The Papacy - Part 1

We are in an unusual period of time.  Our Holy Father, Pope Francis, has died but our next Pope has not yet been presented to us.  Perhaps this is an opportune time to reflect on the papacy.  After all, the authority of the Bishop of Rome is a significant reason why we are separated from our brothers and sisters of other Christian denominations.

The Peter that we read about in the gospels is not a simple, one-dimensional figure. He is presented as something of a hot head, prone to speaking before thinking or before seeing the whole picture, of making grandiose promises that he does not fulfil, and yet God blessed Simon Peter with remarkable insight when he, alone of all the apostles, stated “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” (Matt 16: 16) 

Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven.  And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.  I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” (Matt 6:17-19)

We have read these words, or heard them pronounced from the Ambo so often that maybe we skip over the depth of meaning found within these words.  Especially as we read them in English, 2,000 years after the event and in a culture that is very so different.

First, Jesus changed his name from Simon to Peter, and this has Old Testament roots.  Time and again, when God gave someone a new name it was a significant moment.  For example, Abram was renamed Abraham – from “exalted father” to “father of a multitude”; this change of name signified the role Abraham would have in God's plan.   In the same way, Simon's new name signified his role in God's plan of salvation. 

This renaming is more momentous than we may at first appreciate.