Twenty Third Sunday in Ordinary Time

Catechism Links[1]

CCC 2055: The Decalogue summed up in one command to love
CCC 1443-1445: Reconciliation with the Church
CCC 2842-2845: “As we forgive those who trespass against us”

“Christ” by El Greco 1590-95

Readings for the Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time[2]

Readings from the Jerusalem Bible[3]

Readings and Commentary:[4]

Reading 1: 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.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Commentary on Ez 33:7-9

This selection is part of the Prophet’s call to holiness. Here the oracle of Ezekiel recalls God’s instructions. The prophet is to correct those who are identified to him as behaving in ways that will result in their death. Failure to warn them prophetically would constitute a rejection of God’s call, and the punishment meted out for the sinner would also be applied to the prophet who failed (“…but I will hold you responsible for his death”). In a covenant-like formula God also says if the warning is unheeded no punishment shall fall to Ezekiel.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 95:1-2, 6-7, 8-9

R. (8) If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.

Come, let us sing joyfully to the Lord;

let us acclaim the rock of our salvation.

Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;

let us joyfully sing psalms to him.

R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.

Come, let us bow down in worship;

let us kneel before the Lord who made us.

For he is our God,

and we are the people he shepherds, the flock he guides.

R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.

Oh, that today you would hear his voice:

“Harden not your hearts as at Meribah,

as in the day of Massah in the desert,

Where your fathers tempted me;

they tested me though they had seen my works.”

R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Commentary on Ps 95:1-2, 6-7, 8-9

This part of Psalm 95, commonly used as the invitatory psalm for the Liturgy of the Hours, is a song of thanksgiving. In these strophes the incident at Meribah is remembered (Exodus 17:3-7), and God’s undeserved mercy proclaimed. The community is rejoicing that the Lord is God and that he has brought us salvation in spite of our forebears' obstinacy. We are encouraged to listen to the Lord, even if what we are asked to do is difficult.

CCC: Ps 95:1-6 2628; Ps 95:7-8 2659; Ps 95:7 1165; Ps 95:9 2119

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Reading II: 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.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Commentary on Rom 13:8-10

St. Paul, in this reading from his Letter to the Romans, restates the second half of the great commandment. The apostle says that following Christ’s commandment to love one another automatically fulfills any other commandment of the law governing Christian interaction. St. Paul essentially paraphrases Jesus' own teaching from St. Matthew’s Gospel as the Lord debated the Sadducees and Pharisees in Matthew 22:34ff.

CCC: Rom 12-15 1454, 1971; Rom 13:8-10 1824, 2196; Rom 13:8 2845; Rom 13:9-10 2055

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Gospel: 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.”

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Commentary on Mt 18:15-20

St. Matthew relates the Lord's instructions to his disciples (and to the Christian Community at large). “Passing from the duty of Christian disciples toward those who have strayed from their number, the discourse now turns to how they are to deal with one who sins and yet remains within the community. First there is to be private correction; if this is unsuccessful, further correction before two or three witnesses; if this fails, the matter is to be brought before the assembled community (the church), and if the sinner refuses to attend to the correction of the church, he is to be expelled. The church's judgment will be ratified in heaven, i.e., by God. The section ends with a saying about the favorable response of God to prayer, even to that of a very small number, for Jesus is in the midst of any gathering of his disciples, however small.”[5]

CCC: Mt 18:16 2472; Mt 18:18 553, 1444; Mt 18:20 1088, 1373

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Homily:

There are some among our faith community who look to the Mass each day or week for a “sound bite,” a short phrase or sentence that they can use that sums up the message they take away from their time gathered for the Eucharistic Celebration.  If any of you are looking for something to take away today, Sacred Scripture provides a few great possibilities.

One might be from the first reading from Ezekiel.  The prophet is told by God that he is called to warn the wicked that their sins will bring them death.  We heard Jeremiah cry out in a similar way. He wished he had never been born because he was called to correct the wicked and tell them of the doom that awaited them if they did not repent (“I did not sit celebrating in the circle of merrymakers; Under the weight of your hand I sat alone because you filled me with indignation” Jeremiah 15:17).  In a matter-of-fact way, Ezekiel understands the Lord is telling him that he is compelled to correct those on the wrong path.  If he does not, if he shirks his duty to correct the sinful, he will be responsible for the fate they suffer.

The sound bite we might take from Ezekiel could be: “You, child of God, have been appointed as a guardian of your brothers and sisters.”

We can also look at the second reading, St. Paul’s letter to the Romans.  That one is almost too easy since the apostle is paraphrasing Jesus’ own words when he relates the Great Commandment.  St. Paul gives the second half of that wonderful command which fits nicely with Ezekiel’s call.  Put simply, “Love your neighbor as yourself” can be paraphrased as “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

Since Ezekiel started talking about correcting those who are headed down wrong paths, we can consider how we would want to be corrected ourselves if we were the ones in error.  Would we want someone to shout our sins from the roof-tops?  Would we want to be chastised in front of our friends, co-workers, or family?  Wouldn’t we rather be lovingly taken aside and chided privately.  Wouldn’t we rather be given the opportunity to correct our own behavior without public humiliation?  That is how “Love your neighbor as yourself” must be applied as “guardian of your brothers and sisters.’

Not surprisingly, that is also what Jesus says to his disciples in the reading from St. Matthew’s Gospel.  Because his disciples are leaders of those who follow the Lord, and because of the depth of his love for all people everywhere, he gives his friends more authoritative instructions on how to correct those who are in danger of giving up peace in this life and eternal life with him in the next.

Although it may seem odd to us, it is clear that Jesus knows that not everyone will choose a path that leads to him.  Notice how he makes provision for people who, even after being confronted by the whole community of faith, refuse to correct their behavior.  He tells the disciples to “…treat him as you would a Gentile or a tax collector.”  In Jesus’ time a Gentile was excluded or excommunicated from the community.  They were to be told they were not welcome in the community of believers until such time as they conformed to the commandments.

The Holy Church takes its authority to do the same to those who refuse to follow those same commandments, passed down from St. Peter and his successors.  But when we bring the teaching of Ezekiel and St. Paul together with what the Lord tells the disciples in the Gospel, our own responsibility becomes very clear. 

Let’s set a scenario to demonstrate.  Let’s say a very close friend, perhaps our best friend, decides to start taking illegal drugs. What does our faith require us to do?  First, we know from Ezekiel’s words that we are our friend’s guardian, whether we want to be or not.  It is clear that the answer to Cain’s question “Am I my brother’s keeper?” (Genesis 4:9) when God asked him about Abel in the Book of Genesis is – Yes we are.  So sitting by and doing nothing is not an option for us.

But how do we try to correct our friend?  Do we call the police and have him arrested? No – that is not the first step Jesus commanded.  We should approach our friend directly and privately (because that is how we would hope another would treat us if fortunes were reversed).  We should lovingly point out his error and try to correct him.  We should explain that he or she is destroying the temple of their body which God so lovingly gave them.

If our friend refused to listen, then we get other friends and perhaps family member to confront them a second time, again – out of love, without condescension, without anger, allowing our friend their human dignity.  If that still does not work, perhaps it is best to forgo our friendship with that person or perhaps encourage the friend's family to get that person the help they need.

So, for those who look for those sound bites to take away, today we have a rich trove of them.  It could be “I am my brother’s keeper” or “You, child of God, have been appointed as a guardian of your brothers and sisters.”  There is the quote from St. Paul - “Love your neighbor as yourself.”  But perhaps most important is the idea that loving one another as Christ teaches is not simply feeling affection, it is doing the hard things that true Christians must do for one another, out of love.

Pax

---

[1] Catechism links are taken from the Homiletic Directory, Published by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, 29 June 2014

[2] The picture used is “Christ” by El Greco 1590-95

[3] S.S. Commemoratio

[4] The readings are taken from the New American Bible with the exception of the Psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for English in Liturgy (ICEL). This re-publication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.

[5] See NAB Footnote on Matthew 18:15-20