Message from Augie

“If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone.”  Go is such a small word.  But sometimes it asks an enormous thing of us.  Jesus does not say, wait until the other person comes to you.  He does not say tell everyone else what happened, gather your friends and establish that you were right.  He says, “GO!”

Notice why: “If he listens to you, you have won him over. Not won the argument or the dispute.  Not won the satisfaction of hearing another person admit that you were right.  You won them over.

That is the difference between the way the world so often understands conflict and the way Jesus understand reconciliation.  The world teaches us to think in terms of winners and losers.  Jesus asks us to imagine something far more difficult.  A disagreement from which two people might emerge with neither one defeated.  The person on the other side is worth winning back. That does not mean every broken relationship can be repaired.  Jesus Himself acknowledges that possibility. If the other person will not listen, take one or two others.  If that fails, bring the matter before the community.

Jesus does not tell us what will happen on the other side. He tells us what love requires on this one.

Someone has to go first.  Christ says:  GO. For somewhere along that road toward one another, He has promised to meet us.

       SO THE QUESTION:   CAN WE FOLLOW THE COMMAND TO GO?

PRAYER TO ST. JUDE:  St. Jude, apostle of Christ, the church honors and prays to you universally as the patron of hopeless and difficult cases.   Pray for us in our needs.   Make use, we implore you of this powerful privilege given to you to bring visible and speedy help where help is needed.  Pray that we humbly accept the trials and disappointments and mistakes which are a part of our human nature.   Help us to see the reflection of the suffering of Christ in the trials and tribulations of our lives.   Let us see in a spirit of great faith and hop the part we even now share in the joy of Christ’s resurrection and which we long to share fully in heaven.   Intercede that we may again experience this joy in answer to our present needs.   If it is God’s dire for us (here make your request)  we know our prayers will be heard through your intercession.  AMEN