Gospel Reflection on Matthew 18:15-20
September 6, 2026
“If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Truly, 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 I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them.”
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There is something particularly delicious about pointing out the faults of others. Think of all the inquisitions carried out in the name of correcting others' mistakes.
How many of us have tried to lay a guilt trip on someone? For some it's a sport, an activity that generates a whole world called gossip. Taking pleasure in the sins of others is about our own uncertainty.
By watching what others are doing, we seek some comfort. Why is it so delicious to point out the mistakes of others? Having someone to laugh about and someone to look down on is a way of living with our own inconsistencies, our own failures. So why is admonishing the sinner even suggested as something positive, as a work of mercy?
Think for a moment about mercy. Mercy is God's identity card. When God wants to speak about himself, God doesn't say, 'how strong I am, how good I am, how beautiful I am.' He could say those things. Instead, God says, 'I am mercy, I am patience, I am slow to anger.' God created the world out of mercy. Mercy is first seen in the very gift of creation. And God is always operating according to his mercy, because mercy is the nature of God.
The word for mercy in Hebrew is raham. The word describes carrying a child in the womb. We don't often think of all the growth and development that is taking place when we make the simple declaration, "She is carrying a child." Carrying a child is nothing like carrying a bag of groceries. Our mothers carried us not as a burden but as a joy. And we delight in being carried even after we're born. A child extending their arms is the universal signal, "I want to be picked up. I want to be carried as I was in your womb."
So much happens as we're carried in the womb. Our mother's womb becomes the place where our bodies receive the nourishment to develop tissue, bones, muscles. Our first relationships begin in the womb. For all this to happen, a mother's womb has to be a safe place, a sanctuary where new life can begin, an unhurried place where time is given to develop and grow.
Life in our mother's womb is about the future, and perhaps this is how we are to think about admonishing someone. To admonish means to watch out for someone's well-being, the image of a person whose life is at risk, and someone saves that person by warning them.
In the Old Testament, God warns the people of the dangers of idolatry, placing their trust in empty, lifeless things. How often do we hear God say, 'it would have been so much better if you would only listen.' The focal point isn't being wrong, but not to be aware of it. To destroy our life and at the same time to be convinced of being on the absolute right path is the greatest of all tragedies. The worst situation arises when we're abandoned to ourselves.
We should all be afraid of not having anyone who is objective enough who can reveal that we are throwing something precious away. This can only happen when others, those who know us, have lost their momentum of care. We should be afraid of not knowing how to speak to someone who needs our help. We should be horrified at having lost our motherly love for those close to us. We should be deeply saddened in not knowing how to remain alongside them. We may be afraid of our anger towards our neighbor, but at least that's still a relationship. We should be even more afraid of our indifference. That's death.
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