Twenty Eighth Sunday of the Year (Year A)

 Twenty Eighth Sunday of the Year

October 11, 2026

Isaiah 25:6–10; Philippians 4:12–14, 19–20; Matthew 22:1–14

(Image Courtesy: AI)

One day, Mother Teresa found a dying man abandoned on the streets of Calcutta. He was weak, dirty, and covered with wounds. Nobody wanted to touch him. She brought him to the home for the dying, washed him, fed him, dressed his wounds, and stayed beside him. Before he died, the man expressed his gratitude for being treated with dignity and love. Mother Teresa had given him something more than physical care. She had given him a sense that he belonged.

That was one of the great things about Mother Teresa's life. She saw people whom society had forgotten and reminded them that they were still loved, still valuable, and still welcome. Her life helps us enter today's Gospel, because at the heart of these readings is a God who prepares a banquet, opens His table to everyone, and invites us to become people who make others feel welcome.

The first reading from Isaiah gives us a beautiful picture of God's dream for humanity. The prophet speaks of the Lord preparing a magnificent feast for all peoples, with rich food and fine wine. He promises to destroy the veil that covers humanity and to wipe away every tear.

Notice the words: “for all peoples.” God's banquet is not reserved for a privileged few. His invitation is universal. God desires to gather His children into communion with Him. His final word to humanity is not loneliness, fear, or death. It is fellowship, joy, and life.

This gives us the foundation for understanding the Gospel. Before Jesus tells us about the wedding banquet, Isaiah has already shown us the heart of the God who prepares it. God is not reluctant to welcome us. He is the One who prepares the table and sends the invitation.

But this raises an important question: If God has prepared such a generous banquet, how should we live while we wait for it?

That is where St Paul speaks to us in the second reading. Paul says that he has learned to live with abundance and with need, with plenty and with hunger. He has discovered that his deepest security does not depend on circumstances. His strength comes from Christ: “I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”

Paul's words show us how a person who trusts God's invitation learns to live. He is not controlled by what he has or what he lacks. He does not say, “I will be happy when I have more.” He has discovered that Christ is enough.

There is a beautiful connection here. Isaiah tells us that God prepares the banquet. Paul tells us that Christ gives us the strength to journey toward that banquet without being controlled by the ups and downs of life.

And now the Gospel tells us what our response to that invitation must be. Jesus speaks about a king who prepares a wedding banquet for his son. Everything is ready. The food is prepared. The celebration is waiting. The invitation has been sent. But the invited guests refuse to come.

Some are busy with their fields. Others are occupied with their businesses. They are not necessarily doing evil things. They are simply too occupied to recognize the value of the invitation. This is one of the most subtle dangers in spiritual life. We may not reject God. We may simply become too busy for Him.

Our work becomes important. Our responsibilities become important. Our ambitions become important. Our phones, entertainment, plans, and possessions become important. Slowly, without deliberately deciding it, we can push God to the margins of our lives. But the king does not give up. When the invited guests refuse, he sends his servants into the streets and says, “Invite everyone you find.” The doors of the banquet are opened wider.

Here we see the same vision that Isaiah proclaimed: God wants everyone at His table. The invitation reaches beyond the people who originally expected it. The poor, the forgotten, the outsiders, and those whom society may overlook are welcomed. But Jesus then introduces a surprising detail. The king finds one man without a wedding garment and asks how he entered without one.

This reminds us that accepting God's invitation is not merely about showing up. Grace must produce a change in us. The wedding garment represents the life that should follow from receiving God's grace. We cannot say, “I belong to Christ,” and remain completely unchanged. If we have accepted the invitation, our lives should gradually become different.

We should become more loving, more forgiving, more generous, more compassionate, and more concerned about others. And this brings us back to the three readings. Isaiah shows us the banquet God prepares. Paul shows us the strength Christ gives us to live faithfully. Jesus shows us the response He expects from those who accept the invitation. The movement is clear: God invites us, Christ strengthens us, and grace transforms us.

There are three important life messages for us today.

First, remember that you are invited. Never think that you are too weak, too sinful, or too unworthy for God. His invitation is wider than our sense of unworthiness.

Second, learn to live with Christ as your strength. Like Paul, remain faithful whether life gives you abundance or difficulty. Your circumstances may change, but Christ remains.

Third, allow God's grace to transform you. The wedding garment is the garment of love. If we truly accept God's invitation, it must become visible in the way we treat people, especially the poor, the forgotten, and those who cannot give us anything in return.

Let us return to Mother Teresa. The man she found on the street had been excluded from almost everything society considered valuable. Yet she saw what others had failed to see: a human being worthy of love and dignity. She did not merely speak about God's banquet. She made room for someone at the table. And this is where the Gospel becomes personal for us. It is not enough to ask, “Am I invited to God's banquet?” We must also ask, “Whom am I inviting?”

Who around us feels forgotten? Who has been excluded? Who needs forgiveness? Who needs someone to listen? Who needs a place where they can feel that they belong? Perhaps God's banquet begins in our own homes, communities, workplaces, and churches whenever we make room for another person.

The Lord has prepared the feast. Christ gives us the strength. Now He asks us to put on the garment of love and become people who open doors rather than close them. May we accept God's invitation with grateful hearts, allow His grace to transform our lives, and become, like Mother Teresa, people through whom the forgotten discover that they too have a place at God's table.

Happy Sunday 

Twenty-Seventh Sunday of the Year (Year A)

 Twenty-Seventh Sunday of the Year, 

October 04, 2026

Isaiah 5:1-7   Philippians 4:6-9   Matthew 21:33-43

(Image courtesy: AI)

There was once an old gardener who had spent many years caring for a vineyard. Every morning, before the sun became too hot, he would walk through the vineyard, examine the vines, remove the weeds, loosen the soil, and water the plants. He treated each vine almost like a member of his family. One year, after months of careful work, he expected an abundant harvest. But when the grapes finally appeared, he discovered that many of them were small, sour, and bitter. The gardener was deeply disappointed.

His young grandson, who had watched him work all year, asked, “Grandfather, why are you sad?” The old man replied, “I gave these vines everything I could. I prepared the soil, protected them, watered them, and cared for them. I was hoping they would give something beautiful in return.” The boy looked at the vines and said, “Grandfather, perhaps the vines did not understand how much you loved them.” The old man remained silent.

That simple sentence stayed with him. He realized that the greatest tragedy was not simply that the vines had produced bad fruit. It was that something which had received so much care had failed to become what it was created to be.

This image takes us directly into today's readings. Both Isaiah and Jesus speak about a vineyard. In both passages, the vineyard represents God's people. The owner carefully prepares everything, provides everything necessary, and patiently waits for good fruit. Yet the harvest disappoints him. The first reading from Isaiah presents the beautiful Song of the Vineyard. The beloved carefully prepares a vineyard on a fertile hill. He clears the stones, plants the finest vines, builds a watchtower, and prepares a winepress. Everything necessary for a good harvest has been provided.

Then comes the heartbreaking question: “Why did it yield wild grapes? The prophet explains that the vineyard represents Israel. God had chosen His people, protected them, guided them, and blessed them. In return, He expected justice and righteousness. Instead, He found injustice and violence.

The message is not simply about ancient Israel. It is also about us. God has planted each of us in the vineyard of life. He has given us gifts, opportunities, relationships, education, faith, time, and countless experiences of His grace. The question is: What fruit are we producing? God does not give us blessings merely for our comfort. Every blessing carries a responsibility. If God has given us education, what good are we doing with it? If He has given us influence, whom are we helping? If He has given us faith, are we sharing that faith through our lives? If He has given us love, are we becoming more loving?

The second reading from St Paul gives us the attitude we need in order to produce good fruit. Paul tells the Philippians, “Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” This is especially relevant because anxiety can prevent us from becoming fruitful people. We become so worried about the future that we forget to live faithfully in the present.

Paul does not say that Christians will have no problems. Instead, he teaches us how to face them. Bring everything to God in prayer. Then he promises that “the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding,” will guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

Prayer changes our relationship with our difficulties. The problem may remain, but we no longer carry it alone. Paul then tells us to focus on whatever is true, honourable, just, pure, pleasing, and commendable. In other words, what we allow into our minds eventually shapes the kind of fruit our lives produce.

The Gospel gives us another vineyard story. Jesus speaks about a landowner who plants a vineyard, builds a fence, digs a winepress, and entrusts it to tenants. When harvest time arrives, he sends servants to collect the fruit. But the tenants beat one servant, kill another, and stone another. Finally, the landowner sends his son. They kill him too.

Jesus is speaking about the prophets who were rejected by God's people and ultimately about Himself, the beloved Son. The tragedy of the parable is that the tenants wanted the vineyard without acknowledging the owner. They wanted the gifts without the responsibility. They wanted possession without accountability. Isn't this sometimes our temptation? We want God's blessings, but we do not always want God's expectations. We want the vineyard, but not the responsibility of producing fruit.

Jesus asks us to remember that everything we possess is ultimately entrusted to us. Our lives are gifts. Our time is a gift. Our talents are gifts. Our relationships are gifts. Even our faith is a gift. The question is not simply, “What has God given me?” The deeper question is, “What have I given back to God?”

There are three important life messages for us today.

First, produce good fruit with the gifts God has given you. Faith must become visible through love, kindness, justice, generosity, forgiveness, and service.

Second, replace anxiety with prayer. When worries become heavy, bring them to God. Prayer does not always change the situation immediately, but it changes the heart that faces the situation.

Third, remember that your life is entrusted to you, not owned by you. Everything we have is ultimately God's gift. We are called to be faithful stewards and to return a harvest of love.

Let us return to the old gardener and his vineyard. He had given the vines everything he could. He prepared the soil, planted carefully, protected the plants, and waited patiently for the harvest. His sorrow came because the vineyard had received so much but produced so little.

The readings today ask us to look at our own lives as God's vineyard. God has planted us in good soil. He has surrounded us with people who love us. He has given us gifts and opportunities. He has spoken to us through His Word. He has sent us His Son. And now He waits for the harvest.

Perhaps the question we should carry home today is not, “What more can God give me?” but, “What fruit is my life giving back to God?” May our lives not produce bitterness, selfishness, or indifference. May they produce love, peace, compassion, justice, forgiveness, and service. And when the Lord comes looking for the harvest, may He find that the vineyard He lovingly planted in us has produced abundant and beautiful fruit.

Happy Sunday