Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Two weeks ago Peter was walking on the water during a huge storm until he took his eyes off of Jesus, looked at himself and sank. He was the only apostle who climbed out of the boat. And today he receives the keys to the kingdom of heaven (Mathew 16: 13-20).
Jesus asks the people in today’s gospel, “Who do people say that I am?” He can understand how others outside of his group can be mistaken. Then he asks the disciples. He may have been thing that you who have lived with me day by day, heard me speak and teach, listened to me pray and seen the miracles I worked, who do you say that I am? It is a question from a Lover who needs to know to what extent he is known and understood and accepted in his deepest identity by those he loves.
Peter responds, “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.” Peter sees from his answer the eternal bond between Jesus and his father, which is completely different from the bond of a creature with his creator. Peter’s response combines two fundamental titles that reveal Christ’s identity. He is the Christ, the Anointed One, and he is the Son of the Living God. Both titles have a definite article: the Messiah, the Son of the God, the living One. Four definite articles convey the uniqueness and singularity of all the members. You are the perfect, unsurpassable and unrepeatable manifestation of the divine life of the Father. He who has seen you has seen the Father. This absolute unity of being in Christ and in the Father, as distinct persons, is the very foundation of Christian life.
Jesus says to Peter, “Blessed are you Simon, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you but my Father in heaven.” Jesus witnesses that it is the Father who makes this reality present for Peter. It is not due to his experience or intuition or knowledge. Peter’s witnessing of Jesus’ deepest identity is a reflection of his involvement in the very life of God. God has given it to Peter, through no merit of his own. Flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but a free gift of the Father. Christ came to reveal the Father to us. Re-velation means to lift up the veil; God is the one who draws it back.
“You are Peter and on this rock (petra) I will build my Church.” A looser translation could be: you are Peter and on this Peter I will build my Church. He builds it on the person of Peter (and his successors) not on his faith, or his qualities. Peter gets a new name, which means a new office, a new mission. He has been chosen by God to be the stone, the rock of this new building: the Church. St. Augustine said that the sheep have been entrusted to another one different from Christ, yet Christ makes himself one with Peter. They become one as a bride and bridegroom.
The word church (ecclesia) is used only four times in the gospels, always in Matthew. Its original meaning is to call people from their homes. Through the apostles and their successors, Christ continues to call people out of the world. The Church must be a place away from the world. It is not just a group of like minded people, but the body of Christ made present. This is a foundational moment for the apostles and for the church. All Christians are summoned to leave the world, not to go to a monastery but to leave worldliness in order to transform those around them. To feed the sheep of the flock the Church needs particular shepherds, you and me. Don’t be afraid to offer yourself for the needs of the parish. The call, the invitation is from Jesus Christ, not from me.
The gates of the netherworld will not prevail against her. The apostles are like columns of prayer, of faith, of teaching. Now Christ makes them solid to hold up his Church. Before they were weak and couldn’t hold up themselves. The strength comes from God. If they were twelve bright, articulate, wealthy individuals one could think that this work was done by them. With Peter and the apostles it is obvious that God is the one who does the work. Truly this is a work of God, not of man.
After the resurrection Jesus tells Peter three times feed my sheep. These two gospels leave no doubt about the intentions of Christ and what he is creating in today’s gospel. Let us not be afraid to profess our faith, to tell those around us what God has done for us. This is what gives others hope. It is not a matter of convincing or persuading others only to say what God has done for you!