28th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A
Sunday, October 15, 2023
Mass Readings for the 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A
- First Reading – Isaiah 25:6-10a: “On this mountain the LORD of hosts will provide for all peoples a feast of rich food and choice wines, juicy, rich food and pure, choice wines.”
- Responsorial Psalm – Psalm 23: “I shall live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life.”
- Second Reading – Philippians 4:12-14, 19-20: “In every circumstance and in all things I have learned the secret of being well fed and of going hungry, of living in abundance and of being in need.”
- Gospel – Matthew 22:1-14 or 22:1-10: “The kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son. He dispatched his servants to summon the invited guests to the feast, but they refused to come.”
Themes for the 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A
The readings for the 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A tell of the abundance of the Kingdom of God. In the first reading we hear of the wonders of the Mountain of the Lord. The psalm tells of how God will care for us as a shepherd cares for his sheep. The second reading speaks of how God provides for us in abundance. And in the gospel Jesus compares the Kingdom of Heaven to a lavish wedding banquet.
- Gratitude for the abundance in our lives
- God’s care for us
- Heaven
See the Homilies and Reflections section and the More Thoughts section for further expansion on these readings and some reflection questions for the 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A.
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Resources for the 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A
Make a Gratitude List Every Day and Pray with It
Gratitude can be one of the most fruitful forms of prayer. When we specifically notice things to be grateful for, we become aware of and acknowledge God’s constant presence in our lives. Making a daily gratitude list is a practice which can change your whole attitude and it doesn’t have to take a lot of time.
Start a Prayer Journal
Developing a healthy prayer routine requires some discipline. A prayer journal is a good way to stay focused during prayer. This can be an especially helpful practice for teens who are trying to develop a deeper prayer life. But it is appropriate for all ages.
Party Planning in Paradise – Discussion and Reflection Questions
The purpose of this reflection is to help youth understand the Parable of the Wedding Feast. Youth will consider how God desires us to be with him. It is up to us to accept or reject His invitation and to prepare ourselves for the event.
Homilies and Reflections for the 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A
Two Lifestyles
In this week’s Encountering the Word video for the Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Jeff Cavins explains what Scripture really means by “the land of milk and honey”. We live through honey days and milk days, through easy times and difficult times.
Many are Called…Few are Chosen: Garment of Righteousness
Dr. Brant Pitre discusses the Parable of the Wedding Banquet. He connects the wedding garment to the garment of righteousness and explains what is required of those who are chosen and not just called.
The Parable of the Wedding Banquet
From Bishop Robert Barron. The story is meant to stir us up with its exaggeration, to signal the spiritual destruction that follows from refusing the divine invitation. We are meant to see how valuable an invitation we have received and how odd it is that we would choose to reject it.
Dressing for the Feast
From Scott Hahn. Our Lord’s parable in today’s Gospel is again a fairly straightforward outline of salvation history. God is the king, Jesus the bridegroom, the feast is the salvation and eternal life.
Isaiah and God’s Holy Mountain
Also from Bishop Barron. Throughout the book of the prophet Isaiah, there are references to God’s holy mountain. In the twenty-fifth chapter of Isaiah, we have still another reference to the holy mountain, and this is our first reading for the weekend.
More Thoughts for the 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A
In today’s parable of the wedding banquet, Jesus is giving us insight into history and to the future. The king (God) is holding a wedding feast for his son (Jesus). The servants (prophets and ministers of God) go out and invite guests. But these guests mistreat the servants. This is a condemnation of how Israel, and the Jewish leadership in particular, treated God’s messengers.
So next the king sends out his servants to invite everyone, good or bad, to the feast. This is an indication that we are all invited, regardless of our “worthiness”. But then something disturbing happens. One of the guests is under dressed for the feast. He is thrown out of the banquet.
This can seem unfair, especially since this guest was invited off of the street. He probably wasn’t expecting to go to a wedding. But he was missing something. He was caught unprepared.
Some scholars guess that this man may have been one of the original guests. He finally responded to the invitation, but not in a manner with showed respect to the king or his son. He didn’t make any effort to get ready. He only did the bare minimum of showing up.
So one way to read this is to understand that Jesus is inviting us to be ready when the invitation comes and then to respond wholeheartedly.
Reflection Questions for the 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A
- What do I do to be prepared to respond to God’s daily invitations to me?
- How much effort do I put into my spiritual development compared to other aspects of my life?
- Do I ever resent that God invites everyone, the good and the bad, to his table?
Quotes and Social Media Graphics for the 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
Psalm 23
In verdant pastures he gives me repose;
beside restful waters he leads me;
he refreshes my soul.
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