In 1993, St. Teresa of Kolkata sent a letter to the members of her order. She wrote, “I worry some of you still have not really met Jesus — one to one — you and Jesus alone.

We may spend time in chapel — but have you seen with the eyes of your soul how He looks at you with love? Do you really know the “living Jesus — not from books but from being with Him in your heart? Have you heard the loving words He speaks to you? Ask for the grace, He is longing to give it. Until you can hear Jesus in the silence of your own heart, you will not be able to hear Him saying, ‘I thirst’ in the hearts of the poor.”

iStock/Ivan Murauyou

This letter is sobering because it could have been written to any one of us. The Gospel for the 28th Sunday of Ordinary Time brings us to the wedding banquet. The king has invited guests to his son’s wedding feast. Scripture scholar Edward Sri notes that the invitation would have been issued in two stages. The first was the initial invitation, and the second was the actual summons closer to the event. When the messengers go to summon the guests for the second call, some decline. This is the heart of the parable: When God calls, how do we respond to him? Are we letting Jesus draw close to us in all aspects of our lives? Mother Teresa’s letter was poignant, as it is possible for us to be living in the presence of the Lord as Catholics yet remain distant from him and even unchanged because we don’t want to get too close to him. Sometimes we are more comfortable relating to Jesus as an acquaintance rather than a true friend.

Hopefully hearing the Gospel this weekend will be a wake-up call for us. Encountering Jesus in the sacraments of reconciliation and the Eucharist are key. Committed, daily prayer will also be a key to growing in our relationship with Jesus. No matter our vocation — priest, religious, married person or single person living in the world, we all need significant prayer each day. Prayer requires two things of us. It requires time and a place. Each one of us will need to discern the appropriate length of time. The amount of time will vary according to one’s vocation. A cloistered Carmelite will be called to spend more time in prayer than a busy parent raising a family. Yet the 30 minutes a day of a busy parent praying will be just as efficacious as the few hours of the cloistered religious.

If you have not had the practice of meditative or contemplative prayer, start small, with even just 15-20 minutes each day. Dedicating daily time for prayer is the first requirement. The other thing required is a place. It is helpful to pray in church or one of our many perpetual eucharistic adoration chapels. Yet it is not always practical to get to church. Make sure to have a place at home that is conducive to prayer. A corner set up with a Bible, crucifix or other religious images can offer great help in trying to be recollected. Our relationship with the Lord is similar to our relationship with our relatives and beloved friends — it requires time and a dedicated place to be with that person. God has invited us to this great relationship. Let us respond with love and joy.

Father Creagan is the pastor of St. Joseph in West St. Paul and currently the only Catholic chaplain for the Minnesota Army National Guard.

Sunday, Oct. 11
Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time