First Reading
Ezekiel 33:7-9
Thus says the Lord: You, son of man, I have appointed watchman for the house of Israel; when you hear me say anything, you shall warn them for me. If I tell the wicked, “O wicked one, you shall surely die,” and you do not speak out to dissuade the wicked from his way, the wicked shall die for his guilt, but I will hold you responsible for his death. But if you warn the wicked, trying to turn him from his way, and he refuses to turn from his way, he shall die for his guilt, but you shall save yourself.
Second Reading
Romans 13:8-10
Brothers and sisters: Owe nothing to anyone, except to love one another; for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery; you shall not kill; you shall not steal; you shall not covet,” and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this saying, namely, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no evil to the neighbor; hence, love is the fulfillment of the law.
Gospel Cycle Cycle A
Matthew 18:15-20
Jesus said to his disciples: “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have won over your brother. If he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, so that ‘every fact may be established on the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ If he refuses to listen to them, tell the church. If he refuses to listen even to the church, then treat him as you would a Gentile or a tax collector. Amen, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. 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 together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.”
How do we correct one another? How do we encourage one another to do what is right? These are not easy themes in families or in religious communities. There is so much presumption today that we must trust one another and not judge one another and thus we should leave each other in peace. We also hear statements such as not to speak about religion or politics with other people, because the result will always be a conflict.
This is the wisdom of the world. Jesus Christ gives us a different wisdom as do the Jewish Scriptures, our Old Testament. This teaching of the Scriptures is clear: if we see our brother or sister in Christ doing something that is not right, and we do not try to tell them what is right, then we are responsible. This is a really difficult teaching.
The Prophet Ezekiel in the first reading today speaks the Word of God to us: If you did not speak out to dissuade the wicked from his way, you are responsible.” How far do we have to go? There is no indication, but surely this is not a declaration of war! We also know that in order to speak, we must find a way that might possibly be heard! It is a strong challenge to speak the truth in ways that might be heard.
The second reading, from the Letter to the Romans, tells us that our only duty is to love. When we love another, then we must speak the truth. When we love another, then we must speak out if that loved one is doing something that harms himself or others. If we love another, we learn how to listen, to admonish and how to accept admonishment.
The Gospel today, from Saint Matthew, repeats the admonition of the Prophet Ezekiel. It is also clear that if the other person will not listen to us, we should continue to speak the truth and ask others to be part of this witness to the truth. Finally, however, if there is no agreement, we should separate the one who will not listen.
This is clearly a course on how to negotiate but also a course on how to separate in the end if there can be no agreement. Today, of course, both sides will claim to have the truth. This is why it is important in our Catholic Church that we acknowledge an authority structure. Not everyone who claims to be Catholic is Catholic in this sense. It should always sadden us when there is division. It should always sadden us when believers will not accept the decisions of the Church. There are always ways to disagree and to continue to challenge what is taught in order to verify if it is really truth.
We can return to the second reading and be very clear: it is all about love.