Gentle correction

Chapter 18 of Matthew's gospel is a collection of different teachings of Jesus and verses 15-20 which we read today concern correcting a member of the family or community who is doing something wrong. Jesus says that first we go by ourselves to reason with him to point out his or her error. As we heard in yesterday's gospel, Jesus wants us to go after the stray sheep to bring it back to the flock. But to put that advice into practice is not as easy as it sounds. I am thinking of what is a fairly common case. That is when traditional grandparents are very upset when their grandchildren are not baptized. It is often the grandfather who wades in boots and all and tells his son or daughter off in an angry way. That does not help at all and only makes the parents stick to their opinion more strongly. But then if the grandparents don't say anything their children will think that are are not concerned with the situation. The best solution might be for the grandmother to say gently, ''Darling, if you decide to get your child baptized, you know that I will be there to help.'' In another situation when we feel the necessity to correct another, we have to find a way to get the message over without causing anger. Maybe something like, ''You make me feel unhappy when you act like that.'' To go back to Jesus seeking the stray sheep, Pope Francis said, ''In Jesus' vision, there are no sheep that are definitively lost, but only sheep that must be found again....to God no one is definitively lost. Never! To the last moment, God is searching for us...No distance can keep the shepherd away.'' Help us, Lord, to be gentle shepherds.