—other things can seem more important than putting the mission of Christ first. That stumbling block is the cross, but that’s the ticket to get into the celebration.

Authors Father Larry Janowski O.F.M.

wedding banquet invitation

Restricted
Exploring the word

17 Jan 2016 - Second Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C

January is the least appealing month of the year for weddings. Fewer than 5 percent of couples choose to marry at the start of the year, compared with more than 10 percent each in June and August. More couples tie the knot in March—during Lent!—than in January (although most of them probably aren’t Catholic). So it may seem a little untimely to talk about weddings six months off peak season. Yet a wedding is on the agenda because, on the early church’s calendar, this time of year was originally given over to a season of Epiphany. Epiphany means “manifestation”—a Eureka moment of revelation when things suddenly come together in a clearer light. The season of Advent, at the head of the liturgical calendar, gave way to the celebration of a series of epiphanies by which believers come to understand what our Advent waiting was all about. The birth of Jesus at Christmas is the first epiphany. At birth, Jesus receives recognition from all the hosts of heaven. Then comes the Magi, foreign dignitaries who seek the new king of Israel. In the Baptism of the Lord, a voice from heaven declares that Jesus is the divine and beloved Son. The season of Epiphany closes with the wedding at Cana, where Jesus performs the first sign that marks him as a wonderworker. So the early church expressed the revelation of Jesus Christ in four special moments of Epiphany: Nativity. Magi. Baptism. Cana. In our present church calendar, we preserve this original unit of Epiphany celebrations every third year during Luke’s year of Cycle C. The other two years, as we read Matthew and Mark, we still celebrate what we call Christmas, Epiphany, and the Baptism of the Lord. These three feasts hang together as natural beginnings of the Jesus story. But the wedding at Cana? Why include Cana? Cana is, for John’s gospel, a sort of Christmas story. Matthew and Luke both contain stories of Jesus’ birth, one starring Joseph and the other Mary. Luke’s nativity story is the most famous; Matthew is better known for the arrival of the Magi afterwards. Mark prefers to begin his gospel with Jesus all grown up, at the intersection of John the Baptist and Jesus—so the Baptism story reveals how the ministry of Jesus is “birthed” in Mark. For John, however, the “hour” of Jesus is launched in Cana. His mother pushes him out into the world, a midwife of his public ministry, by insisting that this action will appropriately “reveal his glory.” Cana’s bottomless source of wine is of course a sign of never-ending Eucharist in John. So where to begin in discovering who Jesus is? The whole church is born where we share this best wine together. We thank those in consecrated life for spreading the Good News of the gospel through their joyful witness. Related scripture links As a bridegroom rejoices in his bride: Isa. 62:5 At his name every knee must bend: Phil. 2:9-11 Death has no sting: 1 Cor. 15:55-56 Mary in John’s gospel: John 2:1-11; 19:25-27 We walk by faith: 2 Cor. 5:7 What’s in a name?: Gen. 2:19; Exod. 3:13-15; Matt:1:23, 16:18; Luke 1:59-64

Authors Alice Camille

weddings cana

Restricted
In other words

17 Jan 2016 - Second Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C

Three days later there was a wedding in the village of Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there. Jesus and his disciples were guests also. When they started running low on wine at the wedding banquet, Jesus’ mother told him, “They’re just about out of wine.” Six stoneware water pots were there, used by the Jews for ritual washings. Each held 20 to 30 gallons. Jesus ordered the servants, “Fill the pots with water.” And they filled them to the brim. “Now fill your pitchers and take them to the host,” Jesus said, and they did. When the host tasted the water that had become wine (he didn’t know what had just happened but the servants, of course, knew), he called out to the bridegroom, “Everybody I know begins with their finest wines and after the guests have had their fill brings in the cheap stuff. But you’ve saved the best till now!” This act in Cana of Galilee was the first sign Jesus gave, the first glimpse of his glory (from John 2). Taken from The Message: Catholic/Ecumenical Edition by Eugene Peterson (ACTA Publications, 2014 ); actapublications.com; 800-397-2282.

wine weddings cana

Restricted
Homily themes

17 Jan 2016 - Second Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C

You shall be called by a new name, the prophet says, and God’s bringing forth something new, a new age of the Messiah, underlies the gospel story of Jesus’ “sign” in Cana. Many of Christ’s signs in John show him to be the Messiah who is rewriting the religious symbols—and thus the religion—of his day. He’s the bridegroom at a wedding, the traditional image for the messianic banquet. Something like 200 gallons of water are on hand—a superabundance that looks forward to the plenty of the Last Days. The water, there for ritual washing, had become wine of the best kind saved for the “end.” Through Baptism, water becomes the blood of the new covenant, to be shed at Jesus’ hour, in which God revealed his glory, which shines in those who share in it.

Wedding miracles cana

Restricted
Royal treat revealed in a tweet

21 Nov 2010 - Preaching the News for Sunday

On this Solemnity of Jesus Christ the King, questions about Jesus’ reign are central to the gospel. Questions about the reign of Britain’s royal family are highlighted this week as well now that Buckingham Palace has announced the engagement of Prince William and Kate Middleton, who may one day be king and queen of England. Nonetheless, the royal family chose to break the news of the pending nuptials in a decidedly populist way--via a Twitter feed. Although a formal statement was issued, it was scooped by the accompanying tweet that distilled the official confirmation of the first major royal wedding of the new millennium into a bite-sized social media post. William gave Kate his mother’s sapphire and diamond engagement ring as a way of making the late Princess Diana part of his special day. “I thought it was quite nice, because obviously she’s not going to be around to share any of the fun and excitement of it all,” William said. “We’re massively excited,” William said in a televised interview that marked the first time the couple has spoken publicly about their relationship, which dates eight years back to their days as university students. “We’re looking forward to spending the rest of our lives together.” But just as the idea of Jesus’ reign met resistance from many of his own people, a number of Brits are not terribly excited about the idea of footing any part of the huge tab a royal wedding will surely generate, especially during a time of national austerity and sharp budget cuts. Source: Articles by Liz Kelly for the Washington Post and Jill Lawless for the Associated Press

great britain prince william kate middleton royal wedding
Funeral homes branch out

30 Jan 2011 - Preaching the News for Sunday

Jesus promises in this Sunday’s gospel that those who mourn will be comforted. At a time of loss many have found comfort in services held at funeral homes. But a number of them are marketing their locations as not only places to mourn but also as sites for celebrations such as weddings, birthdays, anniversaries, even holiday parties and proms. In order to make full use of their property, 10 percent of funeral homes reported in a 2010 National Funeral Directors Association survey that they "owned or offered a community or family center in addition to traditional funeral facilities." While the idea of getting married in a space initially designed for funerals is off-putting to some, others point out that ceremonies of all types--including weddings and funerals--have always taken place in churches, and people don’t think twice about being wed in a space that may have hosted a funeral the same day. Source: An article by Megan Gibson for TIME via USA TODAY

weddings funeral homes
Till death--or a loss of internet service--do us part

09 Oct 2011 - Preaching the News for Sunday

"The kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king who gave a wedding feast,” says Jesus in this Sunday’s gospel. If that wedding were held in the age of social media, it might include innovations such as video save-the-dates, high-speed "QR" barcodes on invitations, and live-streaming of the wedding ceremony for far-flung loved ones to watch online. Couples are inviting guests to live-tweet the big day using special Twitter keywords called hash tags and are creating interactive seating charts so tablemates can chat online ahead of time. One couple featured a "guest of the week" on their wedding blog. Another ordered up a cake with an iPad embedded at the base to stream photos at the reception. A third Skyped in a "virtual bridesmaid" who couldn't make it. She was walked down the aisle by a groomsman via iPad. At her recent wedding Lauren Barnes pulled out her iPhone and accepted her groom's Facebook relationship change to "married." "Nothing's official until it’s Facebook official!" she said. According to surveys by the magazine sites Brides and The Knot, high tech is on the rise in the world of weddings, with 65 percent of couples now setting up special sites to manage RSVPs, stream video of the ceremony and/or reception, and keep guests in the loop. Such tools can be a godsend so long as older or not-so-techie folks are not stranded on the wrong side of the firewall. "But that list of people is shrinking fast," said Anja Winikka, site editor for The Knot. Source: An article by Leanne Italie for the Associated Press

Technology weddings social media

← Previous 1 2 3 Next →