Cycle A - Year II:  

6 September 2020: Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time

(Liturgical Color: Green)

Readings:

First Reading:        Ezekiel 33:7-9

Second Reading:   Romans 13:8-10

Gospel:  Please Read  Matthew 18:15-20

"Am I my brother's keeper?"

Sibling rivalry does happen, sometimes.  And when parents try to intervene between feuding siblings they often hear the lame excuse "Am I my brother's keeper?"  It means refusing to be accountable for the wrongdoing of one's brother or sister.

"Am I my brother's keeper?" is a question that goes back to the very beginning of God's plan of salvation and continues to haunt us in a multitude of ways to this very day.

Recall that Cain and Abel were the first descendants of Adam and Eve.  The story goes that out of envy Cain killed his brother Abel. Later when the Lord asked Cain, "Where is your brother Abel?", Cain answered, "I do not know. Am I my brother's keeper?" (Gn 4:9)

In this Sunday's Gospel our Lord shocks us with a new teaching that we must be our brother's keeper.  It means we must care and help our erring brothers and sisters.

In our day-to-day situations, our society including those who call themselves Christians try to avoid confrontation for fear of offending other persons, or of being accused as judgmental. So then, we prefer to just keep silent even when evil things or wrongdoings happen in our presence.  We sometimes forget that all that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing at all. The worst thing is when people lose their sense of sin that they are unable to recognize evil. In other instances, our society is simply indifferent to sin itself.  And so our Lord calls us to confront sin with the hope of restoring sinners to spiritual health and to membership in the holy community.

In the Gospel reading, our Lord reminds us also that one of the most important disciplines that Catholics, and all Christians for that matter, should really take to heart is fraternal correction.  In our generation when people lack courage to speak out against wrongdoings, the authentic practice of fraternal correction is more urgent than ever.

Our Lord teaches that we owe each other, as a matter of justice, the charity of correcting each other out of love for God and the salvation of the soul of the person who has committed a wrongdoing or exhibited a lack of good judgment.  For Jesus isn't interested who is right or who is wrong.  He only cares about getting a broken relationship fixed.  

The process of reconciliation is helped by prayer.  When we are involved in conflict, we need to seek direction in prayer.

But because salvation has a social dimension, we cannot be saved by just praying to God yet keeping our doors closed to the need of others.  Rather, we will be saved in communion with others, as a People of God.  

Let us pay attention to the parting words of our Lord Jesus Christ in this Sunday's Gospel:"Again, amen, I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything for which they are to pray, it shall be granted to them by my heavenly Father. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them." (Mt 18:19-20)

Thus, the process of reconciliation is made easier by the knowledge that God is with us if we come together in His name during the process. God is with us whenever two or three are gathered together in His name.

In the Eucharist at Mass, let us pray that the Lord fill our hearts with patience and love for our erring brothers and sisters.  May the Lord grant us the moral courage to be involved, to act together as a community, to lead others to conversion and become truly a People of God in journey to the Father's house.  So forgive us, Father, as we also try to forgive each other. Amen.

A blessed Sunday to us all. And thank you for a moment with God.

Ad Jesum per Mariam!