23rd
Sunday in the Ordinary Time
September 7, 2014
Mathew 18:15-20
“For where two or
three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them." (Mat 18:20).”
What is Church? Some
of us perhaps imagine a building where we can pray together or look for
inspiration. The answer is correct yet, it is incomplete. Why? Now, to
illustrate my point, let us see the concrete reality in our lives. In the
Philippines and Indonesia, the churches are fully loaded every Sunday and a lot
activities are going on there. Yet, unfortunately, in some European countries,
the churches are without people and ready to be converted into a piece of
museum or a coffee shop. Here, we can draw a conclusion that we who gather in
prayer, are the one who transforms a particular place into a church. What makes
a church is primarily not the edifice but we, the people. Thus, the Church is
us!
However, what kind of people is the Church?
What distinguishes us from other fraternities or organizations? What makes our
relationship unique from the networking giants like Facebook? What separates us from multi-national companies like Google?
The answer is really simple, yet spells the decisive difference.
In today’s
Gospel, Jesus tells us that when we gather in His Name, He is in our midst (cf.
Mat 18:20). “We gather in His Name”
and this changes the entire things. We do not come together for fun and
leisure, not for earning profit and definitely not for advancing our political
agenda. Even when we unite to do good works, but not in His name, we become
like good social workers, but not the Church. This why Pope Francis in the
beginning his pontificate, reminded us that without Christ, we are just another
non-government organization, and not the Church.
However this gathering in the name of Jesus is
not the end itself. Jesus completed his words, “I am in their midst.” Apparently, Jesus will be with us
“spiritually”. Yet, we must not forget that Jesus never said that He would be
with us ‘spiritually’. Is it possible that Jesus is really and truly present in
our midst after two thousand years ago He ascended to heaven? Yes! He manifests
Himself in the Eucharist. The sacred host and wine are truly the Body and Blood
of Christ and He is corporeally present among us who gather in His Name. To
remind this sacred assembly, Fr. Gerard Timoner, OP, our provincial, always
opens the celebration of the Eucharist with, “We gather in the Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.”
We are reminded that Eucharist is the gathering of people in the name of God,
and He is with His people. Through the Eucharist, we become the Church, and the
truth of Jesus’ words, “When two or three gather in My name, I am in their
midst.” turns to be a reality.
Br. Valentinus
Bayuhadi Ruseno, OP
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