October 5, 2020
Nghe các bài Anh Ngữ tại đây ⇒ LISTEN PODCAST
Monday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 461
DAILY MEDITATION
by Daily reading & meditation website
Nghe đọc, Click vào đây
Optional memorial USA: Blessed Francis Xavier Seelos, Priest.
Saint Paul writes to the Galatians to admonish them for forsaking what they were taught for a different gospel. The Gospel he proclaimed to them is from Jesus Christ. In the Gospel, Jesus is challenged by a scribe to clarify who is my neighbor? Jesus answers with the parable of a robbery victim helped by a Samaritan.
Our Lord reminds us that anyone in need is our neighbor, and should be treated with kindness. It is one thing to hear “go and do likewise,” it is another to freely love and freely accept this command, and carry it on. But the Lord never commands us something that is impossible, we need only to trust that what we have and know is from him. We can trust that within his grace, we can live the true Gospel and obey his will. Let us pray that those who have gone before us marked with the sign of faith may find peace in God’s presence.
Reading 1
Brothers and sisters:
I am amazed that you are so quickly forsaking
the one who called you by the grace of Christ
for a different gospel (not that there is another).
But there are some who are disturbing you
and wish to pervert the Gospel of Christ.
But even if we or an angel from heaven
should preach to you a gospel
other than the one that we preached to you,
let that one be accursed!
As we have said before, and now I say again,
if anyone preaches to you a gospel
other than the one that you received,
let that one be accursed!
Am I now currying favor with human beings or God?
Or am I seeking to please people?
If I were still trying to please people,
I would not be a slave of Christ.
Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters,
that the Gospel preached by me is not of human origin.
For I did not receive it from a human being, nor was I taught it,
but it came through a revelation of Jesus Christ.
Responsorial Psalm
R. (5) The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
or:
R. Alleluia.
I will give thanks to the LORD with all my heart
in the company and assembly of the just.
Great are the works of the LORD,
exquisite in all their delights.
R. The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
or:
R. Alleluia.
The works of his hands are faithful and just;
sure are all his precepts,
Reliable forever and ever,
wrought in truth and equity.
R. The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
or:
R. Alleluia.
He has sent deliverance to his people;
he has ratified his covenant forever;
holy and awesome is his name.
His praise endures forever.
R. The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I give you a new commandment:
love one another as I have loved you.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
There was a scholar of the law who stood up to test Jesus and said,
“Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
Jesus said to him, “What is written in the law?
How do you read it?”
He said in reply,
“You shall love the Lord, your God,
with all your heart,
with all your being,
with all your strength,
and with all your mind,
and your neighbor as yourself.”
He replied to him, “You have answered correctly;
do this and you will live.”
But because he wished to justify himself, he said to Jesus,
“And who is my neighbor?”
Jesus replied,
“A man fell victim to robbers
as he went down from Jerusalem to Jericho.
They stripped and beat him and went off leaving him half-dead.
A priest happened to be going down that road,
but when he saw him, he passed by on the opposite side.
Likewise a Levite came to the place,
and when he saw him, he passed by on the opposite side.
But a Samaritan traveler who came upon him
was moved with compassion at the sight.
He approached the victim,
poured oil and wine over his wounds and bandaged them.
Then he lifted him up on his own animal,
took him to an inn, and cared for him.
The next day he took out two silver coins
and gave them to the innkeeper with the instruction,
‘Take care of him.
If you spend more than what I have given you,
I shall repay you on my way back.’
Which of these three, in your opinion,
was neighbor to the robbers’ victim?”
He answered, “The one who treated him with mercy.”
Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”
- Readings for the Optional Memorial of Saint Faustina Kowalska, virgin
- Readings for the Optional Memorial of Blessed Francis Xavier Seelos, priest
October 6, 2020
Nghe các bài Anh Ngữ tại đây ⇒ LISTEN PODCAST
Tuesday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 462
DAILY MEDITATION
by Daily reading & meditation website
Nghe đọc, Click vào đây
Optional memorial Saint Bruno, Priest; USA: Blessed Marie Rose Durocher, Virgin.
In today’s first reading, Paul reminds the Galatians that they heard of his former way of life where he persecuted the Church of God beyond measure; and that God’s Grace revealed his Son to him so he might proclaim him to the Gentiles. In the Gospel, Jesus visitors Martha and Mary. He replies to Martha, who complains she is burdened by serving while her sisters spends time with Jesus, that Mary has chosen the better part.
Though we often want to do things for God, the most important thing is simply to be with God. This familiar story of Martha and Mary is an important reminder that we cannot earn God’s favor by righteous deeds. God’s favor already rests upon us. The ultimate goal is to recognize and rest in the presence of the Lord, even as we go about our busy lives of service and work. Let us pray for the people of God, may the Spirit of Christ bring unity and peace to every heart and relationship.
Reading 1
Brothers and sisters:
You heard of my former way of life in Judaism,
how I persecuted the Church of God beyond measure
and tried to destroy it,
and progressed in Judaism
beyond many of my contemporaries among my race,
since I was even more a zealot for my ancestral traditions.
But when he, who from my mother’s womb had set me apart
and called me through his grace,
was pleased to reveal his Son to me,
so that I might proclaim him to the Gentiles,
I did not immediately consult flesh and blood,
nor did I go up to Jerusalem
to those who were Apostles before me;
rather, I went into Arabia and then returned to Damascus.
Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to confer with Cephas
and remained with him for fifteen days.
But I did not see any other of the Apostles,
only James the brother of the Lord.
(As to what I am writing to you, behold,
before God, I am not lying.)
Then I went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia.
And I was unknown personally to the churches of Judea
that are in Christ;
they only kept hearing that “the one who once was persecuting us
is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy.”
So they glorified God because of me.
Responsorial Psalm
R. (24b) Guide me, Lord, along the everlasting way.
O LORD, you have probed me and you know me;
you know when I sit and when I stand;
you understand my thoughts from afar.
My journeys and my rest you scrutinize,
with all my ways you are familiar.
R. Guide me, Lord, along the everlasting way.
Truly you have formed my inmost being;
you knit me in my mother’s womb.
I give you thanks that I am fearfully, wonderfully made;
wonderful are your works.
R. Guide me, Lord, along the everlasting way.
My soul also you knew full well;
nor was my frame unknown to you
When I was made in secret,
when I was fashioned in the depths of the earth.
R. Guide me, Lord, along the everlasting way.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Blessed are those who hear the word of God
and observe it.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Jesus entered a village
where a woman whose name was Martha welcomed him.
She had a sister named Mary
who sat beside the Lord at his feet listening to him speak.
Martha, burdened with much serving, came to him and said,
“Lord, do you not care
that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving?
Tell her to help me.”
The Lord said to her in reply,
“Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things.
There is need of only one thing.
Mary has chosen the better part
and it will not be taken from her.”
- Readings for the Optional Memorial of Blessed Marie-Rose Durocher, virgin
- Readings for the Optional Memorial of Saint Bruno, priest
October 7, 2020
- Readings for the Memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary
Nghe các bài Anh Ngữ tại đây ⇒ LISTEN PODCAST
Memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary
Lectionary: 463
DAILY MEDITATION
by Daily reading & meditation website
Nghe đọc, Click vào đây
Obligation memorial of Our Lacdy of the Rosary.
In his letter to the Galatians, Paul narrates events around the Council of Jerusalem, at which he is entrusted with the mission to the Gentiles. He also writes of opposing Peter at Antioch for his inconsistency about eating with Gentiles. In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus’ disciples ask him to teach them how to pray. He teaches them the Lord’s prayer.
Jesus and Mary are models for discipleship who have taught us how to pray. When Jesus’ disciples see him praying in today’s Gospel, they ask him to teach them how. He teaches them the prayer we know as the Our Father. This prayer is foundational, because it comes from Christ himself. Today, we celebrate the memorial of Our Lady of. the Rosary, another prayer that is based in Scripture and central to our Catholic Faith. let us pray for those in positions of political power, may they be blessed with the zeal and eagerness of Paul in serving their communities.
Reading 1
Brothers and sisters:
After fourteen years I again went up to Jerusalem with Barnabas,
taking Titus along also.
I went up in accord with a revelation,
and I presented to them the Gospel that I preach to the Gentiles–
but privately to those of repute–
so that I might not be running, or have run, in vain.
On the contrary,
when they saw that I had been entrusted with the Gospel to the uncircumcised,
just as Peter to the circumcised,
for the one who worked in Peter for an apostolate to the circumcised
worked also in me for the Gentiles,
and when they recognized the grace bestowed upon me,
James and Cephas and John,
who were reputed to be pillars,
gave me and Barnabas their right hands in partnership,
that we should go to the Gentiles
and they to the circumcised.
Only, we were to be mindful of the poor,
which is the very thing I was eager to do.
And when Cephas came to Antioch,
I opposed him to his face because he clearly was wrong.
For, until some people came from James,
he used to eat with the Gentiles;
but when they came, he began to draw back and separated himself,
because he was afraid of the circumcised.
And the rest of the Jews acted hypocritically along with him,
with the result that even Barnabas
was carried away by their hypocrisy.
But when I saw that they were not on the right road
in line with the truth of the Gospel,
I said to Cephas in front of all,
“If you, though a Jew,
are living like a Gentile and not like a Jew,
how can you compel the Gentiles to live like Jews?”
Responsorial Psalm
R. Go out to all the world, and tell the Good News.
Praise the LORD, all you nations,
glorify him, all you peoples!
R. Go out to all the world, and tell the Good News.
For steadfast is his kindness toward us,
and the fidelity of the LORD endures forever.
R. Go out to all the world, and tell the Good News.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
You have received a spirit of adoption as sons
through which we cry: Abba! Father!
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he had finished,
one of his disciples said to him,
“Lord, teach us to pray just as John taught his disciples.”
He said to them, “When you pray, say:
Father, hallowed be your name,
your Kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread
and forgive us our sins
for we ourselves forgive everyone in debt to us,
and do not subject us to the final test.”
October 8, 2020
Nghe các bài Anh Ngữ tại đây ⇒ LISTEN PODCAST
Thursday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 464
DAILY MEDITATION
by Daily reading & meditation website
Nghe đọc, Click vào đây
Saint Paul calls the Galatians stupid, and asks who has bewitched them, and whether the Spirit comes from faith or the law? Jesus tells his disciples a parable of someone, initially reluctant to help a friend, who eventually responds favorably to his friend’s requests because of the latter’s perseverance. Far exceeding the generosity of parents to their children, God grants the Spirit to those who hold fast to their faith.
Persevere in faith and prayer. The readings today reveal the importance of persistence in the Christian life. The Galatians’ reversion to the Mosaic Law would amount to a denial of Christ’s efficacious redeeming death and a loss of grace. It is persistence in faith and confident prayer that bring down God’s blessings, chiefly that of the Holy Spirit. Let us pray for the Church, may God always increase in her the gift of the Spirit.
Reading 1
O stupid Galatians!
Who has bewitched you,
before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified?
I want to learn only this from you:
did you receive the Spirit from works of the law,
or from faith in what you heard?
Are you so stupid?
After beginning with the Spirit,
are you now ending with the flesh?
Did you experience so many things in vain?–
if indeed it was in vain.
Does, then, the one who supplies the Spirit to you
and works mighty deeds among you
do so from works of the law
or from faith in what you heard?
Responsorial Psalm
R. (68) Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; he has come to his people.
He has raised up for us a mighty savior,
born of the house of his servant David.
R. Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; he has come to his people.
Through his holy prophets he promised of old
that he would save us from our enemies,
from the hands of all who hate us.
R. Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; he has come to his people.
He promised to show mercy to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant.
R. Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; he has come to his people.
This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham:
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
free to worship him without fear,
holy and righteous in his sight
all the days of our life.
R. Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; He has come to his people.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Open our hearts, O Lord,
to listen to the words of your Son.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Suppose one of you has a friend
to whom he goes at midnight and says,
‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread,
for a friend of mine has arrived at my house from a journey
and I have nothing to offer him,’
and he says in reply from within,
‘Do not bother me; the door has already been locked
and my children and I are already in bed.
I cannot get up to give you anything.’
I tell you, if he does not get up to give him the loaves
because of their friendship,
he will get up to give him whatever he needs
because of his persistence.
“And I tell you, ask and you will receive;
seek and you will find;
knock and the door will be opened to you.
For everyone who asks, receives;
and the one who seeks, finds;
and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.
What father among you would hand his son a snake
when he asks for a fish?
Or hand him a scorpion when he asks for an egg?
If you then, who are wicked,
know how to give good gifts to your children,
how much more will the Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit
to those who ask him?”
October 9, 2020
Nghe các bài Anh Ngữ tại đây ⇒ LISTEN PODCAST
Friday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 465
DAILY MEDITATION
by Daily reading & meditation website
Nghe đọc, Click vào đây
Optional Memorial Saint Denis, Bishop, and Companions, Martyrs; Saint John Leonardi, Priest
Saint Paul reminds the Galatians that it is those who have faith who are the children of Abraham, including the Gentiles. In the Gospel, Jesus responds to those who doubt his authority to cast out demons, saying, if it is by the finger of God that I do this, then the Kingdom of God has come upon you.
Faith in Jesus brings us into the kingdom of God, and into his very body. We follow Jesus through the gift of faith. It is a gift available to all, but we know that not all accept it. Through baptism and the other sacraments, our faith grows, and we also grow in grace and virtue. We receive forgiveness and healing. The power of Jesus is stronger than anything the world or the devil can do. Let us pray for government leaders, may God guide them in their efforts to protect the dignity and sanctity of life from conception through natural death.
Reading 1
Brothers and sisters:
Realize that it is those who have faith
who are children of Abraham.
Scripture, which saw in advance that God
would justify the Gentiles by faith,
foretold the good news to Abraham, saying,
Through you shall all the nations be blessed.
Consequently, those who have faith are blessed
along with Abraham who had faith.
For all who depend on works of the law are under a curse;
for it is written, Cursed be everyone
who does not persevere in doing all the things
written in the book of the law.
And that no one is justified before God by the law is clear,
for the one who is righteous by faith will live.
But the law does not depend on faith;
rather, the one who does these things will live by them.
Christ ransomed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us,
for it is written, Cursed be everyone who hangs on a tree,
that the blessing of Abraham might be extended
to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus,
so that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
Responsorial Psalm
R. (5) The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
I will give thanks to the LORD with all my heart
in the company and assembly of the just.
Great are the works of the LORD,
exquisite in all their delights.
R. The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
Majesty and glory are his work,
and his justice endures forever.
He has won renown for his wondrous deeds;
gracious and merciful is the LORD.
R. The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
He has given food to those who fear him;
he will forever be mindful of his covenant.
He has made known to his people the power of his works,
giving them the inheritance of the nations.
R. The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
The prince of this world will now be cast out,
and when I am lifted up from the earth
I will draw all to myself, says the Lord.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
When Jesus had driven out a demon, some of the crowd said:
“By the power of Beelzebul, the prince of demons,
he drives out demons.”
Others, to test him, asked him for a sign from heaven.
But he knew their thoughts and said to them,
“Every kingdom divided against itself will be laid waste
and house will fall against house.
And if Satan is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand?
For you say that it is by Beelzebul that I drive out demons.
If I, then, drive out demons by Beelzebul,
by whom do your own people drive them out?
Therefore they will be your judges.
But if it is by the finger of God that I drive out demons,
then the Kingdom of God has come upon you.
When a strong man fully armed guards his palace,
his possessions are safe.
But when one stronger than he attacks and overcomes him,
he takes away the armor on which he relied
and distributes the spoils.
Whoever is not with me is against me,
and whoever does not gather with me scatters.
“When an unclean spirit goes out of someone,
it roams through arid regions searching for rest
but, finding none, it says,
‘I shall return to my home from which I came.’
But upon returning, it finds it swept clean and put in order.
Then it goes and brings back seven other spirits
more wicked than itself who move in and dwell there,
and the last condition of that man is worse than the first.”
- Readings for the Optional Memorial of Saint John Leonardi, priest
- Readings for the Optional Memorial of Saint Denis, bishop and martyr, and his companions, martyrs
October 10, 2020
Nghe các bài Anh Ngữ tại đây ⇒ LISTEN PODCAST
Saturday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 466
DAILY MEDITATION
by Daily reading & meditation website
Nghe đọc, Click vào đây
Saturday in honor of the B.V.M.
Paul tells the Galatians that they were once under the power of sin and the law, they are now justified by faith. There are no longer distinctions among them but they are all one in Christ Jesus. In the Gospel, Jesus responds to a woman who refers to his mother as blessed by saying, blessed are those who hear the words of God and observe it.
To observe the word of God is to live in knowledge of one’s freedom. Jesus Christ urges his followers to observe the word of God. To observe the word of God is to live in a relationship with God, a relationship called faith, and with faith comes the freedom of Christ. Let us pray for those who suffer from chronic illness, may the Lord bring them healing, comfort and strength.
Reading 1
Brothers and sisters:
Scripture confined all things under the power of sin,
that through faith in Jesus Christ
the promise might be given to those who believe.
Before faith came, we were held in custody under law,
confined for the faith that was to be revealed.
Consequently, the law was our disciplinarian for Christ,
that we might be justified by faith.
But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a disciplinarian.
For through faith you are all children of God in Christ Jesus.
For all of you who were baptized into Christ
have clothed yourselves with Christ.
There is neither Jew nor Greek,
there is neither slave nor free person,
there is not male and female;
for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants,
heirs according to the promise.
Responsorial Psalm
R. (8a) The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Sing to him, sing his praise,
proclaim all his wondrous deeds.
Glory in his holy name;
rejoice, O hearts that seek the LORD!
R. The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Look to the LORD in his strength;
seek to serve him constantly.
Recall the wondrous deeds that he has wrought,
his portents, and the judgments he has uttered.
R. The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
or:
R. Alleluia.
You descendants of Abraham, his servants,
sons of Jacob, his chosen ones!
He, the LORD, is our God;
throughout the earth his judgments prevail.
R. The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Blessed are those who hear the word of God
and observe it.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
While Jesus was speaking,
a woman from the crowd called out and said to him,
“Blessed is the womb that carried you
and the breasts at which you nursed.”
He replied, “Rather, blessed are those
who hear the word of God and observe it.”
October 11, 2020
Nghe các bài Anh Ngữ tại đây ⇒ LISTEN PODCAST
Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 142
Reading 1
DAILY MEDITATION
by Daily reading & meditation website
Nghe đọc, Click vào đây
28th Sunday in Ordinary Time
The prophet Isaiah tells of the great banquet the Lord will prepare for his people at the end of time. Paul writes to the Philippians, assuring them that he knows how to live in different sets of circumstances, and that I can do all things in him who strengthens me. In the Gospel, Jesus tells a parable likening the kingdom of heaven to a king hosting a wedding feast for his son.
We are invited to live in the house of the Lord for all eternity. As we move to the end of another liturgical year, our readings begin to speak to us about the end times. Full of hope and encouragement, they are meant to spur us on to faithful Gospel living no matter what befalls us in this life. Set among them is the responsorial psalm for today, Psalm 23, where the Lord is our shepherd who leads us to green pastures. Let us pray for all of us, may the Lord continue to help us speak the truth in charity to one another.
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.
On this mountain he will destroy
the veil that veils all peoples,
the web that is woven over all nations;
he will destroy death forever.
The Lord GOD will wipe away
the tears from every face;
the reproach of his people he will remove
from the whole earth; for the LORD has spoken.
On that day it will be said:
“Behold our God, to whom we looked to save us!
This is the LORD for whom we looked;
let us rejoice and be glad that he has saved us!”
For the hand of the LORD will rest on this mountain.
Responsorial Psalm
R. (6cd) I shall live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life.
The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
In verdant pastures he gives me repose;
beside restful waters he leads me;
he refreshes my soul.
R. I shall live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life.
He guides me in right paths
for his name’s sake.
Even though I walk in the dark valley
I fear no evil; for you are at my side
with your rod and your staff
that give me courage.
R. I shall live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life.
You spread the table before me
in the sight of my foes;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
R. I shall live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life.
Only goodness and kindness follow me
all the days of my life;
and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD
for years to come.
R. I shall live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life.
Reading 2
Brothers and sisters:
I know how to live in humble circumstances;
I know also how to live with abundance.
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.
I can do all things in him who strengthens me.
Still, it was kind of you to share in my distress.
My God will fully supply whatever you need,
in accord with his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.
To our God and Father, glory forever and ever. Amen.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
May the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ
enlighten the eyes of our hearts,
so that we may know what is the hope
that belongs to our call.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Jesus again in reply spoke to the chief priests and elders of the people
in parables, saying,
“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.
A second time he sent other servants, saying,
‘Tell those invited: “Behold, I have prepared my banquet,
my calves and fattened cattle are killed,
and everything is ready; come to the feast.”’
Some ignored the invitation and went away,
one to his farm, another to his business.
The rest laid hold of his servants,
mistreated them, and killed them.
The king was enraged and sent his troops,
destroyed those murderers, and burned their city.
Then he 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.
The king 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.”
or
Jesus again in reply spoke to the chief priests and elders of the people
in parables, saying,
“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.
A second time he sent other servants, saying,
‘Tell those invited: “Behold, I have prepared my banquet,
my calves and fattened cattle are killed,
and everything is ready; come to the feast.”’
Some ignored the invitation and went away,
one to his farm, another to his business.
The rest laid hold of his servants,
mistreated them, and killed them.
The king was enraged and sent his troops,
destroyed those murderers, and burned their city.
Then he 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.”
