21st Sunday in Ordinary Time

Fr Dominic's Homily

Who do you say that I am?

Today we hear that Jesus asks his disciples: “Who do you say that I am?” Notice that Jesus doesn’t ask:

• What do people say that I teach?

• What do they say about my ideas?

• About what I have been doing?

No – he asks who do people say He is? Christianity is the only religion that does this.

No Buddhist honours Buddha. They look at his path to enlightenment.

No Muslim would ever worship Mohammed. They see him as a messenger.

And how do the disciples respond? Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah or Jeremiah or one of the prophets. He gets a range of opinions that all have two things in common. They are all dead and they are all wrong.

So, Jesus asks his disciples who have walked closely with him. Who do you say I am? Now this reminds us that Jesus never really introduced himself to his disciples in a proper way. No – it’s only half way through his ministry that they get to know really who he is.

Finally, Peter speaks. You are the Christ the son of the living God. And he gets it right. General opinion was wrong. Peter got it right. Alone.

Is this because he is the most intelligent? Or the holiest? No – he is weak, he even betrays Jesus! If anything, John should get it right. He is the holiest and most mystical.

Jesus says to Peter “Blessed are you because flesh and blood didn’t reveal this to you. My heavenly Father did” Peter knew not because of his goodness, intelligence or holiness. But because it came from the Father.

Jesus gives Simon this new name of Peter. Name changes always signify that something important is going to happen. Like when Abrahm meaning Father is given the name Abraham meaning Father of all.

Jesus says, “you are Peter and on this rock I will build my Church.” Peter will become the new temple. The church now rests upon this inspired word of Peter. Not upon popular opinion.

Thank goodness the Church isn’t based upon a public opinion poll. We would have said Jesus was the reincarnation of Elijah. Thank goodness the Church will never be a democracy or it would have failed years ago.

Rules are not a restriction. They are actually life giving. Rules are like bones in the body – when muscles act on them they allow freedom. If there were no rules in a class how much learning would get done? Just imagine what football or cricket would be like without rules?

Through a charism of the Holy Spirit Peter and his successors now govern the Church. He is given the keys to the kingdom.

Just as we heard in the first reading that King David takes the keys of his kingdom away from Shebna who has been a bad governor and gives them to Eliakim who will be his new prime minister. He will be the next in the line of successors who will govern the kingdom.

So, it is with Peter because he confesses Who Jesus is. Now that doesn’t mean Peter and his successors are right about everything – only when speaking about matters relating to Jesus. But in these matters, he will have a binding authority. And Jesus even says that whatever matters Peter teaches in this regard will be considered accepted in heaven and not the other way around!

It was the moment in which the disciples realized that this man, their friend and teacher, was far greater than any of the prophets from before. He was the very one the prophets had all pointed towards.

This was the promised one who had come to save Israel. Jesus was the Christ, the Son of God. And once these words from Peter are out in the open - it changes everything.

The twelve move from being a group of friends and followers into true disciples.

So perhaps the question is not so much “who do we say he is?” We know that – whether or not we truly believe it.

But who does Jesus say that we are? Are we truly his followers? And how do we show this?