This Week’s Gospel Message is for Sunday, September 6th is from Matthew 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. . .For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.’”
“It is alarming to hear Jesus tell the disciples that if a sinner ‘refuses to listen even to the church, then treat him as you would a Gentile or a tax collector.’ Is Jesus telling his disciples to exclude sinners? No, quite the opposite! Jesus has already extended his mission into Gentile territory and welcomed tax collectors into his fold. Jesus trusted that his disciples realized the goal is always reconciliation, not exclusion.” Source: Pastoral Patterns, Autumn 2020
DAILY READINGS FOR THE WEEK
Monday 1 Cor 5:1-8; Luke 6:6-11
Tuesday Micah 5:1-4a; Matt 1:1-16, 18-23
The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Feast) – “This feast originated in the Eastern Church and was commemorated in the West as early as the fifth century. Although no one is certain where Mary was born, one ancient tradition cites Nazareth and another, Jerusalem. An occasion for praise and thanksgiving, the feast celebrates Mary’s personal sanctity and vocation as the mother of Jesus.”
Wednesday 1 Cor 7:25-31; Luke 6:20-26
Saint Peter Claver, Priest (Memorial) – “Born in Spain, Peter joined the Jesuits. He went to the missions in Cartegena, in Colombia, which was then the center of the slave trade. Peter ministered for nearly forty years to the newly arrived Africans with food, water, and medicine.”
Thursday 1 Cor 8:1b-7, 11-13; Luke 6:27-38
Friday 1 Cor 9:16-19, 22b-27; Luke 6:39-42
Saturday 1 Cor 10:14-22; Luke 6:43-49
Source: Living With Christ, September 2020