Gospel of Matthew: Who do you say that I am?

Matthew 16:13-18

I feel as if there has been a resurgence in people focusing on this question in homilies and writing lately. I seem to see it everywhere and it is a good question to ask oneself about Jesus. Peter's answer leads Christ to high praise and revelation about his church.

Reading Bishop Barron's commentary gave me my own sort of revelation.

Jesus responded to this confession of Peter with some of the most extraordinary language in the New Testament: "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it." Neither the crowds nor the aristocratic circle around Jesus knew who he was—only Peter knew. And this knowledge did not come from Peter's intelligence or from an extraordinary education (he didn't have one) or from his skill at assessing popular opinion. It came as a gift from God, a special charism of the Holy Spirit. Because of this gift, given only to the head of the Twelve, Jesus called Simon by a new name: in Aramic Cephas (rock or rocky), rendered in Greek as Petros and in English as Peter.

Reading this my mind's eye was seized with the idea that this is one of those moments when Jesus' perfect humanity and perfect divinity intersect. He knows that Peter will lead the church because Peter was given this revelation by the Father. We are seeing Christ himself take guidance from the Father's working in the moment through Peter. Kind of a give-and-take of these two members of the Trinity in the workings of time. At least — that's how it felt to me.

I also like this further point which Bishop Barron goes on to make. We are not to hunker down because we're safe from the gates of Hell. We're to take the battle to the gates of Hell themselves. Now those are marching orders!

On the foundation of this rock, Jesus declared that he would build his ekklesia, his Church. ... And Jesus insists that this society, grounded in Peter's confession, would constitute an army so powerful that not even the fortified capital of the dark kingdom itself could withstand it. It is fascinating to me how often we construe this saying of Jesus in precisely the opposite direction, as though the Church is guaranteed safety against the onslaughts of hell. In point of fact, Jesus is suggesting a much more aggressive image: his Church will lay successful siege upon the kingdom of evil, knocking down its gate and breaching its walls.

Quote is from The Word on Fire Bible: The Gospels. This series first ran in 2008. I'm refreshing it as I go.