Isaiah 22:19-23/ Romans 11:33-36/ Matthew 16:13-20
The name Peter comes from the Latin “Petrus” and “Petrus” means stone or rock.
In the Bible there is only one person with that name and we all should know who he is.
His original name is Simon son of Jonah, but in today’s gospel passage, we heard that it was Jesus who gave him this name.
Jesus said to Simon: You are Peter and on this rock I will build my church.
So Peter means “rock” but his fellow apostles would have nicknamed him “Rocky”, but of course that is not found in the Bible.
When we say that something is on the rocks or that something is rocky, we know what it means.
When we call someone “Rocky”, it may mean that that person may be brawny but not necessary very brainy.
Of course, we won’t call Peter “Rocky” out of respect because he is the first head or first pope of the Church.
We don’t call Peter “Rocky” but more often than not, he shoots off his mouth and says the wrong things at the wrong time and ended up flat-footed.
The gospels do not spare Peter in recording his “rockiness”. Jesus called him Satan, he denied Jesus 3 times, Jesus wants to wash his feet but he asked for a bath.
The gospels portrayed Peter as impulsive and brash.
Jesus named him the “rock” but his confreres might have called “rocky” and the object of their jokes.
But did Peter laugh at himself for all his blunders? Because you would need to have quite a sense of humour in order to carry on like Peter. Besides having some thick-skin as well!
It is said that laughing at your own mistakes can lengthen your life. But it is also said that laughing at your wife’s mistakes can shorten your life! : )
Well, we all know that Peter had a mother-in-law (Jesus healed her – Mt 8:14-15), which means that he had a wife, but he nearly had his life shortened, not because he laughed at his wife’s mistakes but because he was imprisoned by king Herod with the intention of putting him to death.
But Peter was miraculously rescued from prison by an angel (Acts 12:1-25).
But eventually in 64 AD Peter was executed by the Roman emperor Nero and he was crucified upside down.
Peter might have had a rocky start but in the end he was as firm as a rock in witnessing to Jesus.
When Jesus said that it will be on this rock He will build His Church, Peter might not have fully understood what it meant.
Neither could he have understood what it was meant to be given the keys of the kingdom of heaven, to bind and to set free.
And neither would he have fully understood what was meant by the gates of the underworld would never hold out against the Church that would be built on him as the rock.
Even now, we ourselves might not understand what all that means. But there is one thing that we know.
We know the fury and the violence that the gates of the underworld have unleashed upon the Church and upon the world.
In the course of this week, one of the sensational news was the beheading of the American photojournalist James Foley.
Like Peter, he escaped death once when he was captured in Libya, but through the prayers of his family and friends he was later released.
When news of his brutal death was announced, Pope Francis called his family to console them and they were very moved by his kindness and condolences. (By the way, James Foley and his family are Catholics).
After his Libyan ordeal, James Foley wrote an article to thank his family and friends for their prayers.
He also recounted how he prayed the Rosary during his captivity and that gave him strength and courage and hope.
He also said that he experienced the power of the prayers of his family and friends of his church community and also the power of his own prayer.
But his Libyan ordeal did not stop him from going to the dangerous situation in Syria. And neither did his family members want to stop him.
He had this mission in life and it was a mission that he wanted to fulfill.
His mother, Diane Foley, wrote this message after receiving the news of her son’s death:
“We have never been prouder of our son Jim. He gave his life trying to expose the world to the suffering of the Syrian people.”
She also added: “We implore the kidnappers to spare the lives of the remaining hostages.”
James Foley saw the gates of the underworld and the fury and violence that it unleashes.
Like St. Peter, he too lost his life to it. But like St. Peter, James did not die in vain.
His photos and footage of what is happening in Syria and Iraq bring images to the news reports that we read and we just can’t look away and not be bothered by it.
His death has also brought about an international outcry and condemnation of his killing, and also a call to an end to the violence and bloodshed.
And just as the Church stood firm and moved on after the death of St. Peter, we too must stand firm of the rock of St. Peter and pray fervently for the end to the violence and hostilities that had cost the lives of many innocent victims.
We the Church cannot sit around and do nothing in the face of what is coming out from the gates of the underworld.
If we profess what St. Peter professed, that Jesus is the Christ, then may we stand firm on the rock of St. Peter’s profession, and by our prayer may we hold out against the gates of the underworld.