Isaiah 22: 15,19-23; Psalm 138; Romans 11:33-36; Matthew 16:13-20

We often hear that our way is not God’s way and when we examine the life of Jesus, we can see a real example of this.  The Jewish people were hopeful of a Messiah coming and rescuing them from the tyranny of Rome.  They expected a powerful leader who would go into battle; much the same as Jesus’ ancestor David did centuries earlier.  Someone who would pick up the invaders by the scruff of the neck, take them to the borders and throw them out of Israel.  But as we know Jesus was not like that. Jesus was born in a stable, was forced to flee his homeland by a tyrant king, grew up within a family who trusted God and ensured Jesus learned about God and his people.  Jesus advocated love instead of violence. Jesus exercised power in a way that mankind finds difficult to understand.

This is part of what St Paul is emphasising in our second reading today; God makes decisions which we humans struggle to understand and at times we find unfathomable. A perfect example of this is found within our Gospel.  If we as humans were to pick the perfect person to establish the Church, take it into new lands and to new cultures; how many of us would have chosen a fisherman, who would go on to deny Jesus three times at the very moment when we humans would have judged Jesus needed his closest friends to vouch for him, more than at any other time in His life?

In our first reading we hear of an unsuitable palace official, Shebna; who had abused the authority given to him by his master; being removed from his post and it being given to Eliakim.  Eliakim is given all of the symbols of office including the key to the House of David.  Jesus as the long awaited ‘Son of David’ appoints Peter as a new steward to look after His kingdom on earth.  The keys being the symbol of authority. This authority has been passed down all the way to our current Holy Father, Pope Leo. He is Christ’s representative on earth; Pastor to the world, with an authority which comes from Christ Himself.

Today, the successor of Peter hails from Chicago, Illinois in the United States. His father was a World War II veteran and spent the post war years in education, and his mother was a librarian. He himself, has spent much of his priesthood as a Missionary priest in South America, serving the poor and marginalised. In his first Encyclical Letter MAGNIFICA HUMANITAS, he has written about the dignity of the human being and the necessity for all men and women to have access to work in these days, when technology companies appear to be looking for more ways to reduce the numbers of people that companies need to employ. His message echoes that of his predecessor Pope Leo XIII, who gave a similar message in his days when the ability of men to find work was being threatened by mechanisation. Just as the Keys to the Kingdom meant that St Peter had to speak out and share the Gospel in a hostile world, Pope Leo and his recent predecessors have taken the Gospel message and applied it to our current situations. With the ‘Keys’ comes much responsibility.

As Baptised Catholics we are compelled not to keep our faith to ourselves.  Christ’s love is big enough to be shared with everyone.

Today Jesus asks us – Who do people say that He is? How relevant in our lives is Jesus? Would our neighbours recognise us as followers of Jesus, not just because we go to church but by the life we live?

As a deacon, I am called to serve.  My service has to be for the benefit of those I serve and should never be self-serving.  

As Catholics, we have been baptised by water and the Holy Spirit. How do we allow the Spirit to work in us?  Do we allow the gifts and charisms of the Holy Spirit to flourish in our lives for the benefit of others?  When St Peter stated that Jesus was “the Christ, the Son of the living God”, he made that statement for us to learn, for us to acknowledge and for us to share with those we encounter.  How can we share what we acknowledge in our Creed this week?

Further Reading

The Catechism of the Catholic Church

Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time

CCC551-553: the Keys of the Kingdom
CCC 880-887: foundations of unity: the college of bishops with its head, the successor of Peter^[1]

[1] Homiletic Directory, Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments

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I must confess, that one thing that troubles me today is the reality of so much polarization that is occurring in society. Not only has this effected the world of politics, but it has entered the life of the Church. We should not be surprised about this, as the Church reflects the culture we found ourselves living in. Jesus Christ came to bring unity or communion – between humanity and God, between each other, and between us and creation. We profess every Sunday, that we believe in a one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church. So why are there so much division at times? I don’t have the answer and it may be very tempting to scapegoat, but we need to ask ourselves the question – am I person of unity or a person of division? Sometimes we allow the pettiness of things to get in the way. I find solace in today’s Collect. We pray to God who causes the minds of the faithful in a single purpose. God who brings upon unity. Unity is not conformity but respects the diversity in the world and in the Church. We petition God for us to love Him and each other, and to desire the promise of fullness of life, which is eternal life. And although there is much uncertainty in the world with polarization, war, injustice, and violence, we fix our hearts on God, where true gladness is found. Through the celebration of the sacred liturgy, the Holy Spirit is at work, both explicitly and implicitly, to bring upon unity. It is our task as Christians to bring that peace and unity into the world around – starting within our families, among our neighbours, in our parish families, and in our workplaces. Overtime, by our example through our words and actions, unity spreads. 

Prayer of the Faithful:

For our Pope –

that he may always be guided by the Holy Spirit so that his guidance during world’s problems is inspired by a deep faith and personal love of the Lord.

For those who struggle with their faith – 

that they may hold fast to their love of the God, so that, when the storms of doubt have passed, they will stand firm as a rock in their Christian belief.

For a deepening of our faith– 

that we may support each other in our daily lives to deepen our personal faith in Christ and his Church, so what we say and do is based on a living faith.   

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These hymns have been chosen from the Laudate hymnbook:

The Church's one foundation 830

All my hope on God is founded 959

Firmly I believe and truly 962

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