Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time – 18th August 2024
What wonderful readings we have today! In the Book of Proverbs we are invited to use our imagination and think of the gift of Wisdom as a person preparing a banquet for us. It is as though God Himself is inviting us to learn more about how to live well in this life. In the tradition of the Hebrew Scriptures, wisdom is a gift which enables people to live well. It is not just a simple intellectual understanding, but a deep comprehension of all aspects of a situation that allows the person to make choices that enable life to flourish.
That is what we might love to have! So often our choices are narrow and only seem good in the moment. Wisdom helps us make choices that enhance our living for the rest of our lives.
It is this image of Wisdom, inviting us to a banquet, which becomes the image of Jesus inviting us to another banquet where we shall eat His flesh and drink His blood and then live for ever. The use of the Greek words in this text is so graphic that it sounds like cannibalism. Jesus wants us to understand (wisdom!) clearly that we must partake of Him entirely: body, blood, soul and divinity.