HOMILY FOR SOLEMNITY OF SAINTS PETER AND PAUL — YEAR C
HOMILY THEME: The Church amidst the Storms and the Power of the Keys
BY: Fr. Celestine Muonwe
Acts 12:1-11, Ps 34:2-9, 2nd Timothy 4:6-18, Matthew 16:13-19
Today the Church celebrates the solemnity of the two greatest preachers of the Gospel, Peter and Paul. Peter was originally one of the twelve apostles, where as Paul was called by God to be an apostle, as he himself affirmed, after his extraordinary encounter with Christ on the road to Emmaus. By this feast, the Church reminds us of the sacrifices made by these two men, and their roles in the furtherance of the mission of the Gospel of Christ, and offers them as an example for us still engaged in this mission as Church leaders in our various capacities, as clergy or as laity, to imitate their faith and their zealousness for Christ, and bring His Gospel into our present sick and sinful world.
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The central theme worth noting in the readings of today is the liberation that the Lord granted to these two great evangelisers from the obstacles that prevented them from fulfilling their mission. This boils down to the promise of our Lord to safeguard the Church from the powers of hell and the evil one, which can never overcome her.
In the first reading of today, King Herod emerged as the first major persecutor of the young Christian community. He had just put St. James to death, and was scheming to also kill St. Peter. In order words, he was planning to end it all for the young Church, of whom Peter was the head. However, at the very moment when the power of the evil one and the enemies of Christ were about to hit this big blow on the nascent Church, divine providence came to the rescue of the Church, with the visitation of the Angel of God, who freed Peter from bondage and broke up all his chains; the chains that tied him to the sinful world of his enemies; the chains of oppression and tyranny, the chains of hatred and wickedness.
Hence, Peter experienced a new Exodus event, a new movement to freedom. Just like Peter, the Lord sets us free from the shackles that sin has laid on us whenever we call on Him, whenever we repent of our sins, and come back to Him, we experience a new Exodus, we experience an air of freedom. Just as He rescued Peter, the Lord also rescues those who do His will from physical and spiritual harms, from the evil one and evil men. Though He might permit some to pay the prize of martyrdom for His own glory, He also rescues many as well.
In the second reading, St. Paul confides in Timothy that his own time for leaving the world was near, and was not in doubt of receiving the reward promised by our Lord for faithfulness to His word and message of salvation: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” A pertinent question is, how many of us will be able to repeat these same similar words of St. Paul at the evening of our lives? Our capacity to fight a good fight rests only in our union with the Lord Himself, our recognition of our weaknesses, so that the power of God might be made manifest in us.
Hence, St. Paul acknowledges the power of Christ when he notes that the Lord rescued him from the Lion’s den, from the plans of evil men, and stood by him, and gave him the strength to proclaim the message fully, that all the Gentiles might hear it. Hence, just as the Lord rescued Peter, He equally rescued Paul from the malice of evil people; just as the Lord assured us that the hairs on our heads have been counted, we should not be afraid of preaching the truth of the Gospel.
In the Gospel of today, Jesus asked the disciples questions about His own identity at Caesarea Philippi, “Who do men say that the Son of Man is? They answered that some said He was John the Baptist, Elijah or any of the ancient prophets, but Jesus puts the question to the disciples themselves. It was Peter who rose up to the challenge, that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of the Living God. Jesus blesses Peter, since His knowledge came from divine revelation and lays the foundation of His Church on Peter, and declared that the power of hell shall never overcome the Church. He gives to Peter the power to bind and lose on earth, and also in heaven.
The choice of the town of Philippi, that Caesar gave to King Philip is significant for the mission of evangelisation and the work of the apostles. It was a region known for its paganism, and politics. There was an altar formerly erected for Baal and Pan, pagan idols here, as well as the political idolatry of the Roman Ceasar, whose altar was also erected by King Phillip here.
In this sense, Jesus wants to point out that the mission of the apostles would expand to the whole pagan world, and that the foundation of this mission will be built on the knowledge and acknowledgement of Christ’s divinity. It is upon this faith that the Church must bear witness to God in the world. In such a world of unbelief, the Church should be prepared to encounter different beliefs, she should not be led astray from her commitment to her faith, or mix up with those who profess false beliefs, but remain focused even amidst persecutions.
The profession of this faith in Christ is not a given, as such, anyone who becomes truly a Christian in words and actions achieves this feat by the grace of God. Jesus tells Peter that it was not flesh and blood that revealed this truth to him, but His Father. It is the Father that reveals the truth about Christ, and leads us to faith in His Son. We may try as much as we can, but at the end all praise for our efforts goes to God, who calls those He destined for salvation to Himself in Christ.
Jesus further establishes too, the hierarchy and the organizational structure of the Church by making Peter the head of this structure. Jesus understands the importance of administration and sets this record straight before His departure. It is this Church that is built on Peter that can never be overcome by the forces of death, forces of evil and the powers of hell and demons. The power of physical death of the apostles and future Christians never overcomes the Church, for when it appears that great Church people are dying off, the Lord raises up greater personalities for the Church at all times, at all epochs, especially at difficult times.
Further, the Lord bequeaths to Peter and His successors the power of the keys, the power to teach the right doctrines, and the power to legislate on faith, moral and ethical conducts in the Church. Hence, when the Pope teaches on faith and morals, that should be believed by all the faithful, in the form of dogmas, he is said to teach ex cathedra; such that all Catholics are bound to believe him under the pain of ex-communication from the Church.
Prayer
Lord Jesus, in Peter and Paul, You showed us the power of Your abiding presence and power in Your Church, please grant us the grace to always remain faithful to You and the mission You have entrusted to us through the apostles, so that we may be found worthy of the crown of everlasting glory in your kingdom on the last day, amen.
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