Reading from the Book of Ezekiel Ez 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.
The Word of the Lord
Thanks be to God.
Responsorial Psalm PS 95:1-2, 6-7, 8-9
R. 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.
Thus will I bless you while I live;
lifting up my hands, I will call upon your name.
As with the riches of a banquet shall my soul be satisfied,
and with exultant lips my mouth shall praise you.
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.
Second Reading
Reading from St. Paul’s letter 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.
The Word of the Lord
Thanks be to God.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. 2 COR 5:19
God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ
and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.
R. Alleluia, alleluia
Gospel
P: The Lord be with you.
P: A reading from the holy 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 Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
HOMILY:
One of the buzzwords used today is the term “social responsibility” which is relatively new and started to take shape in 1953. Enterprises today have the concept of Corporate Social Responsibility referring to the impact their enterprise makes on society.
However, when we reflect on the Gospel today, Jesus came up with this concept 2000 years ago, reflecting what God intended since creation. We remember what Cain said about Abel when God asked him “Where is your brother?” after he murdered him. Cain replied “Am I my brother’s keeper?
In many ways, we are keepers of our brothers and sisters. We have social responsibility in our families and neighbourhood. We have the responsibility first and foremost for ourselves. However, God’s intention is not simply to take care of ourselves but also of needs of others, especially their spiritual needs.
Parents find this difficult. Children make mistakes and it is ok for them to make mistakes as they learn from their mistakes and learn the consequences of their actions. However, in certain cases, their mistakes lead to other mistakes such as crime and it is not always the fault of the parents.
Parents seek the help of others to pray for them. Rightly so; when we gather together in prayer, the Lord is present. We cannot underestimate the power of prayer.
Of course, this does not only apply to parents to pray for their children but we pray for each other as a community. In our parish we have a small group of persons who pray for the needs of the parish every day. Moreover, every parish priest is obliged to offer a Mass every week for the needs of the parish in which he serves.
This shows how the Church views the importance of prayer. Mass is always a communal prayer even if the priest celebrates it on his own because it is the action of the whole body of Christ including the angels, Mary and saints.
At a time when numbers at Mass are decreasing or when families who pray are dwindling, we should not lose heart as Jesus is clear that when two or three pray together, He is in their midst.
There is a real value in coming together in faith because we create a space for the Lord to be present. Some couples, especially the young ones, are shy to pray in front of each other. I always encourage them to do so, even for a couple of minutes to thank God for each other, to say sorry to each other in the presence of God and to pray for the good of their relationship. The Lord understands the busyness of life today but He expects a short prayer together. There should be no excuse, we spend so much time on social media and then we do not give two minutes to God?
Whenever the Lord is present, He is not passive He is active, life giving; His presence is a transforming one. There is much more happening than the coming together of physical presence of people, the Lord is at work in their midst, we need not underestimate the value of our gatherings even in small groups, be it in families or in our religious groups.
Let us reflect on our spiritual responsibility without ignoring our social responsibility as they go hand in hand for the good of each other, starting with our families but also moving towards the good of others, friends, neighbours, the community, those we listen to or read in the news, the list is endless.
BIDDING PRAYERS:
Assured by the gospel that Christ is in the midst of the community at prayer, we raise our voices in intercession.
Our response is, “Christ, our Justice, hear us.”
- For the church as it discerns the moral implication of scientific and medical technology; may it teach with wisdom and grace. We pray: “Christ, our Justice, hear us.”
- For the courage to warn the sinner; may we not cower from challenging that which we know is wrong. We pray: “Christ, our Justice, hear us.”
- For moral integrity in marriages; may spouses hold fast to their promise to honor and respect each other. We pray: “Christ, our Justice, hear us.”
- For Christians in corporate business and other professions; may they witness to the highest ethical principles in large and small matters. We pray: “Christ, our Justice, hear us.”
Just God, you call all people to pursue justice and to love one another. Receive our prayers and guide us as we walk humbly in your presence. Grant this through Christ, our Savior.