Our Sabbath Scripture Stories – 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time – Cycle A

Read or listen to this Sunday’s Mass readings here.

  • Ezekiel 33:7-9
  • Romans 13:8-10
  • Matthew 18:15-20

Dad came into the living room this morning with a box.  It was a large box that he had strategically covered with a cloth so the rest of the family couldn’t see inside.   He put it in the middle of the floor.

“What’s that, Daddy?” little Hillary quizzed her father.  “Is it a surprise?”

Dad only chuckled.  “You’ll have to wait and see!” he glimmered.  “But I can tell you this … it has something to do with our Gospel reading!”

Like he did every Sunday morning, Dad opened his Bible and read the Gospel passage the family would soon be hearing at Mass.  Today’s reading was from the book of Matthew, and all the Pauline kids’ ears perked up as they listened.

Dad laid down his Bible and dramatically began his demonstration.  He whisked the cover off the box.  Inside were three other square boxes, each one a different size.  The smallest one had a four-sided pyramid taped to the top, and the largest square box rattled.  Something was definitely up!

Dad began as the rest of them listened intently.  “Our Gospel reading for today deals with ‘fraternal correction.’  Does anyone know what that is?”

“Is that a square dance call for many German women?”  Vincent blurted.

Everyone just turned to Vincent with a look of putrefaction.  Delighting in his quip, Vincent quaked in his wittiness.

“Not quite, Son,”  Dad finally said, shaking his head.  “The first lines of our Gospel tell us that it is the correction of your brothers and sisters.”

“Ohhh … ” the kids all said as they looked knowingly at one another.  They certainly knew about finding fault with each other and speaking up!

“Well,” Dad said, “our Gospel speaks about more than your siblings!  Our reading is talking about all our brothers and sisters in Christ.  It is who we are in the family of God.”

“So, what does Jesus say, Daddy?” little Hillary asked, and then assertively asked, “and why the boxes?”

Dad reached in and took out the smallest box with the pyramid point taped to it.  “This, My Dear Children, represents the first level of correction that Jesus tells us about.  If we see someone doing something wrong, the first way to correct them is privately.  We correct them alone and avoid making it a public matter.”  Dad laid the box on the coffee table.

“The next level of correction Jesus tells us about is in the presence of one or two witnesses,” Dad continued.  “If the person doesn’t correct their ways privately, having others along will add support and hopefully influence over them.” 

Again, Dad reached down and took out the medium-sized box and skillfully placed it under the pyramid-shaped one.  The kids began to wonder, “Were we building something?”

“Now the last level of correction is through the Church,” Dad explained.  “The Church has a responsibility to govern its individual members who stray or exercise bad influence on others.”

Then Dad took out the largest, rattling box and put it under the other two.  Wa-la!  The boxes actually looked like something.  But what was it?

Dad challenged his family, “Okay, now, who can tell me what we’ve made?”

The eyes of the Pauline children were sharpened, and the wheels inside were turning.  The pyramid-shaped box on top was the give-away.

“I know!” Mary Clare shouted.  “You’ve made a mini church!”

“Exactly, Mary Clare!” Dad nodded.  Then, pulling on his special trap door in the big box, he poured out all of Ben’s Lego people. 

“Now this is what I want you to remember from this reading!” Dad spouted, caught up in his own demonstration.  “The Church is an assembled community of believers that has the responsibility for keeping truth.  But the Church is more than a structure or building that we see here.  It is a community of the baptized gathered in the name of Jesus to pray and agree in truth.  Jesus says that is when He is there among them!”

“So that’s why the Lego figures came out!” Lucy said.  “It’s to show that the Church is people!”

“Right you are, Lucy!”  Dad agreed.  “As the Church, we live, and agree, and are empowered in truth.  Then Jesus is with us!”

“Nice touch, Dad,” Vincent added.  “I can’t say much for your architectural skills, but the Gospel skills were right on!  And you know, the square boxes reminded me of a certain ‘square’ dance joke I just told … “

Dad got a glimmer on his face as he recalled Vincent’s bad attempt at a pun.  Then, in keeping with the spirit of the Gospel reading, he displayed a very fatherly smile and said, “Vincent, can I talk to you in private?“

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Cycle A, 23 OT, SSSDownload

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