07/09/2026
SUNDAY READINGS - QUOTES & ANALYSIS
23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A) - 6 September 2026
WHEN LOVE REQUIRES YOU TO SPEAK THE TRUTH
Have you ever known that someone was making a wrong decision, but hesitated to say anything because you did not want to offend them? Perhaps you saw someone you love drifting away from God, making destructive choices, or hurting themselves or others. Sometimes we remain silent because we want to avoid conflict. We tell ourselves, โIt is none of my business.โ
But is silence always the loving response?
This Sundayโs readings challenge us to understand love differently. Ezekiel is appointed as a watchman who must warn Godโs people when danger comes. Saint Paul reminds us that love fulfils the law, while Jesus teaches His disciples how to confront wrongdoing: privately, patiently and with the hope of reconciliation.
Together, these readings give us a simple but challenging message:
Sometimes, love requires us to speak.
1. FIRST READING - Ezekiel 33:7โ9
โYOU ARE THE WATCHMANโ
God tells Ezekiel, โSon of man, I have appointed you as a watchman for the house of Israel.โ A watchman has a responsibility to see danger and give a warning. If he sees the danger but refuses to warn those in its path, he has failed in his duty.
This does not mean Christians are called to interfere in everyoneโs life or become judges of other people. There is a difference between judging someone and caring enough to warn them. Judgment says, โI am better than you.โ Love says, โI care about you, and I do not want to see you continue down a path that will hurt you.โ
But even when we must speak, our attitude matters. Truth without love can become cruelty, while love without truth can become indifference. Christian correction must come from humility, compassion and a genuine desire for the other personโs good.
2. RESPONSORIAL PSALM - Psalm 95 (94)
โO THAT TODAY YOU WOULD LISTEN TO HIS VOICEโ
The Psalm gives us a warning that applies not only to the person we think needs correction, but also to us: โO that today you would listen to his voice! Harden not your hearts.โ
It is easy to see another personโs faults and much harder to examine our own. Before becoming watchmen for others, we must allow God to speak to our own hearts.
Before you correct someone else, ask:
โWhat is God trying to correct in me?โ
A Christian who wants to speak truth to others must first be willing to hear the truth from God.
3. SECOND READING - Romans 13:8โ10
โLOVE IS THE FULFILMENT OF THE LAWโ
Saint Paul gives us the foundation for todayโs message: โOwe no one anything, except to love one another.โ He reminds us that love is the fulfilment of the law.
This explains why Jesus asks us to correct someone who has done wrong. The purpose is not to embarrass them, punish them or prove that we are right. The purpose is love.
Christian love does not mean approving everything. It does not mean pretending that wrong is right. Love seeks the good of the other person, and sometimes seeking that good requires courage.
If we correct someone because we hate them, we have missed the point.
If we correct them because we love them, we may be helping them find their way back.
4. GOSPEL - Matthew 18:15โ20
โGO AND TELL HIM HIS FAULT BETWEEN YOU AND HIM ALONEโ
Jesus gives us remarkably practical advice:
โIf your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone.โ
Notice what Jesus does not say. He does not tell us to announce the personโs fault to everyone, gather supporters, spread the story or publicly humiliate them.
He says:
โBetween you and him alone.โ
Why?
Because the goal is not to win an argument.
Jesus says, โIf he listens to you, you have won back your brother.โ
That changes everything.
The person who has hurt us is not simply an enemy to defeat. He is still a brother or sister to be won back.
Jesus also recognises that some situations will not be resolved privately. If the person refuses to listen, others may need to become involved. There is a process of accountability and community.
But Jesus begins with the least destructive approach:
โข Speak directly.
โข Speak privately.
โข Speak with love.
โข Seek reconciliation.
โWHERE TWO OR THREE ARE GATHERED IN MY NAMEโ
Jesus then says, โWhere two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.โ
We often hear these words when speaking about prayer, but their context is important. Jesus says them while teaching about conflict, correction, reconciliation and community.
Christ is not only present when Christians gather happily together. He is also present when they sincerely struggle to repair what has been broken.
Christian community is therefore not a community without disagreements. It is a community that learns how to handle disagreements differently.
Instead of revenge, we seek reconciliation.
Instead of gossip, we speak directly.
Instead of humiliation, we seek restoration.
THE CENTRAL MESSAGE
These readings give us a beautiful balance. Ezekiel reminds us that sometimes we have a responsibility to warn. The Psalm reminds us that we must first listen to Godโs voice ourselves. Saint Paul tells us that everything must be rooted in love. And Jesus teaches us how to confront wrongdoing without turning correction into condemnation.
The Christian life requires both courage and humility: courage to speak when silence would allow someone to continue toward harm, and humility to accept correction when we are the ones who have gone astray.
The goal is not to prove that we are right.
The goal is to win back our brother or sister.
BRINGING IT HOME
Perhaps there is someone in your life you need to speak to. Maybe someone has hurt you and you have been carrying resentment. Maybe someone you love is making choices that are taking them away from God. Or perhaps you are the one who needs to hear a difficult truth.
Before speaking, ask yourself:
โข Am I doing this because I love this person?
โข Or because I want to hurt them back?
โข Am I seeking restoration or revenge?
โข Can I speak the truth with humility?
And if someone corrects you, can you listen before becoming defensive?
Sometimes silence is not peace.
Sometimes speaking the truth is an act of love.
But Christian truth must never become a weapon. We speak because we care, we correct because we hope for restoration, and we forgive because Christ has called us to love.
A QUESTION FOR THIS SUNDAY
Is there someone I need to speak to honestly but lovingly?
Have I mistaken silence for peace?
When I correct others, am I seeking their good or simply trying to prove that I am right?
And when someone corrects me, am I humble enough to listen?
Perhaps this Sunday we should stop asking:
โHow can I prove that I am right?โ
And begin asking:
โHow can I speak the truth in a way that helps bring this person closer to God?โ
SUNDAY PRAYER
Lord Jesus, give us the courage to speak the truth when love requires us to speak, and the wisdom to know when and how to speak. Keep us from pride when we correct others and from anger when we are corrected.
Teach us to seek reconciliation rather than revenge and restoration rather than humiliation. When someone has gone astray, help us to care enough to become faithful watchmen. When we ourselves have gone astray, give us humble hearts that can listen when You call us back.
Remove every hardness from our hearts and help us to listen to Your voice today. May our words bring healing rather than destruction, our correction lead to repentance, and our relationships become places where Your presence can truly be found.
For You have promised that where two or three are gathered in Your name, You are there among them.
Amen.
THIS SUNDAYโS READINGS
๐ First Reading: Ezekiel 33:7โ9
๐ต Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 95 (94)
๐ Second Reading: Romans 13:8โ10
โ๏ธ Gospel: Matthew 18:15โ20
May the Lord give us the courage to speak the truth with love, the humility to listen when we are corrected, and the grace to seek reconciliation rather than revenge.
May we never confuse silence with peace or correction with condemnation. And may we always remember:
The goal of Christian correction is not to destroy a person, but to help win a brother or sister back.
Be Prayerful. Be Inspired.
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