August 10, 2014
19th Sunday Ordinary Time
How many times does the evangelist Matthew mention Peter’s name in his Gospel? Twenty-five! We can infer that Jesus and Peter have a special bond: Peter is the first apostle to be called (along with his brother Andrew); he is always named first on the list of the apostles; Jesus stays in Peter’s home and cures his mother-in-law; Peter (with James and John) is present at key moments during the public ministry of Jesus. Peter undoubtedly has abilities and qualities that enable him to stand out/up in a crowd but he is also flawed. We see his human virtues and frailties apparent in our reading today. The apostles are crossing the Sea of Galilee battered by strong winds and waves. Jesus walks toward them on the sea. They are alarmed that they are seeing a ghost. Jesus calms their fear: “Courage. It is I. Be not afraid.†Peter dares to say: “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.†Jesus simply addresses Peter: “Come.†Peter gets out of the boat and walks on the water but when he becomes conscious of the wind and waves, he begins to sink. Peter cries out: “Lord, save me.†Jesus stretches out his hand, catches Peter and lifts him up. And says gently to Peter: “O you of little faith. Why did you doubt?†Here Peter wants to come to Jesus but he is overcome by fear. In chapter 16 of Matthew’s Gospel, Peter is inspired to acknowledge Jesus as the Christ, the Messiah, but soon after Peter refuses to accept that being the Christ entails suffering and the cross. As the passion draws near, Peter declares his willingness to die for Jesus but, after Jesus is arrested, Peter denies even knowing Jesus. Perhaps in his threefold denial Peter is telling a truth about himself – after being with Jesus for three years -- he doesn’t really know him! And yet the Risen Lord will appear to the apostles at a mountain in Galilee and bid them: “Make disciples of all nations.†We can identify with Peter in both his goodness and weakness. How often do we act out of fear? Who wants to suffer? Can we honestly say that we know Jesus? With Peter we need to cry out: “Lord, save me†– trusting that Jesus will stretch out his hand to us in our hour of need.
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18th Sunday Ordinary Time
