Readings for the 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A. There's plenty of room at God's table. But is there room at ours?
In this installment of A Word of Hope, Fr. Brendan Curran, Dominican Promoter for Justice and Peace for North America, speaks from the community table of the Dominicans on the west side of Chicago, and that table, he says, is itself part of the challenge in this Sunday's scriptures.
In the first reading, Isaiah calls all peoples to the lush and rich banquet of the Lord. In the Gospel, Jesus tells of a king who set a feast for his son, only to have invited guests never show up. So the king sends his servants into the streets: invite everyone. They are welcome.
Fr. Curran asks how we are living that value of Christ today, amid the noise of our society: children separated from their parents in ICE detention actions, people we avoid because of their language or culture, neighbors we simply don't want at our table. The parable, he reminds us, was never meant to sit on the page. It is meant to be proclaimed in our own lives.
That means inviting the ICE agent and the immigrant at the Home Depot. People who speak other languages. People whose music and faith expression differ from ours. All of them are called to the table of God. How do we live it? That's the rub, and the great Gospel challenge for all of us. Let our tables be a sign of hope for a thirsting and hungering world.
⏱️ TIMELINE
0:00 – Welcome to A Word of Hope
0:09 – Fr. Brendan Curran, Dominican Promoter for Justice and Peace
0:14 – From the community table on Chicago's west side
0:20 – The challenge in this Sunday's scriptures
0:28 – Isaiah: all peoples called to the banquet
0:39 – The Gospel parable: how do we live this?
0:47 – A king's feast and the guests who never came
0:57 – "Go out to the streets and invite them"
1:07 – How are we living Christ's value today?
1:20 – Children separated from parents by ICE
1:35 – The people we don't like to associate with
1:49 – Called by Christ in the midst of the noise
2:04 – Where is the welcoming table in our society?
2:12 – The parable is meant to be lived, not just read
2:25 – Whom do we invite to our table?
2:33 – Christ calls us to go to all
2:43 – ICE agents and immigrants at the Home Depot
2:50 – Different languages, music, and faith expression
3:05 – How do we live it? The great Gospel challenge
3:12 – Plenty of room at God's table
3:15 – But where's the room at our table?
3:20 – A sign of hope for a thirsting and hungering world
📖 This Sunday's Readings
First Reading: Isaiah 25:6–10a
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 23
Second Reading: Philippians 4:12–14, 19–20
Gospel: Matthew 22:1–14
📍 Recorded with the Dominican community on the west side of Chicago
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