Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur

Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time – Sr. Janelle Sevier, SNDdeN

September 13, 2026

Matthew 18: 21-35

Peter, in his desire to “get it right” and to know the “measure” required of him, stands in for all of us this weekend, as is so often the case with our friend Peter.

Wanting to know the limit of Jesus’ command to forgive, Peter’s question prompts Jesus to tell today’s parable. Peter wants to “know” so that he can fulfill what is required of him, a rather decent goal. Perhaps you have asked this sort of question yourself.

Jesus, however, invites Peter, and us, into a much larger, less measured, and more generous worldview: one of compassion and mercy.  Seventy-seven times? What?

I admit that this story always catches me off guard. The servant, having just been shown such extraordinary mercy, turns around and treats another person with harshness and remarkable smallness. It is an unpleasant shock.  I do not like it. The first servant’s attitude really bothers me.  What? He did what? How could he?

Again, the parable is doing its work.

That reaction tells me Peter may not be the only one who stands in for us in this Gospel story. In the unmerciful servant, we can also see traces of ourselves.

Have you ever had someone say something that provoked a reaction far stronger than the situation seemed to warrant? Often, an over-the-top response, like the one portrayed in the parable, has less to do with the words that were spoken and more to do with what those words touched deep within us: an old wound, a recurring hurt, a lingering sense of being overlooked, or a painful reality we are carrying in the present.

Life gives all of us wounds and hurts. Unfortunately, some of us hold on to them far too long, and they resurface in various ways over many years. We human beings seem to excel at remembering our hurts rather than our joys.

Forgetting how deeply I am loved and forgiven, I sometimes require of others, at least in my own mind, what I am unable to do myself.  Let’s stop doing that.

Jesus offers another way: simply love as you have been loved.

Is there any one of us who has not been loved? Is there any one of us who has not fallen short of the way we have been called to love?

Rejoice in the Holy One’s love for you.

Exult in your forgiven-ness.
And then go and do likewise.

The Lord is kind and merciful, slow to anger, and rich in compassion.

Matthew 18: 21-35

Peter approached Jesus and asked him,
“Lord, if my brother sins against me,
how often must I forgive?
As many as seven times?”
Jesus answered, “I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times.
That is why the kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king
who decided to settle accounts with his servants.
When he began the accounting,
a debtor was brought before him who owed him a huge amount.
Since he had no way of paying it back,
his master ordered him to be sold,
along with his wife, his children, and all his property,
in payment of the debt.
At that, the servant fell down, did him homage, and said,
‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back in full.’
Moved with compassion the master of that servant
let him go and forgave him the loan.
When that servant had left, he found one of his fellow servants
who owed him a much smaller amount.
He seized him and started to choke him, demanding,
‘Pay back what you owe.’
Falling to his knees, his fellow servant begged him,
‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.’
But he refused.
Instead, he had the fellow servant put in prison
until he paid back the debt.
Now when his fellow servants saw what had happened,
they were deeply disturbed, and went to their master
and reported the whole affair.
His master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant!
I forgave you your entire debt because you begged me to.
Should you not have had pity on your fellow servant,
as I had pity on you?’
Then in anger his master handed him over to the torturers
until he should pay back the whole debt.
So will my heavenly Father do to you,
unless each of you forgives your brother from your heart.”

Meet Sister Janelle Sevier, SNDdeN

Sister Janelle Sevier has spent most of her ministerial life in pastoral work. She lived many years in Africa, where she served in a variety of pastoral, educational, and spiritual ministries. After returning from Africa, Sr. Janelle worked in her home state of Louisiana working in both social services and in spirituality: providing HIV services for those who could not afford treatment, and working as a pastoral associate. She then spent time in Haiti, helping to begin a new Notre Dame ministry for destitute families there. Now back in Louisiana, she is working as a pastoral assistant in a local parish and is also privileged to be involved in giving directed retreats and spiritual direction. Deeply grateful for the different ways she has been enriched by seeing God’s action in the lives of people of different cultures and experiences, she embraces this new opportunity to share Gospel reflections via the technological tools which this time in history provides.

Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time – Sr. Maria Delaney, SNDdeN

September 6, 2026

Matthew 18: 15-20

Eucharistic liturgies are communal experiences. We come together as a community of believers, surrounded by a faithful “cloud of witnesses”. Yet many times, we are present simply because attending has become part of our routine, and we do not pay particular attention to our surroundings. This week, the readings offer us two exhortations and a word of reassurance from Jesus.

In this era of major catastrophes and widespread injustices, it can be difficult to know how to respond. Some people react instinctively to news – elated when it is good and dejected when it is bad. It is especially easy to feel helpless when suffering seems distant from our own local community.

The first exhortation comes from Psalm 95: “If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.” It is tempting to turn away from the problems of the world because we each have difficulties of our own and only so much energy. Yet none of us wants to be hard-hearted. The psalm asks us to pay attention: to listen for God’s voice and remain open to the needs of others.

The second exhortation comes from St. Paul’s Letter to the Romans: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Paul reminds us that “love does no evil to the neighbor; hence, love is the fulfillment of the law.” We pray, both privately and with our community of believers, for grace to sustain loving relationships with those with whom we share our lives: family, friends, neighbors, and co-workers.

At the end of the Gospel, Jesus offers a profound reassurance: “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” These words underscore why we need to remain connected to the people who have been placed in our lives. Whether we are happy, sad, or angry; whether we are rejoicing, ailing, or failing, Jesus is in our midst. He is present to us, often in ways we cannot fathom.

Pay attention! Listen to his voice! Love your neighbor! Recognize Christ in your midst!

Matthew 18: 15-20

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,
and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
Again, 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.”

Meet Sister Maria Delaney, SNDdeN

Sister Maria Delaney has been a Sister of Notre Dame de Namur for 62 years. Her professional background includes secondary teaching and administration and ten years as Executive Director of the Notre Dame Education Center in Boston. For twelve years, she was based in Rome Italy as a member of the Sisters’ Congregational Leadership Team. In this capacity, she had the privilege of visiting sisters on five continents. She spent several years on the Board of Directors of the International Catholic Education Association which gave her the opportunity to visit many Catholic schools around the world, especially those in poorer countries. For seven years, she ministered as a Director of the US Office of Sponsored Ministries, working with the schools and health centers in the US that carry the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur name and collaborating with other schools worldwide. She recently served as a member of the Sisters’ NGO delegation at the United Nations. She is currently a member of the US East-West Province Leadership Team.