This reflection is part of an Advent series understood as a spiritual posture of watchfulness, conversion, and readiness for Christ. The Church is currently in Ordinary Time, and the liturgy for September 6, 2026, is the Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time.
Daily Mass Readings
The daily Mass readings for September 6, 2026, the Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time, are assigned under Lectionary 127:
- First Reading: Ezekiel 33:7-9
- Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 95:1-2, 6-7, 8-9
- Response: “If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.”
- Second Reading: Romans 13:8-10
- Alleluia: 2 Corinthians 5:19
- “God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.”
- Gospel: Matthew 18:15-20
The readings present a unified account of Christian responsibility. Ezekiel is appointed as a watchman for the house of Israel. Saint Paul identifies love as the fulfillment of the law. In the Gospel, Jesus explains the proper path of fraternal correction, the authority of the Church, and the promise of his presence wherever two or three gather in his name.
Fraternal Correction as a Work of Mercy
The Gospel begins with a direct instruction: “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone.” The first movement is neither public accusation nor private resentment. It is a personal conversation intended to protect the dignity of the person and preserve the possibility of reconciliation.
Christ does not present correction as an exercise of superiority. The purpose is expressed in the words, “If he listens to you, you have won your brother.” The person is not to be treated as an enemy to be defeated but as a brother or sister to be restored to communion.
This approach requires prudence, humility, and charity. A conversation of correction must be rooted in concern for the other person rather than in anger, self-justification, or the desire to expose wrongdoing. It must also allow room for the possibility that the person offering correction has misunderstood the situation or contributed to the conflict.
The First Reading provides the prophetic background for this responsibility. God appoints Ezekiel as a watchman for Israel and gives him the duty of warning the wicked. The watchman cannot remain silent when danger is visible. At the same time, the watchman is not authorized to condemn the person. The responsibility is to speak faithfully and to leave the response to the one who hears.
The Church continues this duty through pastoral care, preaching, sacramental ministry, and the patient work of accompanying people toward conversion. Fraternal correction is one expression of that responsibility. It is a form of spiritual vigilance that refuses both indifference and condemnation.
Reconciliation Rooted in Mercy
Jesus then describes a gradual process. If the private conversation does not lead to reconciliation, one or two others are brought into the matter. If the person still refuses to listen, the concern is presented to the Church. Each step seeks truth while limiting unnecessary exposure and protecting the possibility of healing.
The instruction to treat an unresponsive person “as you would a Gentile or a tax collector” does not authorize contempt. In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus treats tax collectors as people who remain capable of conversion. He eats with them, calls Matthew to discipleship, and announces mercy to those whom society has rejected. To treat someone as a Gentile or a tax collector is therefore not to abandon hope. It is to recognize that visible communion has been damaged while continuing to regard the person as one who may still be won back.
Church discipline, when faithfully exercised, is medicinal rather than vindictive. Its aim is the restoration of communion and the protection of the community. The Church’s response to sin must therefore remain consistent with the mercy of Christ.
Jesus gives the Church a corresponding authority: “Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” This language refers to the Church’s responsibility to discern, teach, reconcile, and govern in fidelity to Christ. The authority to bind and loose is not a license for personal control. It is a sacred responsibility exercised for the sake of truth, holiness, and communion.
Christ Present in the Gathered Community
The Gospel concludes with Christ’s promise: “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” The gathered community is not merely a human association. When Christians assemble in Christ’s name, seek reconciliation, and pray according to the Gospel, Christ is present among them.
This promise is especially important when a community faces conflict. The work of reconciliation can appear limited by misunderstanding, injury, or resistance. Jesus teaches that communal prayer is not an afterthought to the work of the Church. It is one of the principal means through which the community remains attentive to God’s will.
The power of prayer does not arise from numbers alone. Two or three people who gather in Christ’s name are entrusted with the presence of the Lord. A parish, family, religious community, or group of missionaries can therefore become a place where Christ’s reconciling work is made visible.
The Responsorial Psalm provides the spiritual anchor for this mission: “If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.” The refrain calls the Church to listen before speaking, to receive correction before offering it, and to remain open to conversion. A hardened heart cannot correct another person with mercy or receive correction with humility. Watchfulness begins with listening to the voice of God.
Love Fulfills the Law
Saint Paul writes in the Second Reading, “Love does no evil to the neighbor; hence, love is the fulfillment of the law.” This teaching clarifies the purpose of every Christian response to conflict.
Love does not ignore wrongdoing, because indifference can permit harm to continue. Love also does not use another person’s failure as an opportunity for humiliation. Genuine charity seeks the neighbor’s good and therefore speaks with truth, patience, and restraint.
The connection between fraternal correction and love is essential. Words spoken without charity can deepen division even when they contain accurate observations. Words spoken in charity can open a path toward repentance and restored communion. The Church’s pastoral care, including its correction and discipline, must always be measured against the commandment to love.
The Society of St. Peter the Apostle and Priestly Communion
The Society of St. Peter the Apostle was founded in 1889 after Bishop Jules-Alphonse Cousin, MEP, Vicar Apostolic of Southern Japan and later Bishop of Nagasaki, sought assistance for young men who showed signs of priestly vocation. Financial limitations had made it impossible to receive and form every promising candidate.
Stephanie and Jeanne Bigard, a mother and daughter in France, responded to Bishop Cousin’s appeal. Their commitment led to the establishment of the Society, which was created to support the formation of local clergy in mission territories.
The Society continues this mission in partnership with local bishops and Christian communities. Its support includes:
- Ordinary subsidies for the daily needs and formation of seminarians, novices, and religious sisters.
- Extraordinary subsidies for constructing and renovating seminaries.
- Funding for self-sustainability projects that strengthen the long-term stability of seminaries and novitiates.
- Mass intentions to assist seminary formators.
- Scholarships for future seminary educators.
The Gospel’s emphasis on reconciliation and communion has a direct connection to priestly formation. Priests serve as ministers of reconciliation through the proclamation of the Gospel and the celebration of the Sacrament of Penance. Seminaries must therefore become schools of communion, where candidates learn to listen, accept correction, resolve conflicts, pray with others, and serve communities with pastoral charity.
Fraternal support is necessary throughout formation. Seminarians, formators, bishops, priests, religious sisters, and lay benefactors participate in a shared responsibility for the future of the local Church. The Society of St. Peter the Apostle supports this responsibility by helping mission territories form indigenous clergy capable of serving their own communities with cultural understanding and pastoral continuity.
Practices for September 6
- Read Matthew 18:15-20 slowly, giving particular attention to Christ’s instruction regarding private correction and restored communion.
- Repeat the Responsorial Psalm: “If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.”
- Examine one relationship that may require a conversation of reconciliation during the coming week.
- Pray the Our Father and consider one person who needs forgiveness or a renewed commitment to charity.
- Pray for seminarians, priests, religious sisters, and formators serving in mission territories.
- Make an act of charity today, remembering that love fulfills the law and does no evil to the neighbor.
Closing Prayer
The Church prays for the grace to practice correction with mercy, to receive correction with humility, and to seek reconciliation without resentment. May Christ remain present wherever two or three gather in his name, guiding communities toward truth and communion. Through the intercession of Saint Peter the Apostle, may indigenous clergy, seminarians, priests, religious sisters, and seminary formators receive the support required to serve the Church faithfully in mission territories.
Support the Formation of Local Clergy
The formation of indigenous clergy depends upon prayer, partnership, and practical support. The following resources provide ways to assist the Society of St. Peter the Apostle:
The Pontifical Mission Societies
70 West 36th Street, 8th Floor
New York, NY 10018
Phone: 212-563-8700
Email: contact@pontificalmissions.org