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.
PSALM 95 Oh come, let us sing to the Lord; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation! Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise! For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods. In his hand are the depths of the earth; the heights of the mountains are his also. The sea is his, for he made it, and his hands formed the dry land.
Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker! For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah, as on the day at Massah in the wilderness, when your fathers put me to the test and put me to the proof, though they had seen my work. For forty years I loathed that generation and said, “They are a people who go astray in their heart, and they have not known my ways.” Therefore I swore in my wrath, “They shall not enter my rest.”
Second reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Romans ROM 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 OF THE DAY From the Gospel according to Matthew MT 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.”
THE WORDS OF THE POPES The approach is one of sensitivity, prudence, humility, attention towards the one who committed a fault, to avoid wounding or killing the brother with words. Because, you know, words too can kill! When I speak, when I make an unfair criticism, when I “flay” a brother with my tongue, this is killing another person’s reputation! Words kill too. Let us pay attention to this. At the same time, the discretion of speaking to him alone is to avoid needlessly humiliating the sinner. It is discussed between the two, no one is aware of it and then it’s over. It’s terrible to see an insult or taunt issue from the mouth of a Christian. It is ugly. Do you understand? Do not insult! To insult is not Christian. Understood? To insult is not Christian. ( FRANCIS Angelus, 7 September 2014)
If my brother commits a sin against me I must treat him charitably and first of all, speak to him privately, pointing out that what he has said or done is wrong. This approach is known as “fraternal correction”: it is not a reaction to the offence suffered but is motivated by love for one's brethren. (…) And what if my brother does not listen to me? In today’s Gospel Jesus points to a gradual approach: first, speak to him again with two or three others, the better to help him realize what he has done; if, in spite of this, he still refuses to listen, it is necessary to tell the community; and if he refuses to listen even to the community, he must be made to perceive that he has cut himself off (…). Each person, aware of his own limitations and shortcomings, is called to accept fraternal correction and to help others with this specific service. Another fruit of love in the community is unanimous prayer. Jesus said: (…) where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them” (Mt 18:19-20). Personal prayer is of course important, indeed indispensable, but the Lord guarantees his presence to the community — even if it is very small — which is united and in agreement, because this reflects the very reality of the Triune God, perfect communion of love. (…) We should practise both fraternal correction — which demands deep humility and simplicity of heart — and prayer so that it may rise to God from a community truly united in Christ. (Pope Benedict XVI, Angelus, 4 September 2011)
FAUSTI - "You will have gained your brother," says Jesus to the one who was able to lead a sinner back to recognize his own error. In fact, he has restored fraternity: he is no longer alone and where two brothers are together, the Father is pleased and the Son is with them. The truth must be done in charity (Eph 4:15), but charity is never separated from truth. The primacy is always of love; but this is manifested both in seeking the lost and in enlightening him in disorientation; and in the end forgive him, however. What is said about fraternal correction seems at contrast with not judging, with the search for reconciliation, with the parable of the darnel (13,24). In reality, fraternal correction is a sign of great love: it is possible in a community where everyone is welcomed within his own limits, is not judged if he is wrong, is acquitted if he is guilty, is sought if he is lost, is forgiven if he sins. A person, only if accepted and to the extent that he is accepted, is willing to accept any remarks without experiencing them as aggression. Fraternal correction is indispensable for our being together to be for the best and not for the worst. It is a concrete way to look for those who are lost, so that they do not get lost: it is the highest expression of mercy. Fraternal correction is the exact opposite of scandal. If this neglects the brother and leads him to evil, the correction takes care of him and distances him from evil. If the scandal loses, the correction gains the brother. Sin, in fact, breaks the fraternity. If you forgive, you restore it only halfway: you are brother but the other one is not yet, until he recognizes the error and accepts forgiveness. Correction, when it succeeds, restores fraternity on both sides. We must try all the ways to bring the lost back home. First face to face, then with the mediation of others, and, if necessary, of the community itself. Whoever does not want to change his mind will be considered a pagan and a sinner. It is not judgment or condemnation, but medicine, so that the lost person may recognize his evil and may repent. Treating one as a pagan and publican does not mean excluding him from one' s love: Jesus is a friend of publicans and sinners, He came to save what is lost and will send His disciples to all pagans. The community has the same power as Peter, who is the same as his Lord. To make present on earth the judgment of the Father who is in heaven, who does not want to lose any of His little ones. To have this spirit, fraternal prayer is necessary, addressed to the Father who guarantees us the presence of the Son. Jesus, as the Good Shepherd, is also the Son. He leads the brothers and sisters to the mercy of the Father by welcoming sinners and convincing of sin those who consider themselves righteous. The Church has received the same power as Jesus, and must use it in the same way. The common prayer, which guarantees to her the presence of the Son, obtains from the Father the strength to live the gift of helping one another and to be together for the best. A Christian community is spiritually mature to the extent that it is able to exercise fraternal correction. It is useful to keep in mind that it is proposed at the center of the discourse on community, after no less than eighteen chapters of instruction. We are tempted to place it at the beginning of the first chapter!
First reading from the Book of Ezekiel
RispondiEliminaEZ 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.
PSALM 95
Oh come, let us sing to the Lord;
let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!
Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;
let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!
For the Lord is a great God,
and a great King above all gods.
In his hand are the depths of the earth;
the heights of the mountains are his also.
The sea is his, for he made it,
and his hands formed the dry land.
Oh come, let us worship and bow down;
let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker!
For he is our God,
and we are the people of his pasture,
and the sheep of his hand.
Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah,
as on the day at Massah in the wilderness,
when your fathers put me to the test
and put me to the proof, though they had seen my work.
For forty years I loathed that generation
and said, “They are a people who go astray in their heart,
and they have not known my ways.”
Therefore I swore in my wrath,
“They shall not enter my rest.”
Second reading from the Letter of
Saint Paul to the Romans
ROM 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 OF THE DAY
From the Gospel according to Matthew
MT 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.”
THE WORDS OF THE POPES
EliminaThe approach is one of sensitivity, prudence, humility, attention towards the one who committed a fault, to avoid wounding or killing the brother with words. Because, you know, words too can kill! When I speak, when I make an unfair criticism, when I “flay” a brother with my tongue, this is killing another person’s reputation! Words kill too. Let us pay attention to this. At the same time, the discretion of speaking to him alone is to avoid needlessly humiliating the sinner. It is discussed between the two, no one is aware of it and then it’s over. It’s terrible to see an insult or taunt issue from the mouth of a Christian. It is ugly. Do you understand? Do not insult! To insult is not Christian. Understood? To insult is not Christian.
( FRANCIS Angelus, 7 September 2014)
If my brother commits a sin against me I must treat him charitably and first of all, speak to him privately, pointing out that what he has said or done is wrong. This approach is known as “fraternal correction”: it is not a reaction to the offence suffered but is motivated by love for one's brethren. (…) And what if my brother does not listen to me? In today’s Gospel Jesus points to a gradual approach: first, speak to him again with two or three others, the better to help him realize what he has done; if, in spite of this, he still refuses to listen, it is necessary to tell the community; and if he refuses to listen even to the community, he must be made to perceive that he has cut himself off (…). Each person, aware of his own limitations and shortcomings, is called to accept fraternal correction and to help others with this specific service. Another fruit of love in the community is unanimous prayer. Jesus said: (…) where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them” (Mt 18:19-20). Personal prayer is of course important, indeed indispensable, but the Lord guarantees his presence to the community — even if it is very small — which is united and in agreement, because this reflects the very reality of the Triune God, perfect communion of love. (…) We should practise both fraternal correction — which demands deep humility and simplicity of heart — and prayer so that it may rise to God from a community truly united in Christ.
Elimina(Pope Benedict XVI, Angelus, 4 September 2011)
FAUSTI - "You will have gained your brother," says Jesus to the one who was able to lead a sinner back to recognize his own error. In fact, he has restored fraternity: he is no longer alone and where two brothers are together, the Father is pleased and the Son is with them.
RispondiEliminaThe truth must be done in charity (Eph 4:15), but charity is never separated from truth.
The primacy is always of love; but this is manifested both in seeking the lost and in enlightening him in disorientation; and in the end forgive him, however.
What is said about fraternal correction seems at contrast with not judging, with the search for reconciliation, with the parable of the darnel (13,24).
In reality, fraternal correction is a sign of great love: it is possible in a community where everyone is welcomed within his own limits, is not judged if he is wrong, is acquitted if he is guilty, is sought if he is lost, is forgiven if he sins.
A person, only if accepted and to the extent that he is accepted, is willing to accept any remarks without experiencing them as aggression.
Fraternal correction is indispensable for our being together to be for the best and not for the worst. It is a concrete way to look for those who are lost, so that they do not get lost: it is the highest expression of mercy.
Fraternal correction is the exact opposite of scandal. If this neglects the brother and leads him to evil, the correction takes care of him and distances him from evil.
If the scandal loses, the correction gains the brother.
Sin, in fact, breaks the fraternity. If you forgive, you restore it only halfway: you are brother but the other one is not yet, until he recognizes the error and accepts forgiveness.
Correction, when it succeeds, restores fraternity on both sides.
We must try all the ways to bring the lost back home. First face to face, then with the mediation of others, and, if necessary, of the community itself.
Whoever does not want to change his mind will be considered a pagan and a sinner.
It is not judgment or condemnation, but medicine, so that the lost person may recognize his evil and may repent. Treating one as a pagan and publican does not mean excluding him from one' s love: Jesus is a friend of publicans and sinners, He came to save what is lost and will send His disciples to all pagans.
The community has the same power as Peter, who is the same as his Lord.
To make present on earth the judgment of the Father who is in heaven, who does not want to lose any of His little ones.
To have this spirit, fraternal prayer is necessary, addressed to the Father who guarantees us the presence of the Son.
Jesus, as the Good Shepherd, is also the Son.
He leads the brothers and sisters to the mercy of the Father by welcoming sinners and convincing of sin those who consider themselves righteous.
The Church has received the same power as Jesus, and must use it in the same way.
The common prayer, which guarantees to her the presence of the Son, obtains from the Father the strength to live the gift of helping one another and to be together for the best.
A Christian community is spiritually mature to the extent that it is able to exercise fraternal correction. It is useful to keep in mind that it is proposed at the center of the discourse on community, after no less than eighteen chapters of instruction.
We are tempted to place it at the beginning of the first chapter!