23rd SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
Romans 13: 8-10
Matthew 18: 15-20
on earth shall be
bound in heaven…”
The gospel of
Matthew is said to be “the gospel of the church.” More than the other
gospels do, Matthew portrays Jesus in many ways illustrating the essence of the
church (Mt 13). Scholars believed today’s gospel is a compilation of the
sayings of Jesus being put together by the author in order to enforce the
significant role of the church in the life of every believer. Evidently, we
notice at least three themes: one, on fraternal correction; two, on the
authority of the church; three on united prayer. All these themes find their
context in the life of the church. Let us try to follow the sequence of Matthew
and meditate according to the message of the evangelist.
1. One common
weakness we have is our inability to be frank and yet remain friendly. It could
be fear, shame, reluctance or whatever that deprives us the right guts and
attitudes to tell our neighbor that something is wrong with him. We often
prefer to remain silent and just let him/her discover it in some other time and
through some other ways. Good if we are just that honest in keeping silence.
But what is worse in many cases is that we find it much easier, better and even
gratifying to talk with other people about the silly things at his back. And
poor neighbor, he is made a laughing stock.
Here, then
enters the importance of fraternal correction. Both in private and public
affairs, our conduct as Christians must be motivated by charity. True, it is
most often difficult. But actually, what makes it difficult is not really fear,
shame, reluctance or whatever, but our inability to be charitable. In the guise
of pity and for reason of convenience, we often opt to be uncharitable. We want
to excuse ourselves from the situation and remain blind, deaf and mute to the
demands of charity. In situations like this, we are not only destroying our
erring neighbor. Actually, we are also making un ugly image of ourselves and of
the church we try to claim we belong to.
It seems to be
in this pastoral context that Matthew would insist the importance of fraternal
correction. He goes even as far as outlining the most practical steps and
measures a Christian must do: first, by doing it in a most private way so as to
avoid embarrassments; second, by doing it before two or three witnesses so as
to give a stronger moral force; third, by reporting it to the assembly so as
every member may realize his responsibility over an erring brother and thus win
him back to the fold. By outlining these details, Matthew throws a profound
message: in every step and effort one makes to win his brother back reveals the
Christian image of himself and of his church. It is by doing concrete acts of
charity like fraternal correction does the world that we are believers of
Christ.
2. “If he
refuses to listen even to the church, then treat him as you would a Gentile or
a tax collector.” In this world, everything that begins shall in due time
end. Every container however big when continually filled in shall in due time
be filled up. This also applies to the relationship between the church and the
hardened member. And in today’s gospel, Matthew points at this as the last
resort. He must be excluded from the assembly of the faithful.
A closer look at
it and a deeper thought of it gives us the wisdom of the gospel. The church is
and must always be a channel of charity. She shows and must show charity even
in the most difficult times and until the end. But at the same time, she has
the sacred responsibility to take care of charity. She also must see to it
that, being the greatest virtue, charity must be protected from any shame,
abuse and dishonor. That is why Christ himself is precise and clear: “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.” This is a clear authority
the lord entrusts upon his church. And he entrusts this authority since he
himself knows that only with such an authority can his church work. A church
with no authority is no church at all. And more, only with that authority,
which comes from him can the church fulfill her mission on earth. That is why
this authority must stay and remain in the church since its foundation upon
Peter until the end of time because the church exercises her mission till the
end of time.
Besides, charity
is (or at least ought to be) the life of the church. It makes (or at least
ought to make) what the church truly is. In the case of a hardened sinner, he
refuses charity the church consistently offers. And by refusing it, he de facto
disdains it. And by disdaining it, he actually disdains the church. The
gospel’s fraternal correction has one noble intention: to win an erring
member back. But in the case of a hardened sinner, the church can no longer
win him back. By refusing charity, he is actually making himself the loser and
in fact declares himself a loser. Of course, the church loses a member. But in
a deeper analysis, it is rather the sinner that actually loses his church.
Christ does not want to lose a single soul and neither the church. But in this
case, it is the sinner who breaks himself away from Christ and his church.
3. But if the
church succeeds in winning over an erring member and in exercising her
authority, it is because of the power of united prayer. “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 father. For where two or three are gathered
together in my name, there I am in the midst of them.”
“United we stand, divided we fall.” Goes the old familiar saying. The truth of this saying is always attested to by experience. From mere quest for recognition to the highest form of struggle for rights, a concerted effort is a thousand times better than a singular or a divided one. The victory at Edsa is an undying reminder of how a united people can topple a hardened dictator. And this is not an isolated experience, but an experience of a universal character. Even coconut sticks when put and tied together make a very useful broom. This is the Lord knows so well. And it is from this fundamental human experience that the Lord founds the reason and force of a united prayer. But more significantly, it is this united prayer that makes a church not only a paying community but also a community of prayer, not only a praying assembly but also an assembly of prayer.