Exodus 19:1-2, 9-11, 16-20 / Matthew 13:10-17
Preparation for an occasion is certainly necessary. More so if we expect to get something worthwhile out of it, then a more detailed preparation will be required.
After all what you sow is what you will reap, and thin sowing means thin reaping. And hence the greater the occasion, the more will be the preparation.
In the 1st reading, God told Moses that He is coming to His people, and Moses was told what were the necessary preparations.
The people were to wash their clothing and hold themselves in readiness for the third day, because God will descend on the mountain of Sinai in the sight of the people.
And it was indeed a dramatic and spectacular occasion. On the third day, there were peals of thunder and lightning flashes, a dense cloud appeared, and a loud trumpet blast and inside the camp all the people trembled.
There was smoke and fire and the mountain shook violently as God came to His people. Such was how the people experienced God. But it was an experience that required preparation on the part of the people.
But in the gospel, when Jesus spoke to the people, they don't seem to understand Him as He spoke in parables.
Jesus came to His people not so much in drama and spectacle but in mystery, and those who are prepared to look beyond His humanity will be able to see the mystery of His divinity.
We have come to the Mass in which a great mystery is about to happen. God not only speaks to us, He even comes into communion with us.
May we always be well prepared as we come to Mass so that we will experience deeply the mystery of God.