Reflection for Thursday in the Fourteenth Week after Pentecost (September 2)
In the spirit of St. Joseph of Cupertino, Confessor
Today’s liturgy places before us two luminous yet demanding passages: the hymn to charity in 1 Corinthians 13:1–8 and the parable of the wedding feast in Matthew 22:1–14. Read together, they reveal not only the absolute primacy of supernatural charity but also the radical call of God to enter His Kingdom clothed in the wedding garment of sanctifying grace.
Charity: The Bond of Perfection
St. Paul, writing to the Corinthians, declares that all eloquence, prophecy, knowledge, even faith itself, are barren without charity. “If I have not charity, I am nothing” (1 Cor 13:2).
St. Augustine observes that charity is the very life of the virtues:
“Without charity, what seem to be virtues are but empty shadows. It is charity which distinguishes the children of God from the children of perdition” (In Epist. Ioan. Tract. V).
St. John Chrysostom likewise notes that Paul does not say “little,” but “nothing”:
“He does not simply lessen the value of these other things, but he utterly annihilates them when they are without charity.” (Hom. XXXIII in 1 Cor.)
Here is the paradox of the Gospel: one may even give away all one’s goods to the poor, or submit to martyrdom, and yet without charity — that love poured into our hearts by the Holy Ghost (Rom 5:5) — it profits nothing. True holiness is measured not by external action but by the inward fire of divine love.
The Wedding Feast of the King’s Son
In the Gospel, Our Lord compares the Kingdom of Heaven to a wedding feast prepared by a king for his son (Mt 22:1–14). Those first invited reject the summons, some even slaying the servants who bear it. The king then extends the invitation to others — the highways and byways are swept, and the hall is filled with guests. Yet even here, one man is cast out for not wearing the wedding garment.
St. Gregory the Great explains:
“The wedding garment is charity. Without it, even if a man be within the Church, he belongs not to the feast of the King.” (Hom. XXXVIII in Evang.)
St. Augustine deepens the point:
“To enter into the feast is to be in the Church; but to be cast out for lacking the garment is to be present in body yet lacking in charity.” (Sermo 90).
The feast is open to all, both “bad and good.” But it is not enough to simply accept the invitation by baptism or external belonging. One must be clothed in grace and animated by the supernatural love of God and neighbor. Without this garment, one faces the dreadful words: “Bind him hand and foot, and cast him into the exterior darkness.”
The Spirit of St. Joseph of Cupertino
The saint of today, St. Joseph of Cupertino, a humble Franciscan confessor, is a living witness to this mystery. Poor in learning, often despised by men, he was yet rich in charity and simplicity of heart. The Lord lifted him, at times literally in ecstatic flight, as a sign that the soul aflame with love rises above earthly wisdom and honors.
Like him, we are called not merely to come to the feast, but to be inflamed with the love that is patient, kind, humble, and enduring (1 Cor 13:4–7). In this lies true sanctity — to prefer nothing to the love of Christ, and to love all things in Christ.
Conclusion
The lesson of this liturgy is twofold:
- Nothing avails without charity — not eloquence, knowledge, or even works of great sacrifice.
- Charity is the wedding garment — the indispensable clothing of the soul, without which even those within the Church risk being cast into darkness.
Let us therefore pray with St. Joseph of Cupertino:
“Lord, strip me of myself, and clothe me with Thy charity, that I may not only come to Thy banquet, but remain with Thee forever in the joy of Thy Kingdom.”