Have you ever watched a ceremony televised from the square outside the Vatican Basilica in Rome? During quiet moments in ceremonies, when not too much is happening, the camera often focuses on two giant statues near the stairs leading up to the basilica doors. They represent St. Peter, holding keys, and St. Paul, holding a letter in his left hand and a sword in his right.
Today the Church invites us to celebrate these two foundational figures with passages from Scripture that focus on Peter and Paul. Through them, the Scriptures invite us to consider what it means to be a follower of Christ today.
In this Gospel, Jesus starts with the question, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” The answers he gets recognize him as the equal of great prophets. When Jesus asks the disciples directly “Who do you say that I am?”, it is Peter who speaks up on behalf of them all, recognizing Jesus as the Christ and as the Son of the living God. Jesus then makes the promise that probably all of us can recite by heart: “You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church ... I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven.”
An important part of today’s feast is that for both Peter and Paul what they “said” about Jesus in their words or letters was matched by what they “said” with their actions, how they lived their lives, to the extent that both were martyred for acclaiming Jesus as the Son of the living God.
We do not live in a culture in which we are likely to suffer outright martyrdom for our beliefs, but there are so many little ways that today’s culture can kill off our spiritual or faith life. The Gospel is realistic about the struggle to be a Christian. The Gospel is always mindful of our human nature, and one way in which that is expressed is in the lives of the two saints we celebrate today. Scripture does not sanitize their stories, but shows us that there was another side. Paul, remember, was a fanatical persecutor of the Church; and Peter had his moments of sinking doubt and denial. The Gospel does not deny that we may get things wrong; it asks us not to deny it, and to get it right from then on.
Too difficult, some say, and that’s another reason to look to Peter and Paul. Underlying all they achieved there is a fundamental conviction that we are invited to share: we are what we are by the grace of God. Baptism is a call to follow Jesus, but it is entrusts us to the Spirit who strengthens us to live up to this high calling.
Next time we see St. Peter’s Square, full of people, being televised, perhaps we can watch out for those two statues and remember: one Church, many people; one mission, many ministries. That’s what “Catholic” really means.
-What does being “Catholic” mean in your life?
Adapted from PrayerTime: Faith-Sharing Reflections on the Sunday Gospels, available at the RENEW International store