Sự trung tín của Thiên Chúa đã được thể hiện trong bài đọc Tin Mừng hôm nay: "Vì ở đâu có hai ba người tụ họp nhân danh ta, thì ta ở đó giữa họ." (Mt 18:20) Thiên Chúa cho chúng ta thấy sự hiện diện của Ngài nơi chúng ta, những người biết hoà giải, hiệp nhất với nhau trong tình yêu thương, đoàn kết, trong sự cầu nguyện và trong hành động. Chúa Kitô hứa hẹn sự hiện diện của Ngài trong Giáo Hội khi mọi người Kitô hữu chúng ta đoàn kết, tụ tập với nhau và cùng nhau cầu nguyện.
Là thành viên của Giáo Hội Chúa Kitô, mỗi một người trong chúng ta đều có trách nhiệm là phải “chăn dắt) giúp đỡ và hướng dẫn lẫn nhau, mỗi người chúng ta có trách nhiệm với nhau, "Nếu anh em ngươi trót phạm tội, thì hãy đi sửa lỗi nó, riêng ngươi và nó thôi. Nếu nó nghe ngươi, ngươi đã lợi được anh em ngươi." (Mt 18:15) Đó sẽ là tốt nếu chúng ta có thể hòa giải với nhau trong tình anh em; chỉ khi nào chúng ta không thể hoà giải với nhau vì những khác biệt, thì chúng ta cần phải nhờ đến những người khác trong cộng đồng Giáo Hội lớn hơn.
Chúng ta đang sống trong một thế giới không hoàn hảo; chúng ta là không thể nào hoàn hảo mọi thứ được. Đôi lúc chúng ta cũng sẽ có những xung đột giữa chúng ta. Bằng cách nào đó những mâu thuẫn giữ chúng ta cần phải được giải quyết. Chúa Giêsu giúp ban cho chúng ta những cách hướng dẫn rất đơn sơ nhưng rất thiết thực để giải quyết những xung đột. Và quan trọng hơn, Chúa Giêsu bảo đảm với chúng ta về sự hiện diện của Ngài giữa chúng ta và sẵn sàng giúp đỡ chúng ta mỗi khi cần đén Ngài.
Vì thế, chúng ta hãy cầu nguyện xin Chúa giúp chúng ta luôn luôn có thể để đối thoại với nhau và biết tôn trọng lẫn nhau, và khi có sự xung đột, Xin Chúa giúp chúng ta có can đảm và sự kiên trì để giải quyết những sự khác biết trong tình yêu thương vì chúng ta biết rằng Chính Thiên Chúa đang ở giữa chúng ta.
The fidelity of God is shown in the Gospel reading: "For where two or three are gathered in my Name, I am there among them." God shows his presence where fellows reconcile with each other, Where fellows unite in prayer and in action. Christ promises his presence in the Church when members gather and pray together.
As members of Christ's Church each one of us has the responsibility to be a shepherd to one another; each of us is accountable to one another, "If your brother or sister has sinned against you, go and point out the fault when the two of you are in private, and if he listens to you, you have won your brother." It would be good if we can reconcile by ourselves; only if we cannot, do we involve others and the greater Church community.
We live in an imperfect world; we ourselves are imperfect. There will be conflicts among us. Somehow these conflicts should be resolved. Jesus offers us simple practical guides on how to resolve conflicts. And, more important, Jesus assures us of his abiding presence and help.
Let us therefore pray to be able to talk to and respect one another and, when there are conflicts, to have the courage and perseverance to resolve them, knowing God is with us.
“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.” Matthew 18:19–20
This is a bold and awe-inspiring promise from our Lord. This passage reveals Jesus’ desire that we pray with others, uniting our prayer as one and offering it to the Father. Jesus says that when we do this in union with His prayer, our prayer will be answered.
The first thing to note is that this passage could easily be misunderstood. For example, is Jesus telling us that if two or more people get together and pray that it rains, then it will happen? Certainly not. The key to understanding this passage is found in the last line: “…there am I in the midst of them.” This means that the goal of gathering together with two or more people in prayer is to unite our unified prayer to the prayer of Jesus. The Father always hears and answers the prayer of the Son. No matter what the Son asks the Father, it is granted. Thus, this passage tells us that the goal of gathering together in prayer with others, that is, with the Church, is to unite ourselves with the one and eternal prayer of God the Son. This is first and foremost fulfilled within the Sacred Liturgy.
When we come together in the Liturgy, our prayer is always heard. Why? Because the Liturgy is first an action of God the Son in which He invites us, the Church, to share. And the prayer that is offered is the one and eternal prayer by which God the Son asks the Father to bring salvation to all those who accept the saving action of His sacrifice on the Cross. When we join in this prayer, it is granted.
What type of prayer is not answered? First, God does not grant that which fails to serve His mission. Second, if we pray for God’s will but fail to do our part, then our prayer cannot be answered. For example, if you pray that you overcome a particular sin but then fail to respond to the grace God gives, then this is not the fault of God. Third, praying for vengeance on those who have hurt us is ineffective. And fourth, praying for the conversion of one who refuses to repent will also be unable to be fulfilled, unless they ultimately repent. These are but a few examples.
What type of prayer is effective? As already mentioned, the prayer of the Liturgy as the one Sacrifice of Christ is always heard when we participate in it. But there are other ways that our united prayer will be fulfilled with certainty. For example, if you gather with others and together pray for the grace of deeper conversion, you can be certain that the grace will be offered. It is then up to you to open your heart to that grace so that it is effective. Or if you pray that God offers His mercy to someone caught in sin, you can be certain that that grace will be offered, even if the person refuses to accept it. And the list could go on. Simply put, if we gather with others and seek to unite our prayer to the one and perfect prayer of God the Son as it is offered to the Father in Heaven, then that prayer of the Son in which we share will be answered. Perhaps the best way to pray together in this way is to pray the “Our Father” prayer with another. This prayer is always heard and answered by the Father since it is the prayer given to us by the Son.
Reflect, today, upon God the Son praying to the Father. What is His perfect prayer? What does He ask the Father? Look for ways in which you can join with others to unite your own prayer to this prayer of the Son of God. Do this first and foremost in the Sacred Liturgy, but look for other ways in which you can practice this form of prayer. Praying together with others in union with the one prayer of Jesus will always be answered by the Father in Heaven.
My perfect Lord, all that You ask of the Father is granted to You. Please draw me and all the members of Your Church into Your perfect prayer to the Father. May we participate in this prayer especially through the Sacred Liturgy, and also as we gather as two or more. May we pray only with You and in accord with Your perfect will. Jesus, I trust in You.
Encountering the Word of God
1. Ezekiel’s Prophetic Actions: The prophet Ezekiel carried out a series of prophetic actions that led to his vision of the departure of the Glory of the Lord from the Temple. Shortly after eating the scroll with words of lamentation and mourning and woe, Ezekiel went out to meet the exiles in Babylon by the river Chebar. After seven days, the word of the Lord came to Ezekiel and appointed him as a watchman for the house of Israel. He was commissioned to warn the rebellious house. Ezekiel made a model of the city of Jerusalem and showed how it was besieged. He laid beside the model on his left side for 390 days symbolizing the years of punishment of the house of Israel and on his right side for 40 days symbolizing the years of punishment of the house of Judah (Ezekiel 4:1-8). Ezekiel also cut out his beard and hair. A third he burned; a third he struck with the sword; and a third he scattered into the wind. This symbolizes that because the people have defiled God’s sanctuary, a third will die of pestilence and famine, a third will fall by the sword, and a third will be scattered (Ezekiel 5:12).
2. The Departure of God’s Glory and the Prophecies of its Return: The prophet preached about judgment against the people of Israel for their idolatry and foretold an impending doom. This culminated in a vision (592 B.C.) of abominations taking place in the Temple. Once again Ezekiel saw one having the appearance of a man, who showed him “vile abominations” in the court of the Temple. Ezekiel wrote: “I went in and saw; and there, portrayed upon the wall round about, were all kinds of creeping things, and loathsome beasts, and all the idols of the house of Israel” (Ezekiel 8:10). Before the idols stood the seventy elders of the house of Israel burning incense to them. In the inner court of the house of the Lord, Ezekiel saw twenty-five men with their backs to the Temple of the Lord, worshiping the sun (Ezekiel 8:16). Because of these sins of idolatry in the Temple, the prophet announced judgment and described how the Lord, “in his chariot throne, moves to the threshold of the Temple (9:3), heads to the inner court (10:3-4), moves to the east gate (the main processional gate that leads to the Temple; 10:19), finally departs the city and alights on the mountain to the east of Jerusalem (11:23)” (Leclerc, Introduction to the Prophets, 293). Towards the end of his prophetic book, Ezekiel will see the Glory of the Lord enter the restored Temple (43:1-5). However, when the exiles returned from Babylon to Jerusalem and the temple was rebuilt and dedicated in 516 B.C., there was silence about the glory of the Lord. It was understood that God’s glory did not return to the Second Temple. In the years that follow, the prophet Malachi will foretell the return of the Lord to the Temple in order to purify the people (Malachi 3:1).
3. The Glory of God in Christ: The New Testament speaks of the glory of God in Christ. John says that the Word became flesh and dwelt among us and in Christ we behold the glory of the only begotten Son of God. Luke records the song of the angels at Christ's birth: “Glory to God in the highest!.” Furthermore, the prophecy of Malachi was initially fulfilled on the occasion of the presentation of Jesus in the temple. Simeon takes the child Jesus into his arms and says that he has seen the salvation of God, a light of revelation for the Gentiles, and glory for Israel (Luke 2:29-32). Jesus will cleanse the temple and point to his Resurrection as the building of the New Temple of God, where men and women will worship God in spirit and truth. The Church, the Body of Christ, is the Temple of the Holy Spirit. “What was foreshadowed in the old Temple, is fulfilled by the power of the Holy Spirit, in the Church: the Church is the ‘House of God,’ the place of his presence, where we can find and meet the Lord; the Church is the Temple where the Holy Spirit dwells, the Spirit who animates, guides and sustains the Church” (Francis, June 26, 2013). In the Gospel, Jesus gave guidelines for dealing with sin in our Christian communities. If our brother or sister offends us, we should first tell them and seek to be reconciled with them. If they do not listen to us, then bring the testimony of witnesses of the offense. If they still refuse to listen, tell the Church. The goal here is reestablishing communion. If the person remains in their sin, they break themselves off from that communion. In contrast to those who sin against one another, Jesus refers today to another situation – those who pray together in Christ’s name. The prayer of Christ’s disciples is united to the prayer of Christ before his Father. When a child asks his Father for something good, the good Father will give them all that they need.
Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, you have merited divine grace for me. Move my heart to repentance and conversion. Reconcile me with the Father and my brothers and sisters. I long to see your glory.
God takes Moses to the mountain top and lays before him the land which he will give to the people whom Moses had led out of slavery. But Moses himself will stop short at the threshold of the Promised Land. God now teaches him to journey inward. With eyes and heart that have been inflamed by God all his life, Moses comes to terms with journeying quietly and alone, back to God, who has known him face to face.
Reconciliation therefore is not an alternative; it is not even our choice. It is our experience with God in the existential reality of freedom. In reconciling with one another and with the world, we experience God, who gives freedom and salvation. This God is the God of Moses, the Father of Our Lord Jesus Christ. Christ is the Sacrament of Reconciliation between God and all Creation.
May God be blessed, forever and ever.’’
Friends, the Gospel for today addresses an issue of tremendous practical importance, namely, how we ought to engage in fraternal correction. Jesus says, with utter directness and simplicity, “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone.”
What a world of significance in that little recommendation! It holds off the sinful tendency of running to everyone but the person in question and complaining about him behind his back. This strategy is utterly unproductive and spiritually harmful, for it does nothing to help the person you are criticizing, and it puffs up your already inflated ego. I know it is exceptionally difficult, but going to the person directly is both productive and spiritually uplifting. It has at least a fighting chance of accomplishing something, and it confirms you in love. But the right thing is, as usual, the hard thing. Notice please that the accuser is encouraged to tell the person in question alone—and no one else. Venting and gossiping are not helpful.
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