Today’s gospel speaks of the parable of the great banquet, and how those who were initially invited turned the Master down because they were too busy with their own earthly concerns. Because of this, the invitation was extended to the “poor, the crippled, the blind and lame.” This passage has been interpreted to represent the Jews who rejected Jesus’ invitation to be part of his flock and the eventual extension of this invitation to the Gentiles who were originally considered outside of the People of God. Similarly all of us are invited to be part of God’s flock, to his heavenly kingdom, but our minds are often on earthly concerns. We are often preoccupied with work, studies, buying new gadgets and clothes, going to parties, etc. We are too busy to listen to God in prayer or through Scriptures. We choose ourselves over God.
We must take the example of St. Charles Borromeo so that we will learn to choose God over ourselves. Although belonging to the Milanese nobility, Charles Borromeo desired to devote himself to the Church. He lived during the Protestant Reformation and was involved in the reform of the Catholic Church during the final years of the Council of Trent. He became a priest at the age of 25 and became bishop of Milan soon after. Despite his position in the Church hierarchy, he was very humble, gave most of his income to the poor and became poor himself. During the plague and famine of 1576, he fed thousands of people using borrowed money which required him to repay for years to come. When the civil authorities left, he stayed behind to take care of the sick and the dying. With this burden he died at the age of 46 while ministering to his flock.