6th September 2026


Gospel: Matthew 18, 15 – 20
Jesus said to his disciples: If your brother does something wrong, go
and have it out with him alone, between your two selves. If he listens
to you, you have won back your brother. If he does not listen, take
one or two others along with you: the evidence of two or three
witnesses is required to sustain any charge. But if he refuses to
listen to these, report it to the community, treat him like a pagan or
a tax collector. I tell you solemnly, whatever you bind on earth shall
be considered bound in heaven; whatever you loose on earth shall be
considered loosed in heaven. I tell you solemnly once again, if two of
you on earth agree to ask anything at all, it will be granted to you
by my Father in heaven
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Homily.

Today my dear sisters and brothers, for this homily I am using three
reading, the first from last week, and the second and third from this
week. These three readings are of vital importance for understanding
the way in which God set about curing the wound with which Satan set
about seeking to destroy what God had created, and which he obviously
hated. God formed a people which was supposed to live in ways which
would restore harmony to a broken world. Unfortunately, this people
too was not faithful. To remind them of their vocation God raised up
prophets to remind them of what God had asked of them. Among those
prophets was a young man, Jeremiah, who faced with the opposition of
the people, and a force within him, forcing him to speak, cries out in
anguish, “You have seduced me Lord and I let myself be seduced.” These
words of the prophet Jeremiah, given to us in the first reading last
Sunday, describe the feelings of many persons whose commitment to a
way of doing things molests many others who think differently and do
not want their way of doing things to be disturbed. For the prophet
Jeremiah the problem was that the Israelites had departed from the
ways laid out for them by God. This refusal to remember, this refusal
to live as God had demanded became bad habits which would lead the
people to destruction, to punishment for their lack of faith. Jeremiah
could not keep quiet. He had to warn the people of the consequences of
their infidelity, but no one wanted to hear. For Jeremiah, this was
painful, but he persisted, despite the rejection by the people. This
rejection which he felt was very painful as any rejection is.
My dear brothers and sisters, the first reading last Sunday, places
two questions before us. The first is this. Have I allowed myself to
be seduced by God and the message which has been given to us. Do I
know the message? The message of course is very simple. It is, “I
created you for harmony, but selfishness destroyed it. You are still
created for harmony, and you can rebuild it, if you follow what I ask
of you.” It is for this that we were given the ten commandments. If
you look carefully, you will see that seven of the ten commandments
are about maintaining peaceful and I would add friendly relationships.
These ten commandments are written in the hearts of every single
person. This is the message. Have I allowed myself to be seduced by
the message and by the God who gave us these commandments?  This is
perhaps the most important question that very human being must ask her
or himself. The question for everyone is, ‘Have I asked myself this
question.?
         The second reading form Paul’s letter to the Romans, who were
primarily pagans, show us Paul educating the Romans as to the way of
life that disciples of Jesus Christ are called to live. Again, the
word harmony is not mentioned but Paul uses the expression, “the debt
of mutual love”. This debt of mutual love, Paul then teaches, is
linked to the commandments, which if we follow them create the mutual
love which brings peace to the entire community. Paul in his letter to
the Corinthians educates them, and I dare say reminds us of the
qualities of true love. Love is always patient, never jealous, not
boastful or conceited, never rude, never seeks its own advantage. This
my dear sisters and brothers is the foretaste of heaven. The question
for each one of us is very simple, Do I, does my family, does my
parish, does my community live these qualities? Do we understand that
these are the qualities of life which will determine our future in
eternity.
The Gospel reading for this Sunday, shows Jesus continuing the
education of his disciples. Walking with him does not tell them that
they will be in his kingdom. They, under the inspiration of the Holy
Spirit will have to build a community with certain rules which must be
followed. The first rule is the way in which all members of the
community will live together forming a community characterized by
loving relationships. As in the past weeks, the theme of harmony,
without being openly mentioned, is nevertheless obvious. Jesus is very
aware that when there are two or more people together there will be
differences which may or may not become heated. The problem becomes
the ways in which these differences may be solved to maintain the
harmony of the community. The first quality to be noticed is that love
must be protected.  One begins therefore with a respectful dialogue
which includes, active listening and empathy. Love demands that we
seek to understand each other’s feelings, intentions and point of
view. If that works, then you have won back your brother.”

   The problem comes into sharper focus when there is no agreement and
one of the two does not want reconciliation. If he/she does not
listen, take one or two others along with you: the evidence of two or
three witnesses is required to sustain any charge. But if he/she
refuses to listen to these,
Then we are told to treat the person who does not want reconciliation
as a pagan or tax collector, two of the class of individuals who have
no worth or voice in the community.  Anger caused by harsh words or
disparaging remarks, or unfair judgment can very often be the
problem. So, one is advised to seek outside help. In today’s world,
there are many professionals who deal with problems between spouses,
children and their parents, employees and management. In the world of
today help is always available if we desire. Building God’s kingdom of
Justice, Peace and Love at times needs professional help. Professional
knowledge is often some help in trying to solve issues which we may
consider spiritual matters.
The problem my sisters and brothers, is that Jesus in his human
condition is no longer with us. Yes, the Holy Spirit has been sent and
all of us baptized and confirmed have received the Holy Spirit but for
many of us, a human person whom we can see, and touch, is more
acceptable than a Spirit. The task then, that task given to Jeremiah
is now given to us. We now must proclaim the Gospel of Peace and
harmony. The recreation of Eden is now the task of all those who
consider themselves disciples of Jesus. Our proclamation must be
accompanied by our actions. And so, the question asked at the
beginning of this homily must be repeated. Have I allowed myself to be
seduced by God.
The task of creating harmony is urgent in this age. The war between
Russia and Ukraine, the war between the USA and Iran all cry out to be
stopped. The ICE atrocities in the USA, the unlawful expulsion of
documented immigrants, the hundreds in refugee camps in various parts
of the world, all cry out for Justice, but who hears them except God
who will ask us one day, What did you do for me when I was a refugee?
The Gospel reading also addresses the problems of church discipline,
and the question of excommunication. To treat someone as a pagan or
tax collector is to remove them from the possibility of grace through
the spiritual life of the church.
In the Gospel passage given to us for our reflection today, Jesus
tells his disciples “I tell you solemnly, whatever you bind on earth
shall be considered bound in heaven; whatever you loose on earth shall
be considered loosed in heaven. Jesus gives to the Church the power to
administer the sacraments and to deny the sacraments to those who the
church judges to be in a state of extremely grave sin or have
renounced their relationship to the Church. Excommunication is not
something that is done lightly and is considered a medicinal remedy so
that people or institutions may truly repent of their sins. With
excommunication comes the responsibility of all Catholics to pray for
the conversion of those who have been excommunicated so that they come
to repentance and be admitted to the sacraments again. Excommunication
is indeed a sign that one does not wish to live in harmony with the
church. To willfully break and diminish the harmony of the church is
to accept consciously or unconsciously what Satan told Adam and Eve
and thus destroy the harmony which God wills for the world.

Prayer

All powerful and ever-loving God, You never stop loving us. You
continue to desire for us a world of total harmony, a world of
Justice. Of Peace and of Love
Help us, your people, to understand that true happiness depends on
love. Help us to understand that the false values of wealth, of
prestige, of power cannot give us the happiness that we all desire.
Help us to see the link between human dignity joyful service and the
imitation of Christ, so that we begin to live here on earth what will
be multiplied a hundredfold in heaven where there is no more pain or
sorrow. We as this through the intercession of Mary, our mother and
Jesus your son. Amen.