The Gospel for The memorial of St. Maximilian Kolbe, priest and martyr, is taken from Matthew 18:20. 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. Whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Amen. 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 beautiful thing about the ministry of Jesus is it cares for the church, the institution, in a sense where we’re all going, but it also cares for the individuals involved. And he cares about our relationships because they are so crucial. And if someone is in a relationship with you and they’re doing something negative, you need to point it out. If they won’t listen, you ask others to join you.

If they don’t listen, you use the authority of others. But the key is you don’t stay in the relationship, you leave it. Because the heart of the message is the truth that God has placed in our hearts. And that truth is that what God is creating is people that think alike, that work together, that aren’t at odds with each other. And when they gather in Jesus name and want the truth, there is Jesus in their midst, accomplishing and bringing the truth and light and life. Please take a few moments to reflect upon the thoughts that I’ve offered in these reflections.

And then I will offer a closing prayer. The closing prayer. Father, nothing is more important in your kingdom than the flow of life between us as individuals. Seeking you, loving you, wanting to be more what you call us to be. Bless us in our relationships. Help them to be healthy and life giving and everything you intend them to be.

And we ask this in Jesus name. Amen.