Acts 12: 1- 11,
Ps 34:2-3.4-5.6-7.5-9,
2 Timothy 4:6-8, 17- 18,
Matthew 16:13-19 Full Readings
Their Message Goes Out Through All the Earth.
Indeed, their message goes forth through all the earth! Today we celebrate the solemnity of two great apostles, Sts. Peter and Paul. These are arguably the most important and influential men in the Church and the world, Peter our first pope, who was chosen by the Lord to be the leader of the Church and given the task to preach the Gospel especially among the Jewish communities, and Paul, an apostle to the Gentiles, who became the chosen instrument of God to bring the Good News to the whole world. In the process of conversion, both apostles experienced the gratuitous compassion and forgiveness of the Lord. They are our ancestors in the faith, the ones who have handed over to us the message of life. What made them great was not their talent, personalities, or intelligence. They were leaders and saints because they cooperated with the Holy Spirit to do the will of the Lord. Today's Gospel passage gives us an early example of Peter's sensitivity to the Spirit. He declared Jesus was the son of God, and Jesus called him “Blessed,” adding, “Flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father.” We need not have a superior intelligence or a winning personality to become a saint. We will be holy to the degree we cooperate with the Holy Spirit in fulfilling God’s will for our lives.
Both St. Paul and St. Peter paid for their faithfulness to their missions with their lives. The First Reading spoke of Peter’s imprisonment; and today's the epistles reveal Paul’s hardships. Amidst of these hardships, they all courageously fought the good fight, finished the race, and kept the faith (2 Timothy 4:7). The crown of righteousness awaited them after doing well their mission and the attained this crown in the end, by both becoming martyrs, martyred in Rome in the first century. Martyrdom is not a bad thing if it is the Gospel for which you are martyred.
Jesus gave Peter the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven and the power to bind and loose. With these few words, Jesus revealed much about the future Roman Catholic Church. According to the Catechism 553, “The ‘power of the keys’ designates authority to govern the house of God, which is the Church. Jesus, the Good Shepherd, confirmed this mandate after his Resurrection: ‘Feed my sheep.’ The power to ‘bind and loose’ connotes the authority to absolve sins, to pronounce doctrinal judgments, and to make disciplinary decisions in the Church. Jesus entrusted this authority to the Church through the ministry of the Apostles and in particular through the ministry of Peter, the only one to whom he specifically entrusted the keys of the Kingdom.” Since these words were spoken by Jesus, there has been an unbroken succession of popes leading our Church. We pray for our Holy Father at every Mass and, out of love for the Church, we also include his intentions in our personal prayer.
Saul, who was determined to annihilate anyone who took the name of Jesus, became a fierce defender of the faith when he personally came in contact with Jesus. He lived Jesus and his gospel to the extent that he was able to proclaim “it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me”. He reiterates his personal transformation into Christ Jesus when he challenges us thus: “Be imitators of me as I am of Christ”. Perhaps there is no other disciple who identified with Jesus in life more than Paul.
Peter and Paul became for us not merely models of faith but persons who dared to leave their ideologies, ambitions and expectations to live and proclaim Jesus. They experienced Jesus personally, lived him radically, resolutely and uncompromisingly preached him and gave their lives to show the world Jesus their saviour is greater than life! They did everything in him who strengthened them to carry on Jesus’ mission here on earth. This is why their message still reaches to the ends of the earth. Are we ready to imitate our fathers in the Catholic Faith by proclaiming the Gospel to everyone despite all hardships ands persecutions.
On this feast of Saints Peter and Paul, reflect on your mission entrusted to you and how ready you are to fulfil it no matter what. May Christ give all of us, and the entire Church, the courage, charity, and wisdom we need to continue to be the instruments that set the world free.
Let us pray
Lord, you founded the Church on Peter the Rock and named Paul Apostle to the Gentiles. They had illustrious roles in your divine plan for the Church. Help me to appreciate my role in the Church as well. You have called me to the faith and placed me in my parish, my community, and my family as a member of the Church, for which you are the living head. By your grace, may I spread the Kingdom and be a fruitful member of the Church. Amen
Saints Peter and Paul, pray for us.
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