The new Mass translation and the Wedding Feast of the Lamb

28th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Oct. 9, 2011
Fr. Joseph Eddy, O. de M.

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Gospel: Matt. 22:1-14 Marriage feast of the King”s Son

Full homily text: The Gospel today focuses in on a king who has a wedding banquet for his son. In most cultures this is a huge feast. In fact, wedding banquets may be something that bridges across almost all cultures, ethnic groups, races, and nations. Marriage, in some form, is a universal institution. And, for all people it is a time to celebrate the love between a man and a woman, which has made them choose to bind themselves to each other for a lifetime.

Fr. Joseph Eddy is the vocation director of the Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mercy, founded to redeem Christians whose faith is in danger. The Order’s student house in the U.S. is in Philadelphia.

Is God calling you to become a Mercedarian friar? Visit Fr. Joseph’s Facebook page, or the website of the .

How wise of Jesus to use this parable, which could be relevant to all people for two thousand years! The only strange part is that the king plans the banquet for the son; today in America it is traditionally the bride’s family who organizes and pays for a wedding.

Banquet for the Son of God

Yet, this difference helps us to realize that Jesus is speaking of a particular “king” and a particular “son.” Yes, the Father is planning the banquet for the Son, who is the second person of the Blessed Trinity, Jesus Christ. In the Old Testament, God the Father made a covenant, or we could say a “marriage” between himself and his bride the Jewish people. This covenant was first made with Abraham when he trusted in the Lord’s promise, and became the Father of many nations.  The descendents  of Abraham struggled and often times where unfaithful to this covenant. So, they had to renew this “marriage” many times with Moses, Joshua, and through the prophets. But, from the beginning God the Father had a plan to send his own Son. The unthinkable happened with the incarnation; Jesus took upon himself our human flesh. Jesus is both human and divine. God has “married” His divinity with humanity in the incarnation. This union of the human and divine reveal to us the plan that God had from the beginning of time to allow us to share in his own divine life.

Ultimately, we await the fulfillment of this union in heaven. The book of revelation refers to this as the “wedding feast of the Lamb.”  The book of Revelation recounts the visions of the apostle John. In these visions he sees that “the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready.” The Lamb is Christ, who has sacrificed himself as the unblemished lamb was offered on the night of Passover. Jesus’ offering on the cross is the fulfillment of the Passover. He frees us from our sins. Jesus offers his life up for his bride, the Church. This is a true love story! But, Jesus’ passion, death, and resurrection is what makes us, the bride, beautiful. Christ merits our freedom from sin and with it the capacity to be united with God in a union of love for all eternity.

Mass is the wedding Feast of the Lamb

Understanding “the wedding feast of the Lamb” gives the true meaning to the parable in the Gospel. The King has invited us to the feast. All are given sufficient grace to obtain eternal life. This grace is given to us in the Sacraments, especially the Mass. The Mass is a foretaste of heaven. Those who come to Mass faithfully and in the right disposition are experiencing “the wedding Feast of the Lamb.” This is the real Passover, where Christ gives himself to us fully: body, blood, soul, and divinity. Jesus is the Groom. But, he is also the supper, or the source of the union that we can have with God.

But, as in the parable, there is a proper response to an “invitation” so great as the Mass. The Second Vatican Council tells us that we are called to “the active, full and fruitful participation…in the Eucharistic celebration.” In the parable, a man arrives without the proper clothing. Surely, it is assumed that we would dress properly for such a great event as the Mass. It is our opportunity to receive God totally in the Eucharist! We should dress at least as well as we would for a nice restaurant.

New Mass translation

But the “participation” that the Vatican council speaks of is not merely external clothes or behavior. These things are important, but Pope Benedict tells us that full active participation means that we have “a greater awareness of the mystery being celebrated and its relationship to daily life.” This is why the Church has given us a more accurate translation of the Mass. The prayers of the Mass are based on Sacred Scripture and have not changed much in hundreds of years. The Latin prayers of the Mass can be traced back hundreds of years. But, it is important that we have the most accurate translation from the Latin. This is what we are getting with the new translation. It may seem strange a first, but we will recognize that it is a higher language than what we speak in everyday conversation. This is only appropriate, because we worship a God who is both human and divine. God is close to us, but he is also mysterious.

Most people will find that the translation of the Mass leads them more easily into meditation. The goal of the Mass is for us to enter into the mystery of Christ’s passion, death, and resurrection. First, we are to seek forgiveness of our sins and be purified in the Blood of the Lamb. Then, we unite ourselves to the one sacrifice of Christ offered for the sins of the whole world. We bring our sacrifices and sufferings to unite them to the sacrifice offered by the priest on the altar.

Make our lives an “Amen”

True active participation leads us to make a “Yes” or “Amen” at Communion. This “Amen” cannot be just saying “I want to receive Jesus.” We must make our lives an “Amen.” As Mary did when she said “yes” to the angel. This “yes” continued throughout her life and led her to the foot of the Cross. But, she never took her “yes” back. It was total. Our “yes” goes out with us into the streets, the home and the workplace. It is hypocrisy to receive communion with God if we do not say “yes” to living as Jesus taught. Then, our “yes” is incomplete. It is a lie.

So, for all of us the invitation to the banquet has come out. We are invited to the “Supper of the Lamb.” Jesus wants to unite himself to us in a way unimaginable. The response is our choice. If we want to say “yes” it must be complete. For Christ held nothing back on the Cross and he holds nothing back as he gives us his total Body and Blood. Let us respond with a complete “amen” — one word that means: “I want to be united with you in every aspect of my life.” Then, the Eucharist is truly a foretaste of the “heavenly marriage feast.” The union between God and his people.