IF YOUR BROTHER OR SISTER LISTENS TO YOU, YOU HAVE WON SOMEONE OVER FOR CHRIST

IF YOUR BROTHER OR SISTER LISTENS TO YOU, YOU HAVE WON SOMEONE OVER FOR CHRIST

By Fr. Felix (African Times Guest Writer)

Matthew is a realist. Despite the presence of

Christ in the Christian community there are

going to be disagreements and

misunderstandings in every community and

every family.

The vital thing is to sort them out and not to let

them fester. So here we are given a safe

process. Interestingly, it is the same process as

is laid down in the Community Rule of the Dead

Sea Scrolls found at Qumran; did Matthew take

it from them, or was it widespread at the time?

One might complain that it is not very Christian

of Matthew to abandon the offending brother or

sister to be as a hated tax-collector, even after

the failure of attempts at reconciliation.

But note that just afterwards, this process of

attempted reconciliation is supplemented by

Jesus’ teaching that we have to forgive not just

seven times (the perfect number) but seventy-

seven times.

That means again and again and again, without

limit – even if the attempts at reconciliation

have failed.

We also get the reminder that Christ is present

always in his community. The same promise is

given at beginning (the name Emmanuel means

‘God with us’) and end of the gospel (‘I am with

you to the end of time’).

Therefore the strength of the community both

to reconcile grievances and to make further

requests of the Father lies in the presence of

Christ within it. It is especially striking that the

same promise is here given to the Church as

had earlier been given to Peter himself.

There is the same assumption as within

Judaism, that the Lord is present in the

assembled community; in Judaism this is

expressed as the presence of the awesome

divine presence, the Shekinah; within

Christianity it is normally expressed as the

presence of the Spirit of Christ.