Mass readings for the 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time:
Jeremiah 20:7-9
Psalm 63:2, 3-4, 5-6, 8-9
Romans 12:1-2
Matthew 16:21-27
Honestly, you can’t help but think: This was not on Peter’s bingo card.
There he was, the appointed leader of the apostles, trying to show his devotion and loyalty to Jesus, his willingness to defend him and protect him. And what did he get in return?
Jesus turned around and called him “Satan.”
What? That had to hurt.
But there’s a valuable lesson here, for Peter and for us. And it’s not exactly subtle. It tells us that to follow Christ means carrying a cross. But the cross isn’t necessarily made of wood. It’s often made of humility, self-sacrifice and obedience. It is constructed from material that can be heavier than we expect, crafted from the willingness to love, a desire to follow God’s will, a choice to set aside our own very human interests and desires.
Peter found that out the hard way. What does this say to us today? First, let’s flip back to last week, and how we got to this point.
This reading continues part of Matthew’s Gospel that we heard last Sunday, in which Peter fearlessly and passionately tells Jesus, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
To that, Jesus responded by telling him, “You are Peter and upon this rock I will build my church.”
And now, this? From “rock” to “Satan”? What happened?
After revealing himself to be exactly who Peter said he was, Jesus went on to explain what was to come – persecution, suffering, death and resurrection. That was a shock Peter couldn’t bear.
But Christ’s rebuke carried a lesson, and it’s one that we all need to hear at one time or another: Don’t settle for the obvious. Don’t just see things for what they are. Stop thinking like human beings. Think more like God.
And, to begin with, see the example of Christ. Deny yourself. Look at the bigger picture. Consider God’s will, not your own. Be prepared to carry a heavy cross – even perhaps paying a price you hadn’t calculated. The ambitions of this world are worth less than we may think. “What profit would there be for one to gain the whole world,” Jesus asked “and forfeit his life?”
There is a better choice.
In fact, Jesus’ words to Peter – “Get behind me” – could be read as another way of saying “Follow me.” Watch what I do. Live as I live. Take this path, not any other.
Confronted with this scene, we all might wonder where we fit into the story. Are we living for ourselves or for God? Are we seeing the world through our own eyes, or are we challenging ourselves to see through his?
Are we “stumbling blocks” to the work of the Lord? How can we get out of his way?
A prayer of Father Mychal Judge, the first fatality of 9/11, sums up how we need to live as people who “get behind” Jesus:
“Lord, take me where you want me to go,
Let me meet who you want me to meet
Let me say what you want me to say
And please keep me out of your way.”
Living with that spirit of surrender isn’t easy. (Peter would be the first to tell us that!) It can take us to unexpected places. Mychal Judge’s story reminds us just how hard the journey can be and how heavy the cross can weigh.
But the consoling words from Paul’s letter to the Romans this Sunday offer guidance and hope the ultimate moral for all followers of Christ.
“Do not conform yourselves to this age,” he wrote, “but discern what is the will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect.”
