Hearing The Word

A weekly newsletter delivering context and insight into the Sunday Gospels.

September 6, 2026

Twenty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time

Matthew 18:15-20

Jesus said to his disciples:

"If your brother sins against you,

go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. 

If he listens to you, you have won over your brother.

If he does not listen,

take one or two others along with you,

so that 'every fact may be established

on the testimony of two or three witnesses.'

If he refuses to listen to them, tell the church. 

If he refuses to listen even to the church,

then treat him as you would a Gentile or a tax collector.

Amen, I say to you,

whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven,

and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.

Again, amen, I say to you,

if two of you agree on earth

about anything for which they are to pray,

it shall be granted to them by my heavenly Father. 

For where two or three are gathered together in my name,

there am I in the midst of them."



The Courage to Reconcile

Rev. Patrick Brady

Pastor Saint Stanislaus Catholic Church + Lansdale, PA

Today’s Gospel (Matthew 18:15-20) sits between two parables that frame its meaning. It follows the parable of the lost sheep (18:12-14), and it precedes the parable of the unforgiving servant (18:21-35), prompted by Peter’s question about the limits of forgiveness. By placing the instructions on fraternal correction between these stories, Matthew invites the Church to understand confrontation through the lens of recovering the lost. 

A small discrepancy in the textual transmission points to a wider understanding of correction. Some early manuscripts, including Codex Sinaiticus, omit the words “against you.” In practice, the Church has long understood the process as addressing any sin that wounds the whole community—even one not personally suffered. 

Matthew’s choice of the verb kerdainō (“you have gained”) is deliberate. It is a commercial term for turning a profit. Reconciliation is framed as recovery of something at risk of being lost—a gain that benefits both the one who caused harm and the one who was harmed. 

Every step of the process exists to make reconciliation possible while protecting both parties. It moves from the smallest and most private circle outward only as far as necessary, and only after earlier efforts have failed. The final option—to treat the person “as a Gentile and a tax collector”—echoes Jesus’ own treatment of Matthew the tax collector: not exclusion, but as someone lost needing to be found.  

The concluding promise that Christ is present “where two or three are gathered” in his name means that he is present precisely in the hard work of communal correction and reconciliation. His presence backs the community’s authority to bind and lose with his own. 

An Alternative to the Philly Shrug



~Thomas Volkert

Saint Vincent de Paul + Philadelphia, PA

Have you heard of the phrase “the Philly Shrug”? A reporter coined it a few years back after noticing a common reaction in the area. When asked about solving local community problems, people would often shrug and reply, “It is what it is because it’s always been that way,” or, “There is nothing you can do, so why try?” It’s the dark side of American individualism that says everyone is on their own.

The readings today provide us a different way of seeing than the fatalistic attitude which infects so many people today. While it acknowledges that we can mess things up, it recognizes a deeper reality that as brothers and sisters in Christ we are capable of making his presence felt when we are gathered (v.20).

The Gospel proclaims that God’s purpose is to heal and repair, not to condemn. Our highest calling is to imitate the Master, who constantly taught, forgave, and healed. He promised to be right beside us whenever we do the same.

I live in a diverse parish and neighborhood marked by systemic stresses and differing opinions. Many of my neighbors have been deeply hurt by a system that leaves hard-working people behind. Whether intentional or unintentional, much of this pain stems from a simple lack of understanding, creating endless opportunities for God’s healing grace.

It takes courage not to settle for the “Philly shrug” but to follow the three steps Jesus suggested. In the Gospel of Matthew, Christ instructs us to first approach a brother or sister privately to speak the truth in love when actions cause hurt. If they are heavily burdened whether trapped by addiction, racism, or mental illness—He calls us to gather two or three witnesses to surround them with the care of a faithful community. We all stumble, but if we stay humble and honest, we activate His promise: where two or three gather in His name, He is there among them.