Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the one about whom Moses wrote in the law, and also the prophets, Jesus son of Joseph, from Nazareth.” But Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come from Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him, “Here is a true child of Israel. There is no duplicity in him.” Nathanael said to him, “How do you know me?” Jesus answered and said to him, “Before Philip called you, I saw you under the fig tree.” Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel.” Jesus answered and said to him, “Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than this.” And he said to him, “Amen, amen, I say to you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
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I’m sure we all have a favorite picture or family portrait hanging on a wall at home. Maybe it’s a picture from your wedding day; a photo of a family reunion; or a picture of your pet.
Mine is an icon of Jesus.
I pray before it every morning before celebrating Mass. His is the first face I see. It’s a picture I’ve had for a few years, yet every time I see it is as if it’s the very first time.
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When looking at your favorite picture, one thing you might not think about is the nail behind the frame. Once that nail is driven into the wall and latches onto a frame, it’s no longer visible.
Naturally, we tend to forget about it. But without that nail, the frame would slide off of the wall, shattering the glass across the floor.
In that sense, a nail serves two purposes: it brings two separate objects together – in this case, attaching a picture frame to a wall – and it provides enduring support.
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In today’s Gospel, the Apostle Philip plays the role of a nail.
He brings his brother, Nathanael, to Christ, then provides ongoing support along his journey.
It’s what we’re all called to do – invite people to Jesus, then support them along the way. If we disappear into the background in the process, that’s okay; it’s not about us, anyway.
It’s all about bringing two objects – in this case, two souls – together for the greater glory of God.
How might I be someone else’s “nail” today?
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Image credits: (1) (2) Ponderings on a Faith Journey (3) The Hymn Society
Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi and he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter said in reply, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus said to him in reply, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father. And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” Then he strictly ordered his disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ.
The Gospel of the Lord.
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What is the entrance into heaven like?
Is it like the DMV, where you have to stand in line, take a number, then wait for what seems to be an eternity before your name is called? Is there a large support staff doing most of the vetting, with each person seated behind a protective window?
Or is Saint Peter standing there all by himself with reading glasses perched on the tip of his nose, a name tag clipped to his robe, with a clipboard, a pen, and paper in hand? Maybe he’s technologically savvy and he uses an iPad.
If today’s Gospel is any indication, then it is Saint Peter standing at the entrance of those pearly gates. And dangling by a large gold chain tethered around his waist are the keys to God’s home.
“I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven,” Jesus promises him in today’s Gospel.
What on earth did Peter do to deserve such an honor? Is it fair to have him being the one doing roll call, telling us to take a number, asking each of us to render an account of our lives before being either admitted or denied access to heaven?
It seems fair to me. Peter understands people like us. He also remembers where this whole thing started.
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Jesus has just led his disciples to the region of Caesarea Phillipi, the northernmost place they will travel during his ministry, more than 100 miles away from Jerusalem, giving them a reprieve from the crowds and the jealous eyes of the religious authorities.
Knowing that his days on earth are numbered, there’s one significant, pressing issue which Jesus must resolve before his death. Is there anyone, anyone, who understands him? Or has all of this been for nothing?
So, he holds an impromptu staff meeting.
“Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” he questions his disciples.
“Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” I’m sure the disciples were all hoping that the Lord would answer affirmatively to one of them – A, B, C, or D.
But, in typical fashion, the Lord presses them further. “But who do you say that I am?”
I imagine many of them lowered their eyes to the ground. They shuffled their feet, put their hands in their pockets, coughed, sighed, whistled, puckered their lips, or started counting sheep in their head. One, two three…
Anything to endure the uncomfortable silence. Suddenly Peter pipes up, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God!”
Ding! Ding! Ding!
It must’ve felt like an answer thrown out of left field. “Where did he get that?” the others must’ve wondered.
“Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah,” Jesus says. “For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father. And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church.”
Here’s the key, as it were.
Peter did not come up with the correct answer on his own; the answer was given to him by our heavenly Father. Much like Mary, who became the Mother of God, Peter didn’t earn his role; he was simply chosen.
Chosen, not only to be the rock of the Church, but also to be the bearer of the keys to the kingdom.
So, why is this such a good thing?
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Peter understands people like us.
The same Peter who gets it right today will receive the sternest rebuke possible just a few verses after when Jesus calls him, “Satan.”
The same Peter who calls Jesus “the Christ, the Son of the living God,” also sank into the stormy Sea of Galilee, drenched in fear and doubt.
He also questioned Jesus when caught in another storm, “Lord, do you not care that we are drowning?”
Peter then made what Mary Poppins called “pie crust promises,” easy to make, easy to break. “Though all may have their faith in you shaken,” he says on the night of the Last Supper, “mine will never be!”
Shortly thereafter, he falls asleep in the Garden of Gethsemane and denies Jesus three times when he wakes up.
Peter may bear the keys to the kingdom, but he also doubted, struggled, and failed as we sometimes do. But his saving grace comes with how his life ended.
Thirty years after being appointed the “rock” of the Church, Peter died like Jesus – nailed to a cross. The only difference being that Peter died upside down at his own request, not feeling worthy of dying like his Lord.
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That’s the one standing guard at the pearly gates, taking roll call. A man with crucified hands and feet, who knows what it is to fail – and, more importantly, to be redeemed.
May Peter pray for us that we, too, would live the faith we profess, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God!”
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Image credits: (1) Shays Holistics (2) Lynch, Toonpool (3) Christ Giving the Keys to Saint Peter, Rubens
When the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together, and one of them, a scholar of the law, tested him by asking, “Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?” He said to him, “You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment. The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
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In 2018, the CARA Institute at Georgetown University published the results of an extensive survey on why young people leave the Catholic Church
One statistic that still keeps me up at night – and fills my heart with unrelenting passion – is the fact that up to 90% of children leave the Church by the age of 13, which is commonly celebrated as the age of Confirmation.
Just when youngsters stand before God, their bishop, their faith community, and their families promising to embrace the faith given to them at their baptism, they’re out the door.
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It is my deep-seeded belief that children are notrejecting God, or even a right-understanding of the Church. Rather, they’re often rejecting the sense of boredom that came from years of transactional religion, as well as their belief in outdated “rules.”
Is it just me, or is there something that must be done?
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Pope Saint Pius X, whose feast day we celebrate today, foresaw the same phenomenon – a potential exodus of belief in Christ and his Church – over a century ago. The world was being “modernized.” Societies and cultures were changing at a rapid pace.
The Church had to keep up.
So, he instituted several reforms. First, he required that our Catholic faith be taught to children in every parish through a program commonly referred to today as CCD.
Here, we call it “faith formation,” because we believe the learning never stops. Confirmation is not the end of one’s faith journey; rather, a transition into an adult faith.
Secondly, he lowered the age for First Communion, allowing children to receive the Eucharist as early as seven. St. Pius believed our children are not the future of the Church; they are part of the present, called to a life of holiness.
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Perhaps today we’re all being called to contemplate how we pass on our faith. How can we turn the tide? In what ways can we become increasingly effective in sharing the Gospel, not only with children, but with “all generations”?
