The Catholic Parish of
Saint John Henry Newman

 Covering most of East Leeds

The Word This Week ~ 7 September 2014

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First Reading: Exodus 33:7-9

Central to this reading is the vocation of a Christian. The prophet has been appointed to transmit God’s message to the people. The obedience that God demands from the prophet may seem authoritarian to our 21 sensibilities until we realise that this obedience is at the service of God’s message of repentance, which is ultimately a proof of God’s love for us. The Christian is called to love others as God loves all.


Second Reading: Romans 13:8-10

Paul makes explicit what the first Reading implies; namely that love is central to God’s purpose. All of God’s commandments can be summed up in love of one’s neighbour, and the purpose of all of the commandments is to teach us how to love. If God commands us to love our neighbour as ourselves it is because love is the one thing necessary to share in the life of God.


Gospel Reading: Matthew 18:15-20

Jesus tells us in the Gospel that sometimes we are called to correct our brother or sister. Regardless of the fact that such a notion may make us feel uncomfortable, we need to realise that true love for this person may demand such action. The evidence of the witnesses shows that our actions are never to be based on our own personal opinions. But a sin against another is always a sin against the community (the Church). The power of love within the Church is the power of the Lord who is in its midst and who
grants its requests. Real love never allows us to abandon the sinners to his own devices, and every strategy is employed to restore him to true fellowship.



Published Sat 6th Sep 2014 14:02:52

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