Breaking the Word

"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. Amen, 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, (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." (Mt 18:15-20 )

Today’s passage gives us an idea that reconciliation should be taken seriously. Reconciliation is becoming a serious problem in relationship; among brothers, in a family, in a community, in a society, in a country, among nations, within a church and among churches. There is no pretending saying nothing really happened or patching up the problem, or saying that he never really meant it etc.

Reconciliation or forgiveness comes in when something evil has really happened. (no pretension). Reconciliation or forgiveness is that you are really going to tackle the issue. And at the end of it you are really going ot love and accept the other without any conditions. This is the reason that Jesus gives the sequences of procedure. The procedure is not mere physical movements. There is an attitudinal procedure underneath the physical movement.

First go and see the person one on one. That needs courage, prayer and humility. Second step is to take someone (two or three) with you. They are to pass judgment on who is really wrong.  This is to pass judgment on your own judgment. Again there is a journey of humility and introspection. Finally to the community which probably means a small group. If the brother refuses, then there is no reconciliation because the problem is not faced. In this struggle for reconciliation the presence of God is with us. This is the encouraging part of the passage. 

While he was going through a field of grain on a Sabbath, his disciples were picking the heads of grain, rubbing them in their hands, and eating them. Some Pharisees said, "Why are you doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?" Jesus said to them in reply, "Have you not read what David did when he and those (who were) with him were hungry? (How) he went into the house of God, took the bread of offering, which only the priests could lawfully eat, ate of it, and shared it with his companions." Then he said to them, "The Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath."  (Lk 6:1-5)

This story tells us who Jesus was. He was not holding any position in the society. He was not a priest in the Jewish society who took it upon themselves to teach the religion and guard the religion. He was not a Pharisee because a Pharisee had the duty of seeing the people practice the customs and traditions. He was not belonging to any pressure group that influenced the society.

Yet he had few followers. When He was challenged by the Pharisees regarding the practices of his disciples, Jesus falls back to the model of David. What David did in the presence of his followers was an exception to the normal rule. David claimed the right to do what he did because he was to be the king of Israel. He was already anointed by Samuel. As a king he claimed his rights. Jesus was also anointed as the Son of God at Baptism.

Jesus has been anointed as the king of New Israel. He is waiting for his time to reign as the king. Like David, he is also moving around with his disciples. In this story what mattered was not that the disciples broke the Sabbath rule, rather what mattered was who Jesus was. Jesus identity was revealed in this story. He is the Son of Man who was the Lord of the Sabbath.