First Reading

Reading from the prophecy of Ezekiel

Ezekiel 36, 23-28

Thus says the Lord: “I will show the holiness of my great name, profaned among the nations, profaned by you in their midst, and they will know that I am the Lord, when through you I show them my holiness.

I will take you out from among the nations, gather you from all the countries and bring you to your own land. I will sprinkle clean water upon you to cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols.

I will give you a new heart and place a new spirit within you, taking from your bodies your stony hearts and giving you natural hearts. I will put my spirit within you and make you live by my statutes, careful to observe my decrees. You shall live in the land I gave your fathers; you shall be my people, and I will be your God.”

Gospel

Reading from the holy Gospel according to Saint Matthew

Matthew 22, 1-14

At that time, Jesus again spoke to the chief priests and the elders of the people in parables, saying:

“The Kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son. He dispatched his servants to summon the invited guests to the feast, but they refused to come.

A second time he sent other servants, saying: ‘Tell those who have been invited: “Behold, I have prepared my banquet, my calves and fattened cattle are killed, and everything is ready; come to the feast.”’ Some ignored the invitation and went away, one to his farm, another to his business. The rest laid hold of his servants, mistreated them, and killed them.

The king was enraged and sent his troops, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city.

Then he said to his servants: ‘The feast is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy to come. Go out, therefore, into the main roads and invite to the feast whomever you find.’ The servants went out into the streets and gathered all they found, bad and good alike, and the hall was filled with guests.

But when the king came in to meet the guests, he saw a man there not dressed in a wedding garment. The king said to him, ‘My friend, how is it that you came in here without a wedding garment?’ But he was reduced to silence. Then the king said to his attendants, ‘Bind his hands and feet, and cast him into the darkness outside, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.’ Many are invited, but few are chosen.”