The Keys of the Kingdom of Heaven
May
you continue to follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit as you follow Jesus, the
Priest, the Prophet, and the King!
Those
who lead and govern us are called to do what is for the Good of all those under
their authority. Yet, as history has shown us, not all those who have been placed
in positions of authority, or have assumed positions of authority by themselves,
have used their power for the Good of others. Some have abused their offices and
acted selfishly. Those who lead should model their leadership on that of the One
Who came to serve, rather than be served, and to do all He could for the Good of
all others. Jesus truly is The Prophet, The Priest, and the King, Who exercises
true authority over all.
Authority. That’s
what we hear from today’s readings. Isaiah speaks harshly to Shebna, master of the
palace, telling him that he has abused his authority, given wrong advice to the
king, and will be held accountable for it. The Responsorial Psalm is a hymn of praise,
probably from one who is in authority (possibly King David), praising the even greater
authority and power of GOD. St. Paul finishes this section of his letter to the
Romans, realizing that he does not have the ultimate power to bring his Jewish sisters
and brothers to the Lord Jesus. He praises GOD Who is above all wisdom and authority
and Who will take care of everything according to the divine plan, which is beyond
Paul’s understanding. In the Gospel, after St. Peter acknowledges Jesus as the Messiah
and the Son of GOD, Jesus empowers Peter with the authority to lead the Church.
Commentary: This reading from Isaiah goes well
with the gospel reading about the appointment of Peter, for there Peter is
appointed as head of Jesus’ own team. In this first reading Isaiah predicts
that Eliakim will take the place of Shebna (for he was an opportunist and
corrupt, who used public money to build his own splendid mausoleum. He was also
an intriguing humbug who, against the opinion of Isaiah, advocated an alliance
with Egypt), as master of the king’s palace in Jerusalem, and that God will
invest him with authority. To open and close the doors of the palace was the
privilege of the master of the place. To the Hebrew mind such a pair of
opposites often signifies everything in-between, so that opening and closing
the doors mean having control of everything that goes on. No one else may
interfere. Similarly, by the pair of opposites ‘binding’ and ‘loosing’ Peter is
given total authority over the assembly or community of Jesus that is the
Church. Equivalently, as Eliakim is given the key of the palace on his shoulder
(or, as we would say, round his neck), so Peter is given the keys of the
kingdom of heaven. Peter is sometimes pictured as the doorkeeper of heaven, but
‘the kingdom of heaven’ is far wider: it means ‘God’s sovereignty’, which Jesus
came to establish on earth, in which all obey, worship and give glory to God.
The
Responsorial Psalm is a hymn of praise, probably from one who is in authority (possibly
King David), praising the even greater authority and power of GOD for being the
ultimate authority in life. Some scripture scholars say it may have been a hymn
used by a king or person in authority, acknowledging the higher authority of GOD.
In the psalm the speaker realizes that all good things come from the power of GOD,
Who hears the cry of the poor. It is also a prayer of petition, asking GOD to remember
the divine promises of old.
Commentary: After his long and
thorough exposition of the way in which the work of Christ won our salvation,
and by his loving obedience wiped away the proud sin of Adam’ disobedience,
Paul has been agonizing about how the Jews can have failed to recognize this
fulfilment of God’s promises to Abraham. Quoting one passage of scripture after
another he finally comes to the conclusion that in the end, in God’s good time
a remnant of Israel will be saved. How this will be he really cannot explain.
Throwing up his hands in incomprehension, he can only burst into this wonderful
hymn of praise to God’s inscrutable Wisdom. We simply cannot understand God’s
plans and methods. This concluding passage comes close to the wonderful passage
at the end of the Book of Job. Job has rejected the shallow explanations for
his sufferings suggested by his friends, when God intervenes to show Job how
mighty and wise he is. Job can only admit that God’s Wisdom surpasses anything
human beings can conceive, and God’s might infinitely transcends any human
power. So Paul willingly grants that God must run his own world, and we cannot
even attempt to challenge God’s reasoning, for everything begins and ends in
God.
Commentary: At last Peter recognizes that Jesus
is the Messiah, the Christ. At last he realizes that in Jesus they can see the
action of God. The disciples followed Jesus as soon as he called, but for a
long time they were puzzled what to make of him, of his wonderful teaching and
his godlike personality. Now comes a shaft of light and understanding. We too
often take some time to appreciate the true worth of someone we know well: a
little gesture can sometimes reveal just how generous and thoughtful they are.
Peter suddenly grasps that there is God, acting among them, a daunting or even
terrifying thought. Jesus replies to Peter’s recognition with his own
generosity, giving him a new name, ‘Rock’, for this is what ‘Peter’ means. If
you name something, you make it your own, take it to yourself. This is just
what Jesus does with Simon who becomes his own Peter. That is the importance of
the naming of a child at Baptism: Jesus takes us to himself and we become his.
The early Christians called themselves ‘Those over whom the name of Jesus has
been called.’ We may have been named Mary or John, but the name of Jesus has
been called over us and we have become his.
Reflection: At an opportune time, Jesus
tests his disciples with a crucial question: Who do men say that I am and
who do you say that I am? He was widely recognized in Israel as a mighty
man of God, even being compared with the greatest of the prophets, John the
Baptist, Elijah, and Jeremiah. Peter, always quick to respond, exclaimed that
he was the Christ, the Son of the living God. No mortal being could
have revealed this to Peter; but only God.
Cyril of Alexandria (376-444 AD), an early church father comments on
Peter's profession of faith in Jesus:
Peter did not say "you are a
Christ" or "a son of God" but
"the Christ, the Son of God." For there are many
christs [meaning anointed ones] by grace, who have attained the rank
of adoption [as sons], but [there is] only one who is by nature the Son of God.
Thus, using the definite article, he said, the Christ, the Son of God. And in
calling him Son of the living God, Peter indicates that Christ himself is life
and that death has no authority over him. And even if the flesh, for a short
while, was weak and died, nevertheless it rose again, since the Word, who
indwelled it, could not be held under the bonds of death. (FRAGMENT 190)
Jesus plays on Peter's name which is
the same word for "rock" in both Aramaic and Greek. To call someone a
"rock" is one of the greatest of compliments. The ancient rabbis had
a saying that when God saw Abraham, he exclaimed: "I have discovered a
rock to found the world upon". Through Abraham God established a nation
for himself. Through faith Peter grasped who Jesus truly was. He was the first
apostle to recognize Jesus as the Anointed
One (Messiah and Christ) and the only begotten Son of God.
The New Testament describes the church as a spiritual house or temple with each
member joined together as living stones (see 1 Peter 2:5). Faith in
Jesus Christ makes us into rocks or spiritual stones.
Jesus then confers on Peter authority to govern the church that Jesus would
build, a church that no powers would overcome because it is founded on the rock
which is Christ himself. Epiphanius, a 6th century Scripture scholar who also
translated many early church commentaries from Greek into Latin, explains the
significance of Jesus handing down the "keys of the kingdom":
For Christ is a rock which is never
disturbed or worn away. we note that the ‘rock,’ as a basis of the Church, is
discussed on other New Testament occasions. This solid, immovable ‘rock’ is
always and only Christ. Paul says: “No one can lay a foundation other
than the one which is already laid, which is Jesus Christ” (1 Cor 3:11). The
Christians of the communities of Asia Minor are reminded of their glorious
condition: “Now you are no longer strangers or guests, but fellow citizens
of the holy people; you are of the household of God. You are the house whose
foundations are the apostles and prophets, and whose cornerstone is Christ
Jesus. In him, the whole structure is joined together, and rises, to be a holy
temple, in the Lord” (Eph 2:19-21). Peter is even more explicit. In his first
letter, he counsels the newly baptized never to break away from Christ because
he is the living ‘rock,’ rejected by people but chosen and precious in the
sight of God. Then he develops the image further and turning to the Christians,
he says: “You, too, become the living stones built into a spiritual
temple,” united as you are to “the chosen and precious
cornerstone” placed by God on Easter day, as a foundation of the whole
building (1 P 2:4-6).
The name given to
Simon—Cephas-Peter—in Aramaic (the language spoken by Jesus) in all probability
does not mean the rock, but just a building stone. In these terms, the stone
which Jesus speaks of is the faith professed by Peter. This faith constitutes
the foundation of the Church, which keeps it united with Christ-rock, makes it indestructible,
and ensures it will never be overwhelmed by the forces of evil. All those who,
like Peter and with Peter, profess this faith, are inserted, as living stones,
into the spiritual building designed by God.
Therefore, Peter gladly received his
name from Christ to signify the established and unshaken faith of the church...
The expression, ‘the gates of hell,’ should
not be interpreted literally. These gates represent the power of evil. They
indicate everything that is opposed to life and the human good. Nothing
ever—ensures Jesus—can prevent the Church from completing her work of
salvation, provided that she is always closely united to him, the Son of the
living God.
The devil is the gateway of death who
always hastens to stir up against the holy church calamities and temptations
and persecutions. But the faith of the apostle, which was founded upon the rock
of Christ, abides always unconquered and unshaken. And the very keys of the
kingdom of the heavens have been handed down so that one whom he has bound on
earth has been bound in heaven, and one whom he has set free on earth he has
also set free in heaven. (INTERPRETATION OF THE GOSPELS 28)
The Lord Jesus offers us the gift of
unshakeable faith, enduring hope, and unquenchable love - and the joyful
boldness to proclaim him as the one true Savior who brings us the kingdom of
God both now and forever. Who do you say he is to yourself and to your
neighbor?
Peter also receives the keys and the
power of binding and losing. Before clarifying the meaning of these two images,
frequently used by the rabbis, we note that the power of binding and loosing is
not reserved to Peter alone but is given soon after, to the whole community (Mt
18:18; cf. John 20:23).
The rabbis were convinced that they
possessed the ‘keys of the Torah’ because they knew the Scriptures. They
believed that everyone had to depend on them, their doctrinal decisions, and
their judgments. They felt entitled to discriminate between the just and
unjust, between saints and sinners.
Jesus takes up this image in his harsh
indictment against the scribes: A curse is on you, teachers of the Law,
for you have taken the key of knowledge. You yourselves have not entered and
you prevented others from entering” (Lk 11:52). Instead of opening the
door of salvation, they barred them, not revealing the true face of God and his
will to the people.
Jesus has taken away from them the key
they abusively appropriated. Now, it is his alone. Returning to the prophecy of
Isaiah to Eliakim, the seer of Revelation declares that Christ and no one
else “opens, nobody shuts and if he shuts nobody opens” (Rev 3:7).
The spiritual edifice, which Jesus refers to, is “the kingdom of
heaven,” the new condition where whoever becomes his disciple enters, and
the key that allows them to enter is the faith professed by Peter.
By handing over the keys to Peter,
Jesus does not charge him to be the gatekeeper of heaven, still less to ‘lord
it’ over the people entrusted to him. Jesus instead tells him to “become
an example to the flock” (1 P 5:3). He entrusted him to open the entrance
wide to the knowledge of Christ and his Gospel. Whoever passes through the door
opened by Peter with his profession of faith (this is the ‘holy door’) has
access to salvation; whoever refuses remains excluded.
The image of binding and losing is
also well known because the rabbis of the time of Jesus employed it often. It
referred to decisions on moral choices. To bind meant to prohibit; to loose was
tantamount to declaring something lawful. It also indicated the power to make
judgments of approval or condemnation on people's behavior and thus to admit or
exclude them from the community.
We can say that, from today’s Gospel,
as in many other texts of the New Testament (Mt10:2; Lk 22:32; Jn 21:15-17), it
is clear that Peter is entrusted with a particular task in the Church. He
always appears first, is called to feed the lambs and the sheep, and must
sustain his brothers in the faith.
Misunderstandings and disagreements
are not born of this truth but from the way of performing the service. With
sincere humility, we admit that this truth has degenerated so many times
throughout the centuries, from being a sign of love and unity to become an
expression of power. As Pope Francis himself has expressly recognized, it is
necessary to revise the exercise of this ministry so that the bishop of Rome
can become genuinely for everyone, according to the beautiful definition of
Irenaeus of Lyons (second century), ‘the one who presides over charity.’
Lord Jesus, I profess and believe that
you are the Christ, the Son of the living God. You are my Lord and my Savior.
Make my faith strong like Peter's and give me boldness to speak of you to
others that they may come to know you personally as Lord and Savior and grow in
the knowledge of your great love.
Daily Quote from the Early Church
Fathers: Christ,
the Son of the living God, by Epiphanius the Latin (315-403 AD)
Did the Lord not know what people
called him? But by questioning he brought forth the conviction of the apostle
Peter and left for us in the future a strong affirmation of faith. For the Lord
questioned not only Peter but all the apostles when he said, "Who do you
say that I am?" Yet one on behalf of all answered the King, who is in due
time to judge the whole world. He is God, both God and man. How miserable does
this make those who are false teachers and strangers now, and to be judged in
eternity. If Christ is the Son of God, by all means he is also God. If he is
not God, he is not the Son of God. But since he himself is the Son, and as the
Son takes up all things from the Father, let us hold this same one inseparably
in our heart because there is no one who escapes his hand. (excerpt
from INTERPRETATION OF THE GOSPELS 28)
“VIVA IL PAPA!”
“I for My part declare to you, you are
‘Rock,’ and on this rock I will build My Church.” —Matthew 16:18
Many Bible teachers have shown their
ingenuity in obscuring the meaning of today’s Gospel reading. They try to show
that Jesus did not really make Peter the “Rock” on which He built His Church.
However, when we read this passage in the original Greek and are conscious that
Jesus spoke these words in Aramaic, we have to admit that this passage means
what it appears to mean. Jesus founded the Church on St. Peter.
Most people would not be too concerned
about Peter leading the Church for a few years after Jesus ascended. However,
they rightly realize that this Biblical passage implies Peter’s leadership of
the Church throughout its history. Jesus set up a permanent structure where
Peter and his successors lead the Church.
Peter’s continuing authority and
leadership in the Church is not a problem, but a gift. It promotes unity and
protects God’s people from being overwhelmed by confusion. Peter’s successors,
the popes, are parts of Christ’s body on whom we can count to proclaim the
truth, and to proclaim Who is the Truth (Jn 14:6), even amid deceptions, lies, and propaganda.
We need the pope and thank God for
him. Pray for the pope. Listen to him. Find out what he teaches and apply his
teachings to your life (see Heb 13:17).
Prayer: Father, I will look to
the pope for direction and not do my own thing. “Who has known the mind of the
Lord?” —Rm 11:34. Praise the risen Jesus, Who holds “the keys of
death and the nether world”! (Rv 1:18)
The
personal action for today: What images come to mind when I think of authority?
Have I suffered from the abusive authority of someone who has not used his/her authority
in a proper way? Have I been blessed by being under someone who sees her/his authority
as a share in the role of Jesus, The Priest, The Prophet, and The King? Do I pray
for those who are in authority over me? When I have been in a position of authority
(as a parent, manager, teacher, or boss), have I modelled my behaviour on the servant-leadership
example of Jesus, Who came to serve, not to be served? How can I reassure others
that the ultimate authority is GOD?