23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Dear Friends,

Today’s gospel calls to mind a saying of the Desert Fathers. Abba Poemen asks Abba Joseph how he can become a monk. Abba Joseph says, “If you want to find rest here below, and hereafter, in all circumstances say, Who am I? and do not judge anyone.” When a brother has sinned against us, Jesus does not instruct us to accuse or condemn him, nor push him away. Jesus sends us instead on the way of tenderness. The Lord says: Go to him. Be reconciled.

Maybe what keeps me from going to my brother, above anything else, is my fear of appearing weak. I find help in asking God, Who am I?, like Abba Joseph. Seeking self-knowledge is a vulnerable thing. When we ask, Who am I?, God blesses our sincerity; He strengthens us to recognize our own weakness, the wounds we bear. Only then can we go to our brother, truly seeking reconciliation.

In a deeper way, Jesus wants to protect us from the indifference so sought after in the world today. Christian non-judgement is not indifference. Indifference arises in our hearts when we have judged a relationship to be unworthy or beyond repair. Perhaps we carry a grudge in silence rather than confronting the person we love who has hurt us. When we carry these grudges in our hearts, over time, they become walls. We come to consider ourselves strong, untouchable.

If we go to our brother and tell him his fault, seeking reconciliation, we might be disappointed in his response. Still, with God, this little bit of sincerity goes a long way. We will find peace, and we can always pray that the relationship may be healed. In time, with patience and prayer, we come to see our child-like dependence on a loving Father.

When we withhold judgement, we leave ourselves open to reconciliation. There is no distance in the heart of God at all. There is only communion, only love. God is reconciled. He never pushes us away. And He teaches us how, drawing near to one another in love, we draw near to Him. Nothing makes Him happier. Jesus says it plainly: “Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” By urging us toward reconciliation, Jesus sends us away from the lonely wilderness of judgement, toward the pasture of reconciliation and peace.

Caitlyn Bell
Spiritual Formation