Saturday, August 18, 2018

19th Week, Ordinary Time, Saturday, 18-08-18

Ezekiel 18:1-10, 13, 30-32 / Matthew 19:13-156

There is truth in the proverb quoted in the 1st reading: The fathers have eaten unripe grapes; and the children's teeth are set on edge.

The truth is that children learn from their parents, and in those Biblical times, the father is the head of the family and he sets the example and so naturally the children learn primarily from him.

Through the prophet Ezekiel, the Lord said that this proverb will no longer have any reason to be repeated, because now, the man who has sinned, he is the one who shall die.

So it will have to be a personal accountability, and no one can no longer say that he sinned because his father had sinned and the sin is passed down to him.

But as much as there must be a personal accountability, then fathers, as well as parents and teachers and those who have an influence over children must also be accountable for what they are teaching the children.

This accountability becomes greater and heavier when we read what Jesus said in the gospel about children: Let the little children come to me, for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven belongs.

So let us be aware of what we teach to the little children. Our responsibility is to teach them the ways of the Lord and to show them God's love and mercy.

When we have fulfilled our responsibility, then it will be for them to be accountable when they come of age.