09/06/2026
St Faustina Shrine presents Homilies to read: 23rd Sunday OT Year A homily by Fr Jacek Kowal Pastor St Ann and Shrine Rector. https://divinemercyshrine.site/homilies-to-read-1
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Today’s readings speak about something that is not always easy for us: our responsibility for one another.
We live in a culture that often tells us, “Mind your own business.”If someone is making a bad decision, we say, “That’s their problem.” If we see someone doing something wrong, we may think, “Who am I to judge?”Sometimes we are afraid that if we say something, the other person will become angry with us. But the Word of God gives us a different perspective.
In the first reading, God tells the prophet Ezekiel: “I have appointed you watchman for the house of Israel.”
A watchman has a responsibility. His job is to look out and warn people when danger is coming. If he sees the danger and says nothing, he has failed in his responsibility.
God is telling Ezekiel that he cannot simply remain silent when people are going in the wrong direction. And that message applies not only to Ezekiel. It applies to all of us. As Christians, we are responsible for one another.
This does not mean that we should become people who constantly criticize others, correct everyone, or tell people how to live. Jesus is not asking us to become spiritual police officers. Rather, Jesus is reminding us that love sometimes requires us to speak the truth. That can be difficult.
It is easy to tell someone what they want to hear. It is much harder to tell someone what they need to hear.
Sometimes the most loving thing we can do is say, “My friend, I am worried about you. I think you are going in the wrong direction.” That takes courage. And it also takes humility.
Before we correct someone else, we should ask ourselves: Am I doing this because I love this person, or because I am angry with this person?
There is a big difference between correcting someone because we love them and correcting someone because we want to feel superior to them.
Jesus gives us a very practical process in today’s Gospel. He says: “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone.”
Jesus does not say, “Tell everybody.” He does not say, “Put it on social media.” He does not say, “Tell five other people first so they can agree with you.” He says, “Go directly to the person.” How often we do exactly the opposite!
Someone hurts us, and instead of talking to that person, we talk to everybody else. We tell our friends. We tell our family. We complain. We make a comment online. And by the time the person who actually needs to hear about the problem finds out, the whole world already knows.
Jesus gives us a better way: go directly to the person. Speak privately. Speak honestly. Speak with charity. That is not easy. But it is Christian.
There is another important point in today’s Gospel. Jesus says that if the person listens, “you have won over your brother.”
The goal is not to win an argument. The goal is not to prove that I am right. The goal is not to make the other person feel bad. The goal is to win the person. That is a completely different attitude.
When we correct someone out of love, we are not trying to defeat them. We are trying to help them come closer to God. And this is beautifully connected to the second reading from St. Paul.
St. Paul tells us: “Owe nothing to anyone, except to love one another.” That is the heart of everything. Christian correction must always come from love.
If I criticize someone because I dislike them, that is not Christian correction. If I point out another person’s sin because I want to embarrass them, that is not Christian correction. If I gossip about someone because it makes me feel better about myself, that is not Christian correction.
But if I speak to someone because I genuinely care about their soul, because I want them to be closer to Christ, because I don’t want to see them destroy their life or their relationship with God—that can be an act of love.
And sometimes, of course, we need to ask ourselves another difficult question: What if I am the one who needs correction?
We often see very clearly what is wrong with other people. We can see their weaknesses. We can see their mistakes. We can see their sins. But sometimes we are completely blind to our own. That is why humility is so important.
A Christian should be able to say, “Maybe I am wrong. Maybe there is something in my life that I need to change.” We should be grateful for people who love us enough to tell us the truth.
Think about the people who have influenced your life. Perhaps there was a parent, a spouse, a friend, a teacher, a priest, or someone else who at some point told you something that you did not want to hear—but needed to hear.
Maybe you were upset with them at the time. But years later you realized: They were right. They loved me enough to tell me the truth. That is what Jesus asks us to do for one another.
And there is one more beautiful part of today’s Gospel. Jesus says: “Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” This reminds us that Christianity is not an individual project. We need one another. We need our families. We need our friends. We need our parish community. We need brothers and sisters in faith who will encourage us when we are discouraged, pray for us when we are struggling, and sometimes lovingly challenge us when we are going in the wrong direction.
The Christian life is not simply about “me and Jesus.” It is about the Body of Christ.
We belong to one another. And because we belong to one another, we have a responsibility for one another. Parents have responsibility for their children. Spouses have a responsibility for one another. Friends have responsibility for their friends. And every Christian has a responsibility to help others grow in holiness.
Sometimes that responsibility will require us to speak. Sometimes it will require us to remain silent and simply pray. Sometimes it will require us to forgive. Sometimes it will require us to apologize. Sometimes it will require us to confront a difficult situation.
But whatever we do, we must remember St. Paul’s words: “Love does no evil to the neighbor; hence, love is the fulfillment of the law.”
So perhaps this week we can ask ourselves three questions. First, is there someone I need to speak to, honestly and lovingly? Second, is there someone I have been talking about instead of talking to? And third, is there something in my own life that God is asking me to change?
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
God has placed us together in this parish and in this community for a reason. We are not strangers. We are brothers and sisters in Christ.
And sometimes the greatest act of love is simply to be there for another person—to encourage them, to forgive them, to pray for them, and, when necessary, to have the courage to tell them the truth.
May God give us the wisdom to know when to speak, when to remain silent, when to correct, when to forgive, and always how to love. And may we never forget that the purpose of Christian correction is not to condemn someone, but to win our brother or sister back to Christ. Amen.
