A Church Built Upon Rock
(On Matthew 16:16-18)
Jesus does not say to Simon you are the rock (the petra, rock in Greek). He says to him “you are Peter (Petros) and upon this petra I will build my Church” (Matthew 16:18). St. Augustine explains that the name Peter comes from petra as the name Christian comes from Christ.[1] We are Christians because we participate in the life, grace, truth, doctrine, body and blood of Jesus Christ. Simon is Peter because he participates in the stability and firmness of the petra, the rock which is Jesus Himself. There is something in Peter which is as stable and firm as a rock.[2] Peter is not the rock: he will still break a few times, and Jesus knows it. Peter will die one day, and Jesus knows it. But Peter’s confession will never break, it will never pass away, it will never be moved to the left or to the right. Peter’s confession will never die: “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God” (Matthew 16:16).
How can the confession of a man be so stable? Have not human
beings, for fear of death or other fears, deny Jesus and their faith? Only the
power of God can give a human being the firmness of a rock. This firmness is
what Jesus was going to give Peter, not now, but later. “I have prayed for you,
said Jesus in another place, “so that your faith may not fail,” that is, so
that the confession of your faith may be firm as a rock. “And you, Peter, when
you come back” from your three denials, “confirm your brothers and sisters”
(cf. Luke 22:32) Jesus makes Peter firm so that he may confirm
his brothers and sisters. From the firmness of Peter’s confession comes the
firmness of the whole Church. We are all Christians but we are not all Peter:
or, if you wish, we become Peter-like when we embrace Peter’s confession of
faith.
Thus, in the same way that Jesus gives Baptism through
deacons and Holy Communion through priests, Jesus gives His whole Church
stability through the Pope, through the Pope’s confession of faith. There have
been terrible popes in Church’s history, but not one of them lost this gift. Arguably,
some popes in earlier centuries[3]
may have created confusion about this confession: but none of them could break
the rock, none of them broke the firmness of Peter’s confession. The Church
remained firm even when the Pope was weak, because Jesus said that “the gates
of Hell will not prevail against the Church.” Jesus built his house, the
Church, upon the rock which is Himself and this is why all human powers and all
the powers of hell will never be enough to destroy this Church.
This does not mean that the only thing firm in the Church is
Jesus. If the house is built upon rock, the whole house is firm, even if a big
storm may make us loose a few tiles from the roof! There are many things in the
Church which are stable and which have remained unchanged for 2000 years. Today
I simply mention one, which is the most important in a sense: the confession of
the one true faith.
Jesus wanted his Church to have a firm conviction about who
He was and about the whole mystery of His Kingdom. This is why He provided the
Church with an infallible teaching: “I have prayed for you, Peter, so that your
faith may not fail.” He says to the 72 missionaries, “Those who listen to you,
listen to me” (Luke 10:16). And to the Apostles, “those who do not believe
will be condemned” (Mark 16:16). He would have never said those things
if He had not made sure that the teaching of the Church was His own infallible
and true teaching. Now, where do we find that infallible teaching? Not every
shepherd is Peter. Peter himself, the pope, does not always exercise the
infallible teaching given to him. Where do we find this infallible teaching?
The infallible teaching of the Church is found in those instances
in which the pope, by himself of together with all bishops, clearly and
intentionally proposes something to be believed by the whole Church.[4]
What this means, we should talk another time, but one thing I say today: if
Jesus had not made the Church infallible in Her teaching, He would not have
given us something essential for salvation. We would have lost Jesus’ teaching,
which is the only way to eternal life.
In his mercy, God decided to make us firm as He is firm, to
make us strong as He is strong... The Catholic Church has received from God the
stability of the rock: “Upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of
hell will not prevail against it.” They will shake us, but never move Her. They
will never break the Church. Our Church sometimes seems shaken and weak, even
in Her leaders, but let us not be deceived: those who are faithful to Peter’s
confession will not be overcome. The faithful may be killed by the enemies of
the Church, but they will not be broken: the faithful will have the strength of
martyrs, they will keep their faith intact until the end. Nobody will move the
faithful to the left or to the right: they are built upon rock. “But the Lord
GOD helps me; therefore I have not been disgraced; therefore I have set my face
like a flint, and I know that I shall not be put to shame” (Isaiah, 50:7).
The temptation to think that the Church is broken or will be
broken soon might be a great temptation for some, but we need to remember “in
whom we have put our faith” (cf. 2 Timothy 1:12). A human being might be
more powerful than us; the devil is more powerful than any human being; but not
even all the devils of hell will be able to prevail against the Church of
Jesus. “The powers of hell will not prevail against it.”
[1]
Cf. Saint Augustine, Sermon 295, 1-2. 4. 7-8 (PL 38, 1348-1352) in The
Liturgy of the Hours, Office of Readings for June 29th.
[2]
Cf. Saint Leo the Great, pope, Sermo 4 de natali ipsius, 2-3 (PL 54,
149-51) in The Liturgy of the Hours, Office of Readings for February 22nd.
[3] I
refer to some events in the lives of Popes Liberius (352-366), Vigilius
(540-555) and Honorius I (625-638).
[4] Cf.
Catechism of the Catholic Church, nn. 888-892 and 2034-2035. Cf. also
nn. 91-93.
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