In top photo, regardless of the form of communication to another person, whether it’s verbal, written or through the use of technology, the words conveyed should be of love, respect and compassion. Photo from unsplash.com
By Father Garry Koch
Gospel reflection for Sept. 6, 2026, 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time
In what we think of as good manners, we are often reticent to express opinions or to judge others too harshly. Conversely, however, we are very comfortable doing the complete opposite in an online forum or through the rashness of an email chain. Then, common decency cedes itself to anonymity or obscurity. We find it easy to shame or humiliate others publicly. It is easy to follow the crowd, to blow things out of proportion and to claim victimhood when confronted. We choose to act out of spite or anger, rumor, or from the bandwagon, and not out of love or a genuine concern for the welfare, growth or reputation of the other. The Mosaic Law and the teaching of Jesus provide a merciful and loving protocol for exercising mercy and offering fraternal correction; something sadly lacking today.
But it is also conversely the fear of being called out in a public forum, labeled a “hater” or a “phobe” of one strip or another, that leads many of us to bury our thoughts, and to leave unchallenged those who are in need of some self-reflection or another voice in their head besides their own and the sycophants who surround them.
All of these situations, and many other scenarios, can really make it difficult to have an honest conversation with someone, where we can genuinely express our thoughts, concerns, desires and offer a truth that might be uncomfortable to hear.
All of our words and actions are to be grounded in love. Love is the reason for our words and actions, yet it is key that our words and actions are charitable and kind.
Our internet-crazed world provides a forum for anyone, regardless of qualifications or motive, to opine freely on a variety of topics, while amassing a following that serves to bolster their arrogance.
While exaggerated by modern technology, the awkwardness of human interaction and intervention is nothing new. The principle of fraternal correction is found within the Mosaic Law, and as we hear in the First Reading, is further elaborated by the prophet Ezekiel. Here we see an expansion of the Law, and a deeper sense of a moral obligation to stand as a corrective force when we see a member of the community fall away from faithful observance of Law, or in the life of a Christian, faithful discipleship.
In the Gospel, Jesus expands the obligation by first narrowing it. Here we are called to confront a personal offense, one where a brother or sister has sinned against us. This is not a call to be a guardian or keeper of the Law, but rather to be careful in our own personal reaction to a personal offense.
This is more specific and demands much from a personal relationship.
Jesus sees the community – the Church – as the final arbiter of conflict, but also as a last resort. We know that the early Christians caused scandal within the Church and from the Church to the Greco-Roman world, through the public nature of their disputes against each other. St. Paul addresses the weight of this scandal in his First Letter to the Corinthians.
We will always have disputes and disagreements; it is part of our human nature as affected by sin.
How we react to conflict, disagreement or the scandalous or sinful acts of others is deeply rooted within our lives as disciples. Prayerful reflection should always be our first refuge in the face of any situation that makes us uncomfortable or uncertain. It is always wise to consult someone else, perhaps the pastor, deacon, or another trusted member of the parish staff, in order to get a sense of balance and perspective before we speak or act.
Too often our own words and our actions serve to exacerbate and not to quell conflict, disagreement or indifference.
During these days of conflict, social upheaval and tense rhetoric, reflecting deeply on our own sinfulness and weaknesses is a good starting point before we begin to call out someone else.
Certainly, fraternal correction, grounded in the Gospel and motivated by love and not anger, resentment, or judgmentalism, is necessary in a world which is bogged down in a moral quagmire. But a hard-headed or unjust approach to others fails the Gospel as much as does the sin itself.
Father Garry Koch is pastor of St. Benedict Parish, Holmdel.