For
those born before the 1970’s we have a recollection of the “Baltimore Catechism”.
A series of questions and answers regarding God and faith. While it had its
pluses, for example you knew how to reply to faith questions when they were
posed to you, it also had its disadvantages, you did not have a personal answer
– just a rote one.
In
the Gospel of today, Jesus poses a question to His Disciples, and at first they
just give Him the standard rote answers. But then He makes it personal, and
well, you can hear the pauses and stuttering, at least until Peter speaks up. “Who do you say I am?” it is the most important question in the Gospels.
Simon,
son of Jonah, who will deny Jesus three times, who doesn’t understand so many things
— this time understood not the rote answer by the heart reply and this same Simon is given a new name: Peter, the Rock – why? Well because
Peter knew Christ and was able to move beyond the answer;
to a point of personal faith. And
that’s what can happen for each of us.
Jesus can make new openings in our
lives, break the molds we’ve shaped for ourselves, draw us toward new
realizations, fashion new understandings. He can re-name us. If we allow it. Jesus can construct within each of us a
tenderness that puts our pettiness to shame, and an experience of freedom that
will release us from all our
enslavements. But only if we allow it.
“Who
do you say I am?” Too often we answer easily that He is our God, even when He
is not at the center of our lives. Too often we answer easily that we confess Him
to be our Lord, even when we live with our backs turned to His project of
forgiveness and mercy. Too often we answer easily that He is our Teacher, when we
barely listen to His lessons. Its rote for us. But today we are challenged to
make it a heart rooted answer and honestly answer this single most important Gospel question:
“Who do you say I am?”
How
are you going to answer it?