Protestant Theology & Catholic Doctrines
Exposed to cover & discover the “Naked Truth“... Catholic responses to the Booklet: “Answers to my Catholic Friends” by Thomas F. Heinze … Part 9
A Catholic reply to Protestant “[mis]- Understandings” Part 9
Chapter 8: “On Whom is the Church Founded”
John 5: 21-27 “For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will. The Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, that all may honor the Son, even as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him. Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears my word and believes him who sent me, has eternal life; he does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life. "Truly, truly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself, and has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of man.”
The Wise …Hear
The Prudent …Listen
But ONLY the Humble …OBEY and are Saved
2Pet.2: 1 to 3 “But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their licentiousness, and because of them the way of truth will be reviled. And in their greed they will exploit you with false words; from of old their condemnation has not been idle, and their destruction has not been asleep.” …The SHOCKER here is that are MILLIONS of souls who think that they are doing God’s Will; and therefore have stopped seeking “The Singular truth.” LET US PRAY for them.
God always taught belief in only: One God; Only One Set of Faith believes [now entrusted to the Catholic Church ALONE ..Mt. 16:15-19; Mt. 28: 16-20 ..and only One Chosen People; and always just One Chosen people: Today’s Catholic Church. [Which is The Only Christian Faith and Church founded by Christ Himself and the ONLY Christian Church in existence for more than ONE THOUSAND YEARS!]
If I am understanding what I’m reading here? Thomas is questioning whether the Catholic Church is founded on Christ or Peter? The answer of COURSE is that the Catholic Church is Founded BY Jesus Christ, and by HIS OWN CHOICE, on the guided; guarded and protected, Peter and the Apostles. There would be no Christian Faith today were it not for today’s Catholic Church from which all other Christian faiths originate. Catholics are thee Original Bible Church and thee Only True Sacramental Church; Clearly [Biblically] founded on and BY Jesus Christ. Catholics have ALWAYS proclaimed salvation By and THROUGH Him ALONE; and it remains Christ OWN Teachings that He taught, lived and entrusted DIRECTLYY to Peter, the Apostles and those He chooses to follow them, NOT modified to suit the agendas of mortal men; twelve to fifteen hundred years later.
John.10: 16 “And I have other sheep, that are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will heed my voice. So there shall be one flock, one shepherd”
Eph. 2:19-20 “So then you are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, [SINGULAR] built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; [SINGULAR] in whom you also [MUST BE] are built into it for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.”
Acts.4 :11 to 12 “This is the stone which was rejected by you builders, but which has become the head of the corner. And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved." [JESUS CHRIST!] …AND it must happen in the manner chosen and desired by God. …Acts.5: 29 “But Peter and the apostles answered, "We must obey God rather than men.” AND SO MUST WE.
1. “To have a Biblical basis for the papacy, the Roman Catholic Church neglects the numerous passages such as the one above that clearly teach that Christ is the head and the foundation, and quotes a short part of a passage of Matthews Gospel. They neglect to realize that EVEN IF THE CHURCH WERE FOUNDED ON PETER, THERE IS NOTHING IN THIS PASSAGE TO INFER THAT THIS STATUS WAS PASSED ON TO THE POPES.” End Quote
1st. Cor. 3:10-15 [Thomas quotes ONLY verse 11]
According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and another man is building upon it. Let each man take care how he builds upon it. {11} For no other foundation can any one lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. …Now if any one builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw -- each man's work will become manifest; for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. If the work which any man has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. If any man's work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire. Today’s Catholic Church is TWO THOUSAND YEARS OLD, WHICH CAN BE EASILY PROVEN THROUGH HISTORY FACTS. HOW OLD IS YOUR FAITH?
Matthew 16:14-19 “And they said, "Some say John the Baptist, others say Eli'jah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets." He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" Simon Peter replied, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." And Jesus answered him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jona! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I [Jesus /God] tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock [SINGULAR] I will build my church, [SINGULAR] and the powers of death shall not prevail against it. I [Jesus / God] will give you [SINGULAR} the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."
Thomas makes several additional points.
2. With this background it seems that “the rock” Jesus refers to is not Peter Himself, but his confession [who Jesus is]
3. Even if this understanding is not true; and Peter is the ROCK upon which the church is founded, there is still no biblical reason to think Peters authority was passed on to others, and that popes are his successors.
4. Neither is there reason to think that this idea was ever accepted by the early church.
5. The Infallibility of the pope was not defined and declared until Vatican 1, in 1870
Permit me to share with you FROM THE BIBLE, evidence that each point that Thomas makes if a falsehood based on his agenda and incorrect understanding.
REPLY Point #1. THERE IS NOTHING IN THIS PASSAGE TO INFER THAT THIS STATUS WAS PASSED ON TO THE POPES [Even if much biblical evidence did not exist… [It does; Mt.28: 17-19 and John 20:19-22 for example]; simple logic supported by the historical fact that The CC has survived some 2,000 years dating fro the Visitation of Christ and the times of the Apostles; one would have to hold the position that Christ intended EVERYTHING he did, suffered for and taught to die with the Apostles. PURE SILLINESS.
Look at the final verse. “whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." This promise and commitment from God to Peter [and through Peter to Christ CC as we shall prove] deals with unlimited POWERS of Governance, as will be proven in my summary article on this topic. It is absurd; complete nonsense to think that God would come to earth to ESTABLISH A NEW COVENANT IN HIS BLOOD, TEACH A NEW AND MORE PERFECT SET OF FAITH BELIEFS, THEN SEAL THIS COVENANT BY GIVING VERY HIS LIFE, AND EXPECT THAT IT WILL ONLY LAST UNTIL PETER DIES. THAT IS completely unfounded and unsupportable conjecture on the part of Thomas. Note: THE FINAL COMMENT OF Jesus / God: and the gates of hell shall NEVER prevail against it!” The evidence Thomas seeks IS THERE. Thomas just does not see it! Then look at Matt 18:18 where it is passed on to the other Apostles too!
REPLY Point #2 With this background it seems that “the rock” Jesus refers to is not Peter Himself, but his confession [who Jesus is]
To accept the view of Thomas, one has to assume that Jesus/ God had no idea what He was saying and doing. This is GOD speaking; a Perfect God unable to lie. He knew exactly what he had done and so did the other Apostles as too will be shown.
Eph. 2:19-20 “So then you are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; [SINGULAR] in whom you also are built into it for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.” I CHECKED AND THIS READS THE SAME IN THE KJ BIBLE TOO!
John.10: 16 “And I have other sheep, that are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will heed my voice. So there shall be one flock, one shepherd”
Eph. 4: 1-7 “I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all lowliness and meekness, with patience, forbearing one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of us all, who is above all and through all and in all. But grace was given to each of us according to the measure of Christ's gift.
Eph. 3: 9-10 “And to make all men see what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God who created all things; that through the church [Catholic Church-singular] the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places. This was according to the eternal purpose which he has realized in Christ Jesus our Lord,
REPLY #3 “there is still no biblical reason to think Peters authority was passed on to others, and that popes are his successors”
Proof 1. “The Gates of hell shall never prevail against it” “Never” is forever.
Proof 2. “I give you [singular] the “Keys to the gate of heaven” .. Jesus had just announced a new religion, built upon His newly taught Faith beliefs and introduced for the first time the term “CHURCH”.. Clearly the key and the church are ties together; and just as clearly God did not intend to die with Pater.
Proof 3. Matt. 28:16-20 verses 18-20 “And Jesus came and said to them, [the eleven Apostles in verse 16] "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age."
So either God forgot about this mandate, or Thomas is WRONG. It is impossible for this to have been accomplished in the life of Peter or the eleven-Apostles to whom this was COMMANDED.
Proof #4. John 20:19-23 “ Jesus speaking to ALL of the Apostles: “As the Father sent Me; so too I [God] send you.” [With my power and my authority].
Proof #5 John 21:15-17 “FEED MY SHEEP; Feed My Lambs; Feed my Sheep”
REPLY #4 Neither is there reason to think that this idea was ever accepted by the early church.
Proof #1 Matt.10: 2 “The names of the twelve apostles are these: [HERE IDENTIFIED AS THE FIRST! first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zeb'edee, and John his brother; [AND don’t forget the document on the 50 Bible proofs of Peter].
Proof #2 Acts.15: 2 And when Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and debate with them, Paul and Barnabas and some of the others were appointed to go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and the elders about this question.
Proof #4 …… The Early Church Fathers on The Primacy of Peter/Rome
The Early Church Fathers understood from the beginning that Peter and his successors held a place of primacy in the Church.
Clement of Rome
Accept our counsel and you will have nothing to regret. . . . If anyone disobeys the things which have been said by him [Jesus] through us, let them know that they will involve themselves in no small danger. We, however, shall be innocent of this sin and will pray with entreaty and supplication that the Creator of all may keep unharmed the number of his elect (Letter to the Corinthians 58:2, 59:1[A.D. 95]).
Ignatius of Antioch
You [the See of Rome] have envied no one, but others have you taught. I desire only that what you have enjoined in your instructions may remain in force (Epistle to the Romans 3:1 [A.D. 110]).
Irenaeus
But since it would be too long to enumerate in such a volume as this the succession of all the churches, we shall confound all those who, in whatever manner, whether through self-satisfaction or vainglory, or through blindness and wicked opinion, assemble other than where it is proper, by pointing out here the successions of the bishops of the greatest and most ancient church known to all, founded and organized at Rome by the two most glorious apostles. Peter and Paul, that church which has the tradition and the faith which comes down to us after having been announced to men by the apostles. With that church, because of its superior origin, all the churches must agree, that is, all the faithful in the whole world, and it is in her that the faithful everywhere have maintained the apostolic tradition (Against Heresies 3:3:2 [inter A.D. 180-190]).
Clement of Alexandria
[T]he blessed Peter, the chosen, the preeminent, the first among the disciples, for whom alone with himself the Savior paid the tribute [Matt. 17:27], quickly grasped and understood their meaning. And what does he say? "Behold, we have left all and have followed you" [Matt. 19:2 7, Mark 10:28] (Who is the Rich Man That is Saved? 21:3-5 [A.D. 200]).
Tertullian
[T]he Lord said to Peter, "On this rock I will build my Church, I have given you the keys of the kingdom of heaven [and] whatever you shall have bound or loosed on earth will be bound or loosed in heaven" [Matt. 16:18-19]. ... Upon you, he says, I will build my Church; and I will give to you the keys, not to the Church; and whatever you shall have bound or you shall have loose
and, not what they shall have bound or they shall have loosed (Modesty 21:9-10 [A.D. 220]).
Letter of Clement to James
Be it known to you, my lord, that Simon [Peter], who, for the sake of the true faith, and the most sure foundation of his doctrine, was set apart to be the foundation of the Church, and for this end was by Jesus himself, with his truthful mouth, named Peter, the first-fruits of our Lord, the first of the apostles; to whom first the Father revealed the Son; whom the Christ, with good reason, blessed; the called, and elect (Letter of Clement to James 2 [A.D, 221]).
Cyprian
With a false bishop appointed for themselves by heretics, they dare even to set sail and carry letters from schismatics and blasphemers to the Chair of Peter and to the principal church [at Rome], in which sacerdotal unity has its source" (Epistle to Cornelius [Bishop of Rome] 59:14 [A.D. 252]).
The Lord says to Peter: "I say to you," he says, "that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church" . . . On him he builds the Church, and to him he gives the command to feed the sheep John 21:17], and although he assigns a like power to all the apostles, yet he founded a single chair [cathedra], and he established by his own authority a source and an intrinsic reason for that unity. Indeed, the others were that also which Peter was [i.e., apostles], but a primacy is given to Peter, whereby it is made clear that there is but one Church and one chair. So too, all [the apostles] are shepherds, and the flock is shown to be one, fed by all the apostles in single-minded accord. If someone does not hold fast to this unity of Peter, can he imagine that he still holds the faith? If he [should] desert the chair of Peter upon whom the Church was built, can he still be confident that he is in the Church? (The Unity of the Catholic Church 4 [A.D. 251]).
Cyril of Jerusalem
In the power of the same Holy Spirit, Peter, both the chief of the apostles and the keeper of the keys of the kingdom of heaven, in the name of Christ healed Aeneas the paralytic at Lydda, which is now called Diospolis [Acts 9 ;3 2-3 4] (Catechetical Lectures 17;27 [A.D. 350]).
Optatus
In the city of Rome the Episcopal chair was given first to Peter, the chair in which Peter sat, the same who was head — that is why he is also called Cephas — of all the apostles, the one chair in which unity is maintained by all. Neither do the apostles proceed individually on their own, and anyone who would [presume to] set up another chair in opposition to that single chair would, by that very fact, be a schismatic and a sinner. . . . Recall, then, the origins of your chair, those of you who wish to claim for yourselves the title of holy Church" (The Schism of the Donatists 2:2 [circa A.D. 367]).
Ambrose of Milan
[Christ] made answer: "You are Peter, and upon this rock will I build my Church . . ." Could he not, then, strengthen the faith of the man to whom, acting on his own authority, he gave the kingdom, whom he called the rock, thereby declaring him to be the foundation of the Church [Matt. 16:18]? (The Faith 4:5 [A.D. 379]).
Augustine
Among these [apostles] Peter alone almost everywhere deserved to represent the whole Church. Because of that representation of the Church, which only he bore, he deserved to hear "I will give to you the keys of the kingdom of heaven" (Sermons 295:2 [A.D. 411]).
Who is ignorant that the first of the apostles is the most blessed Peter? (Commentary on John 56:1 [A.D. 416]).
“Let Us Not Forget That Peter Holds the Keys”
By Father Thomas Rosica, CSB
TORONTO, AUG. 16, 2011 (Zenit.org).- During my graduate studies in Israel in the 1990s, I spent time with the Israeli archaeological team working on the excavations in Caesarea Philippi in northern Israel.
Caesarea Philippi is situated about 20 miles north of the Sea of Galilee in the territory that had been ruled by Philip the tetrarch, a son of Herod the Great, from 4 B.C. until his death in 34 A.D. He rebuilt the town of Paneas, naming it Caesarea in honor of the emperor, and Philippi ("of Philip") to distinguish it from the seaport in Samaria that was also called Caesarea.
The place is now known as "Banias," a deformation of the word "Paneas" referring to the Greek god Pan. At the time of Jesus, a fertility cult was thriving in the pagan temple to Pan at this location on the northern border of Israel and Syria at the foot of majestic Mount Hermon. It was here, in this center of sexual excess and pagan worship to the Greek god Pan, that Jesus asks about the disciples' understanding of his Messiahship. It was here that Peter acclaims Jesus as the Messiah of the one true God. What a stunning backdrop for today's dramatic Gospel story from
Matthew 16:13-20
Today's Gospel story has parallels in {Mark 8:27-29 and Luke 9:18-20}. Matthew's account attributes the confession to a divine revelation granted to Peter alone (17) and makes Peter the rock on which Jesus will build his church (v.18) and the disciple whose authority in the church on earth will be confirmed in heaven, i.e., by God (v.19). In light of the rich Greek mythological background associated with this impressive site in Northern, let us consider several words and expressions used in today's Gospel.
"You are the Messiah"
In response to Jesus' question (13) "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" the disciples list a whole series of labels that people have applied to Jesus. These names reveal the different expectations held about him. Some thought of him as an Elijah, working toward a real confrontation with the powers that be. Some saw him more like Jeremiah, no less vehement but concentrating more on the inner journey, the private side of life.
When Jesus asked Peter the critical question, "Who do you say that I am?" Peter answered him: "You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God." Given the majestic backdrop of today's Gospel story, was Peter in fact pronouncing a death sentence upon all other gods, especially Pan, that were standing about him by acclaiming Jesus as the Son of the Living God? Did Pan's death bring about an authority crisis for Tiberias and his potential to inherit the power from Augustus?
Son of the living God
"Son of God" must be understood against the Greek mythological background of the site where Peter's confession occurred. The Greek god Pan was associated with a mountain in Arkadia and a grotto in Attika. Since Arkadia was not rich in large cattle, the goat was its characteristic beast and Pan was thus half goat in shape. Pan became a universal god in Greek mythology, popular with shepherds, farmers and peasants. In general Pan is amorous as is the nature of a god whose chief business it was to make his flocks fertile! He supposedly loved caves, mountains and lonely places, and was a very musical creature; his instrument was the pan-pipe! Pan was a son of Zeus, therefore a son of god!
Peter declares Jesus to be "the Son of the living God." The addition of this exalted title to the original Marcan confession (Mark 8:27-29) eliminates whatever ambiguity was attached to the title "Messiah." Peter's declaration cannot help but take into consideration the Greek mythological background that was associated with the with of Caesarea Philippi!
Flesh and blood
In verse 17, Jesus acknowledging Peter's declaration says to him: "For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father." "Flesh and blood" is a Semitic expression for human beings, especially in their weakness. That Peter revels Jesus' true identity indicates that his knowledge is not through human means but through a revelation from God. This is similar to Paul's description of his recognition of who Jesus was in Galatians 1:15-16: "When he [God] ... was pleased to reveal his Son to me."
You are the rock
In Verse 18, Jesus revels Peter's new identity: "You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church" (18). The Aramaic word "kepa" -- meaning rock and transliterated into Greek as "Kephas" is the name by which Peter is called in the Pauline letters (1 Cornthians 1:12; 3:22; 9:5; 15:4; Galatians 1:18; 2:9, 11, 14) except in Galatians 2:7-8 ("Peter"). It is translated as Petros ("Peter") in John 1:42. The presumed original Aramaic of Jesus' statement would have been, in English, "You are the Rock (Kepa) and upon this rock (kepa) I will build my church."
When Jesus declared Peter to be the rock upon which the Church would be built, was he referring to the massive stones which surrounded him in this area, and which housed temples to pagan gods and a secular leader? Were the deaths of the Great Pan and of Christ, both occurring under Pontius Pilate's procuratorship, linked together? Did early Christians wish to see a link between these two events as Eusebius points out in his writings?
Matthew's use of the new term: "church"
Matthew is the only evangelist to also use the word "church" (Greek ekklesia) here in Verse 17. The word is used twice in today's Gospel text. What might be the possibilities for the Aramaic original that would have been spoken by Jesus himself? Jesus' church means the community that he will gather and that, like a building, will have Peter as its solid foundation. That function of Peter consists in his being witness to Jesus as the Messiah, the Son of the living God.
The gates of Hades
Is the reference to the Gates of Hades not prevailing over the Church is in some way referring to the massive cave believed to be the entrance into the underworld, and from which gush up the mighty waters of the river Jordan? In the time of Jesus and of the New Testament writers, the predominant conception of Hades (Sheol) among Jews and Christians was the abode of the dead, not a place of punishment. The ancients believed that the Jordan sprang up in a large cave, which is the centerpiece of the national park now situated at the mouth of the Jordan at Banias. The mouth of this cave was also believed to be the one of the entrances into the underworld (Hades/Sheol). Once one entered this cave, there was no return to the land of the living.
This realm or abode was sometimes believed to house not only the human dead but also the demonic agents of death and destruction. In Jewish apocalyptic language, the end times also implied that the powers of cosmic chaos, retained since creation, would break forth from their restraint and bring about unparalleled tribulation and destruction on the earth. This power was kept welled up in a cave within the bowels of the earth. Scripture scholars have written that the image of the Gates of Hades is one of rulers of the underworld bursting forward from the gates of their heavily guarded, walled city to attack God's people on earth. This image is certainly vivid when one understands it in its geographical context of Paneas.
Location, location, location
Paneas (Banias) and its rich and ancient history have set the stage for a new drama: one that will not be adoration of a pagan god nor of the state, but adoration of the Son of the Living God, the one upon whom the church is built. It is certainly no coincidence that at Caesarea Philippi (Banias), Jesus was acclaimed by Peter to be the Son of the Living God. One cannot imagine that the massive rocks at the foot of Mount Hermon did not have influence the gospel writer, no less the speaker of the words, Jesus himself. A cave which ancients believed to house the destructive powers of the universe is suddenly said, not that it shall withhold its destructive powers, but that these destructive powers shall not prevail against the power of the church. An ancient god who was said to possess the keys of the underworld is suddenly replaced by a mortal, Peter, who is now said to possess the keys of the Kingdom of heaven.
The keys of the kingdom
In today's Gospel we also hear of the keys (v.19) to the kingdom of heaven. The image of the keys is probably drawn from today's first reading from Isaiah 22:15-25 where Eliakim, who succeeds Shebnah as master of the palace, is given "the key of the house of David," which he authoritatively "opens" and "shuts" (Isaiah 22:22).
Isa.22: 15 to 25 [ADDED BY PJM]
“Thus says the Lord GOD of hosts, "Come, go to this steward, to Shebna, who is over the household, and say to him: What have you to do here and whom have you here, that you have hewn here a tomb for yourself, you who hew a tomb on the height, and carve a habitation for yourself in the rock? Behold, the LORD will hurl you away violently, O you strong man. He will seize firm hold on you, and whirl you round and round, and throw you like a ball into a wide land; there you shall die, and there shall be your splendid chariots, you shame of your master's house. I will thrust you from your office, and you will be cast down from your station. In that day I will call my servant Eli'akim the son of Hilki'ah, and I will clothe him with your robe, and will bind your girdle on him, and will commit your authority to his hand; and he shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. And I will place on his shoulder the key of the house of David; he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open. And I will fasten him like a peg in a sure place, and he will become a throne of honor to his father's house. And they will hang on him the whole weight of his father's house, the offspring and issue, every small vessel, from the cups to all the flagons. In that day, says the LORD of hosts, the peg that was fastened in a sure place will give way; and it will be cut down and fall, and the burden that was upon it will be cut off, for the LORD has spoken."
“Thus says the Lord GOD of hosts, "Come, go to this steward, to Shebna, who is over the household, and say to him: What have you to do here and whom have you here, that you have hewn here a tomb for yourself, you who hew a tomb on the height, and carve a habitation for yourself in the rock? Behold, the LORD will hurl you away violently, O you strong man. He will seize firm hold on you, and whirl you round and round, and throw you like a ball into a wide land; there you shall die, and there shall be your splendid chariots, you shame of your master's house. I will thrust you from your office, and you will be cast down from your station. In that day I will call my servant Eli'akim the son of Hilki'ah, and I will clothe him with your robe, and will bind your girdle on him, and will commit your authority to his hand; and he shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. And I will place on his shoulder the key of the house of David; he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open. And I will fasten him like a peg in a sure place, and he will become a throne of honor to his father's house. And they will hang on him the whole weight of his father's house, the offspring and issue, every small vessel, from the cups to all the flagons. In that day, says the LORD of hosts, the peg that was fastened in a sure place will give way; and it will be cut down and fall, and the burden that was upon it will be cut off, for the LORD has spoken."
In Matthew 18:18 all the disciples are given the power of binding and loosing, but the context of that verse suggests that a special power or authority is given to Peter. That the keys are those to the kingdom of heaven and that Peter's exercise of authority in the church on earth will be confirmed in heaven show an intimate connection between, but not an identification of the church and the kingdom of heaven. The Church is the battleground between the powers of Hades and the powers of heaven. How many times over the past years have we felt that the gates of Hades have swung open on the Church, releasing upon it the fire and fury of hell?
In the midst of the storms, however, let us take heart and realize that Peter is given the keys that unlock the gates of heaven. Those gates, too will swing open, and the kingly power of God breaks forth from heaven to enter the arena against the demons. Our faith assures us that Hades will not prevail against the church because God will be powerfully at work in it, revealing his purposes for it and imparting the heavenly power to fulfill these purposes.
Our own Caesarea Philippi moments
The struggle to identify Jesus and his role as Messiah continues today. Some say individual Christians and the whole church should be Elijah figures, publicly confronting systems, institutions and national policies. That was the way Elijah saw his task. Some say, like Jeremiah, that the reign of Christ, through his church, is the personal and private side of life. And there are indeed many who would like to reduce religion and faith to a private affair in our world today.
Jesus probes beyond both approaches and asks, "You, who do you say I am." In Peter's answer, "You are Messiah," blurted out with his typical impetuosity, we are given a concept that involves both of the above ideas and goes beyond them. The Messiah came into society, and into individual lives, in a total way, reconciling the distinction between public and private. The quality of our response to this question is the best gauge of the quality of our discipleship.
Everyone at some stage must come to Caesarea Philippi and answer the question, "You, who do you say I am?" Where are the Caesarea Philippi places in my life where I have been challenged to identify Christ for whom he really is for me, for the Church and for the world?
Like Peter, do I struggle to accept how God acts in the world -- through, as Benedict XVI said, "the defenseless power of love?" How does love transform scenes of tragedy and suffering today? How have I seen the power of God's love at work in the trials and tragedies of my own life? In the storms of life, what consolation have I received because I belong to the Church of Jesus Christ? [THE ONLY CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST: HIS CATHOLIC CHURCH]
Basilian Father Thomas Rosica, chief executive officer of the Salt and Light Catholic Media Foundation and Television Network in Canada, is a consultor to the Pontifical Council for Social Communications. He can be reached at: rosica@saltandlighttv.org
So friends, do you believe the mortal and fallible Thomas or the Immortal and Infallible Jesus Christ: GOD? Remember friends, ONLY the Humble …hear; accept and OBEY merit Salvation.
END OF SECTION NINE
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