The Gospel gives us three sayings of Jesus. The first is on the inevitability of scandals. Scandals are those actions or words which, literally, cause people to trip up and fall. These things cannot be avoided, Jesus says, but it is bad for those who are responsible. It is a terrible thing to come between a person and the call of Christ, to be the effective agent for blocking a person coming to know and love Christ and His way.

The second saying is about forgiveness and reconciliation and it is not unconnected with the question of scandal. If a brother or a sister, that is, a fellow- Christian is clearly in the wrong, he should be corrected. And, if he clearly repents, then he is to be forgiven, even if he commits the same offence any number of times. This is not to say that a person can keep doing wrong and keep saying sorry. What it does mean is that, as Christians, the whole thrust of our actions is for reconciliation and not judgement and condemnation.

The third saying is about faith, that is, deep trust in God. Jesus tells His disciples that if they had faith the size of a tiny mustard seed, they could order a sycamore tree to be uprooted and transplanted in the sea and it would happen. Perhaps an area where we need strong trust is in being able to sincerely forgive again and again those who have hurt us or others.