1 Peter 5 : 1-4 / Matthew 16 : 13-19
In the business world, courses on management and marketing skills are in high demand.
Such courses enable a multinational company or business organization to work efficiently and productively. All for the purpose of profit and making money.
The Church can be called a multinational organization, with a hierarchical structure.
So what are our so-called management and marketing principles?
The 1st reading summed it up in these words: Be shepherds of the flock that is entrusted to you. Watch over it, not simply out of duty, but gladly. Do not do it for sordid money. Never be a dictator, but be an example for others to follow.
Such pastoral and management principles have held the Church together for over 2000 years.
Yet, such principles and teachings are not easy to adhere to because of human frailty and weaknesses.
Yet, where there are short-comings and failings, the grace of God fills up the gaps to hold the Church together.
Jesus promised this when He said: You are Peter and on this rock I will build my Church. And the gates of the underworld can never hold out against it.
At the same time, the promise of Jesus comes with a mission for the Church.
The Church does not exists for its own sake. The Church can be said to be the only institution that exists for the benefit of those who are not its members.
The Church is the sign of God's love and salvation for the world. United as the Body of Christ and with the Pope as the head of the Church, we are to carry out that mission.
So we pray for the successor of St. Peter, our present Pope Francis, and all the leaders of the universal Church, and also for our Archbishop William Goh who celebrates the first anniversary of his episcopal ordination today.
Let us also pray for ourselves. That in carrying out what Peter said in the 1st reading, we may be witnesses of God's love and presence in the world so that others will come to know who Jesus Christ is.