XXI.O.T :
Is 22: 19-23; Rom 11: 33-36; Mt 16: 13-20
Our readings
today are about keys. A key unlocks everything from bank vaults and jewelry
boxes to buildings and car doors. Keys represent authority and power. When that
power is abused, keys can be taken away by those in higher authority. Parents
sometimes take away the keys to the car from a teenager who "messes
up."
In today's
first reading, God takes away the key from Shebna, the master of the palace of
King Hezekiah, and gives that key to a worthier man, Eliakim.
In the
Gospel, Jesus gives the keys of the kingdom of heaven to Peter. Through
baptism, all Christians have received a share in the power of the keys to
heaven. With that power goes responsibility to witness to the Gospel. We can
witness to Jesus and his Kingdom only when we accept him as the Messiah the Son
of God, our personal Savior.
When Jesus
asked his disciples the question what do people say that I am they said the
names of different prophets. The people saw Jesus as a prophet, a spokesperson
for God, and no more than that. Each of these was an honorable status, so
perhaps Jesus didn’t mind if the people thought of these identifications about
him.
But Jesus
was more interested in what the disciples themselves had to say. So, second
question, “But who do you say that I am?”It could have been an invitation
to disclose their intimate thoughts, though perhaps it was a question about the
way they spoke of Jesus to others, how they described him when they were away
from the presence of Jesus. Of course it is a personal question and
it demands a personal answer too. Then Peter, assuming his
recognized leadership role in the group, replied, “You are the Christ, the
Son of the living God.” That was an immediate identification with the
Messiah, who would lead the people and overcome all nations. Jesus was very
clear about his own identity and the fact that he was the Messiah. But he was
not ready yet to let others know about it; so, he ordered his disciples to keep
the secret, because their idea of a Messiah was different than the actual one
and he might not be able to do what he needed to do with the wrong expectations
about him.
After
stating his intention to build his Church on Peter, Jesus promises that the
gates of hell shall not prevail against his Church. Hell vanishes in the face
of the power of the Cross. But these
days in Mosul, Iraq, it seems like the gates of the netherworld is prevailing
against the Church there. Every day many Christians, including children and
women are butchered by the ISIS the Islamic fanatics. What shall we do? Is the
promise of Jesus false? Jesus gave us the power to fight the powers of the
nether world but we need to use that power. That power can be drawn by prayer
only; by praying together for the persecuted part of the Church. It is our duty
to take the weapon of prayer and use it against the Satanic powers. We need to
pray every day for those Christians living in Islamic countries, because we are
not facing what they are facing. So, at the end of the mass for some weeks, we
will pray the Prayer to St.Michael the Archangel to defeat the Satan.
It is said
that a Christian is like an elephant that has great power. But since it doesn’t
realize its power it can be controlled by a single man, a Mahout, with a small hook.
When the elephant realizes that it has so much power, it can no longer be
controlled and managed by any single human being. Let’s us realize our power in
Christ, and make use of the power of the blood of the lamb that defeated the
kingdom of Satan. We need to wake up and be self-conscious Christians.
As we
continue with this celebration of the Mass let’s ask the Father to help us
acknowledge Jesus as the Messiah, the Son of the Living God as Peter did when
he was asked who Jesus was for him.
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