Shadowing Practice: 2026 09 06 Reflection 127 - Learn English Speaking with Video

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I am blessed to have as my brothers in the Franciscan community several friars who are canon lawyers.
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One aspect of the Church's canon law deals with penalties,
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which might be incurred or imposed for very serious actions which break the unity of the Church.
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One of these has been in the news lately, excommunication.
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While popular opinion might see excommunication as the church condemning someone to hell, that is not the case.
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The church never rejects any of its members.
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Rather, it acts as a loving parent might in the face of a child who slams the door and leaves the house.
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In the face of someone's serious violation of a church law,
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the church names it through the penalty but then remains open to that person's return always.
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The Church, in imitation of the father of the prodigal son, waits to embrace the prodigal's return with sincere affection.
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In today's Gospel, Jesus spells out a process to address the situation where one community member hurts another.
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Our Lord asks His followers first to keep the problem private with a one-to-one conversation between the one injured
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and the one who inflicts the injury.
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Only if that fails is the disciples to involve others as witnesses.
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A third step after failure is to tell the church, that is, bring the issue before the whole community.
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If nothing persuades the sinful disciple to listen, quote, then treat him as you would a Gentile or a tax collector.
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Scripture scholar Father Ron Witherup writes that this extreme treatment, quote, may at first seem like making them outcasts,
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but we should remember that Jesus called such outcasts to be members of his inner circle and his wider community.
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These now public Christian sinners would become the focus of reconciliation, following Jesus' example in reaching out to tax collectors and sinners.
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And so, in the church today, our Holy Father and our bishops
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and pastors are called to foster unity with prayer for the return of those who have broken that bond of love.
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When we act as Jesus has taught, we are ensured of the Father's generosity and the presence of Jesus in our midst as we gather.

About This Lesson

You're practicing English with "2026 09 06 Reflection 127" using the Shadowing technique — a method originally developed for professional interpreter training.

Focus on sounding like the speaker — not just repeating words. With 15–30 minutes of daily practice, you'll build real-world speaking confidence.

What is the Shadowing Technique?

Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.