FRATERNAL CORRECTION - A: 23rd Sun in OrdTime

Mt 18:15-20 (10 Sept 2017)

In the gospels there are only 2 verses where we find the word “ekklesia” (the renowned Greek word-basis for the term “church”).

They are both in the Gospel of Matthew, in 16:18 and 18:17. Yet, in the whole of the New Testament, the word appeared 114x, concentrated mainly in the Acts of the Apostles (23x), 1 Corinthians (22x), and Revelation (20x).

What does this tell us? It hints that the concept of the church as a formal assembly or congregation is a later development in Early Christianity. At first, they were simply a loose group that remained faithful to the teaching of Christ. The responsibility of making the group spirit alive and united lies not in one person but in every member. This may be the reason why the singular form of the personal pronoun “you” is used in Mt 18:15-17, implying that each individual has an obligation to correct his companion being his “brother” anyway (v.15). Indeed, fraternal love stands as the main driving force in so doing as capsulized in the Second Reading: “You must love your neighbor as yourself. Love is the one thing that cannot hurt your neighbor; that is why it is the answer to every one of the commandments (Rom 13:9b-10).”

The call (“kaleo” in Greek, which is the same root word for “ekklesia”) to speak the wrong is also beautifully phrased in the First Reading: “When you hear a word from my mouth, warn them in my name. If I say to a wicked man: Wicked wretch, you are to die, and you do not speak to warn the wicked man to renounce his ways, then he shall die for his sin, but I will hold you responsible for his death (Ezek 33:7b-8).” This is indeed a tall order.

Being members of the living Church, we are all called to be active and courageous prophets of the gospel, not limiting this duty to the clergy alone.

At the heights of socio-political issues and problems that abound in our country, we ask: Am I informed, involved, and initiating constructively? Remember, to stay mum is already a position in itself; there is no middle ground for a true Christian. Non-action to correct our brother is condoning his very evil act itself.

Yet, we inquire: How is my singular voice supposed to change the complex rotten political system? Mt 18:19 (now, using the personal pronoun “you” in the plural) emphasizes the value of gradually agreeing together, beginning with two persons. The snowball effect happens through the guidance of our Father in heaven. We simply have to start small somewhere, and God will take care of the rest.

In his homily at the funeral mass of Kian de los Santos (the 17-year-old alleged drug courier who was killed by police authorities in the war on drugs), Bishop David of the Diocese of Caloocan underlined the game-changing role of the lady barangay chair who handed the copy of the CCTV footages to the media. She may just be at the back-drop of this whole event, but her bold efforts turned the entire police operation into a fiasco as its irregularities were uncovered to the public.

Truly, as Lao Tzu once said, “The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.” One’s individual step to correct the other may be small, but it may potentially be Neil-Armstrong-like, for through the grace of God, it can be “one giant leap for mankind.”

- Rex Fortes, CM