"Who do you say I am?" A question to ponder.




"Who do you say I am?"

This is the question Jesus pressed Peter (who was still Simon at that point) to answer (Matthew 16). And this is the central question that our new associate pastor, Fr. Rory Traynor, focused on as well in today's homily. It's not enough to give the "safe answers," such as "they say you are..."-- we need no apologia if we are convinced about who Jesus is to us personally. 

It's a lot to ponder; it's not nearly enough to just parrot what we learned in CCD or Sunday School. It's not enough to quote Scripture. It's a question that we need to grapple with, over and over again, to find out what we truly believe. Not just reciting the Apostle's Creed or any other credo; what do we know to be true?

That goes deep, doesn't it? And yes, we have seasons of doubt. And yes, we sometimes have to just cling to the words until we get our footing again. And yes, we will be tested, over and over and over again. We can feel defeated by the world and it's adulation of all things glittery and crass and cruel. We can wonder why we say what we believe, given that "faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen" (Hebrews 11:1). The world around us demands proof, doesn't it? And with all of the chaos, turmoil, hurt, and disaster in the world, it's hard to hang onto faith and keep it shiny.

But we have to. Things of this world are destined to disappoint; they are fallible, transitory, and prone to misuse. People are fallible, misled, hurt and hurtful. What we have to do, at least as I understand it, is figure out what we are here for. If we can get that far, discern our tasks and maybe even (big picture) our mission, we can maybe answer the question: Who is Jesus, to us? If we are doing as much good as we can, and we can see that our honest efforts are making a difference, then it's not so big a stretch to see that Jesus is with us. And if we understand that Jesus is with us, then we can more readily answer the question, at least as it pertains to us. Look to your right; there He is. If we can see how his model shapes our own actions, then we can see who He is, in relation to ourselves.

Peter, the rock upon which Christ built his church, was incredibly fallible. He was human, after all. He was prone to doubt, to indecision, to the small (and large) crises of faith that we all work through. But yet, he came to understand exactly who Jesus was/is. Peter declared that Jesus is the "son of the living God"-- not a dead faith, a faint star, a shadow in the cosmos-- a living, loving God. We need to figure out what our relationship is to Him, and I think that the best way to do that is to figure out what our relationship is to other people and also to ourselves. If we can see Jesus in others, and then in ourselves as well, then we can answer the question. 

A lot to think about, eh? Have a good day,

C

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