World Mission Sunday will soon be upon us, being 20 October. It will provide a special opportunity to celebrate the mission that Jesus has entrusted to us his Church.

The theme that the Pope Francis has chosen indicates that our mission is to invite people to the banquet of the Kingdom of God. It is based on the Parable of the Wedding Feast in Chapter 22 of St Matthew’s Gospel.

‘Go and invite everyone to the banquet’

And the invitation goes something like this:

God the Father cordially invites you to the banquet of the Kingdom of God
where there will be the richest food and the finest wine
and all your fears, anxieties, failures and weaknesses
even your sins
hanging over you like dark clouds
will evaporate in the bright light of God’s compassion.

It doesn’t matter who you are
which nation you belong to
what you have achieved
or not achieved
how bad you think you are
how bad others think you are:
at this banquet you will sit next to saints and sinners
and humanity in all its beautiful diversity
and all those divisions you have helped to create
pitting one against another
driving a wedge through humanity
will be bridged with tolerance and reconciliation.

If your dietary requirements are severe
or you don’t drink wine
or parties bore you
be assured of this:
you will taste something much more exciting
you will taste the Word of God and see that the Lord is good
and you will drink deeply from the Fountain of Salvation.

You will be consumed by the immense love of God
revealed in the crucified and risen Christ
who keeps the door of banquet hall always open
day and night.

Dress Code:
Garments of Faith, Hope, and Love
however inadequate you think they are,

Based on Matthew’s parable and Isaiah Chapter 25, my attempt to express the beauty of God’s invitation to everyone to enter into a relationship with him through Jesus Christ barely scratches the surface of the mystery we are called to embrace. However, it does beg the question:

How are we going to deliver this invitation?
This answer is simple and very challenging:
We are the invitation.

In his Message for World Mission Sunday, Pope Francis encourages us with these words:

‘Let us never forget, then, that in our missionary activities we are asked to preach the Gospel to all. Instead of seeming to impose new obligations, we should appear as people who wish to share their joy, who point to a horizon of beauty and who invite others to a delicious banquet.’

I wish you a joyful, fruitful, and challenging celebration of this invitation.
Holy Mary, Star of Evangelisation, pray for us!