Christ the Cornerstone

Christ builds his Church on the rock of St. Peter’s faith

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. (Mt 16:18)

Tomorrow, Feb. 22, is the Feast of the Chair of St. Peter the Apostle. Like the conversion of St. Paul, this feast day celebrates both the saint and his significant role in the growth and development of the Church of Jesus Christ.

St. Peter was personally chosen by the Lord. His mission was to provide authority and stability to the young Church and to be the “rock” that guarantees that the powers of sin and evil (“the netherworld”) can never prevent the Church from carrying out her Divine Mission. The “chair” that we reverence in this feast is the “cathedra,” the honored seat from which the Vicar of Christ presides and pronounces official Church teaching.

St. Paul, whose conversion we celebrated on Jan. 25, was also personally chosen by Christ to become the Apostle to the Gentiles. His conversion was the necessary condition for his ability to fulfill his mission. All of the religious zeal that he brought to his early persecution of Jesus’ followers was redirected to his missionary work, and, as a result, Paul is recognized as one of the greatest missionary disciples who ever lived. His words still inspire us and lead us to encounter Jesus personally.

In the Gospel reading for tomorrow’s liturgy (Mt 16:13-19), Jesus asks his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” (Mt 16:15). This question is as powerful and important for us today as it was 2,000 years ago in the region of Caesarea Phillipi where Jesus preached. Who is Jesus? What do his life, death and resurrection mean for us personally and for the world?

Then as now there are many possible answers. Some say he is a holy man, a prophet or a great moral teacher who founded one of the Great World Religions. “But who do you say that I am?” Jesus asks his disciples (and each of us). Only Peter can answer definitively and with authority: “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God” (Mt 16:15-16).

Jesus affirms Peter’s response, and he points out that it is Divinely inspired:

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. (Mt 16:17-19)

As the rock that grounds the Body of Christ, the Church, and keeps it faithful to the Truth, St. Peter and his successors have provided the definitive, authoritative witness that has kept the Church faithful to her Lord for the past 2,000 years.

From the chair, the Vicar of Christ continues Jesus’ ministry of teaching, healing and giving thanks and praise to his Father in heaven. By the grace of the Holy Spirit, weak and sinful men like Peter do and say remarkable things in their witness to Jesus Christ the Lord.

In tomorrow’s first reading, St. Peter instructs his fellow Church leaders on how the ministry they have been given by Christ is to be exercised:

Beloved: I exhort the presbyters among you, as a ­fellow presbyter and witness to the sufferings of Christ and one who has a share in the glory to be revealed. Tend the flock of God in your midst, overseeing not by ­constraint but willingly, as God would have it, not for shameful profit but eagerly. Do not lord it over those ­assigned to you, but be examples to the flock. And when the chief Shepherd is revealed, you will receive the ­unfading crown of glory. (1 Pt 5:1-4)

Those who minister in Jesus’ name as collaborators with the Vicar of Christ are to be gentle shepherds, not arrogant or overbearing, but eager witnesses to the Truth. What they teach, how they pray, and the way they live must give glory to God and bring healing and hope to all God’s people.

As we celebrate this holy feast, let’s give thanks to God for all the weak and sinful men throughout history of the Church who have occupied the Chair of St. Peter the Apostle. And let us pray especially for Pope Francis, our current gentle shepherd. May he continue to be blessed with zeal for his mission. And when he completes his mission as the Successor of St. Peter, the Rock, may he receive “the unfading crown of glory.” †