Browsing by Author "Sadadiven, Chettiyar"

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    Jesus: Image Master A Study of the Wedding Banquet (Matthew 22: 1-10)
    (Tangaza University College, 2002-02) Sadadiven, Chettiyar
    Looking critically at the Gospel accounts, one can say that Jesus was a public advertiser. Ile had an important product to promote. This commodity is not of physical material which belongs entirely to the present world. It is the proclamation of the awaited Kingdom of God that Jesus himself inaugurated in his public ministry. In order to publicise the advent of the Kingdom, Jesus invested much energy and used various ways of communicating his message. Jesus powerfully used many common images to catch the attention of his audience. In so doing, he inspired his listeners to conversion who in turn, accepted the message of salvation. This thesis demonstrates how Jesus, as an Image Master, spoke relevantly to his contemporaries. Through the Church, he has continued to address the same powerful message of the Kingdom to us. By analysing Matthew's parable, "The Wedding Banquet" (Matt 22: 1-10), we can discover how Jesus ingeniously reached out to his audience. He used pictorial language to narrate the stories of daily life. The various practical images he used imprinted in the mind of his audience the basic message that his audience would not forget. For a better understanding of this research paper, we have divided it into four chapters. The opening chapter gives an overview of the nature, importance and meaning of the parables. With particular reference to Matthew's Gospel, this section also focuses on Jesus' motivations in using the parable stories to address his flock. The second chapter enters into the exegesis of the parable of the "Wedding Banquet". It aims at scrutinizing some basic elements that may promote the understanding of the overall meaning and movements of this parable. The third chapter is the continuation of the previous one. It gives a detailed exegesis of the parable of the "Wedding Banquet". However, the study of the story is considered as though it was written for the video production. As a matter of clarity, the entire parable is presented in seven sequences. Each sequence constitutes a completed section that ought to be easily dramatised. At the close of this part, some theological insight is explained in connection with Matthew's intention. In the concluding chapter, the centre of attention is mainly on how we may apply what is presented in the last two chapters. As such, three propositions are given, namely, preaching, drama and video production. While preaching remains an essential element in the proclamation of the Word of God, the emphasis here is laid on the way we use the words. In connection to the development of the detailed exegesis of the "Wedding Banquet", it seems that, in our modern world, there is an urgent need of preaching through pictorial language. At the same time, there is need to actualise the message in the life of the people. However, both drama and video production, as means of Evangelisation, are meant to promote artistic teachings. Thus, we assert that the three possibilities, namely preaching, drama and video productions, are relevant and need to be supported.