Feast of the Saint Apostles Peter and Paul
Feast of the Saint Apostles Peter and Paul, martyrs in Rome around the years 60-70. Memorial of blessed Raymond Lullo (1232-1316). A Catalan close to the spirit of Saint Francis he loved the Muslims and promoted dialogue among believers.
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Feast of the Saint Apostles Peter and Paul
Feast of the Saint Apostles Peter and Paul, martyrs in Rome around the years 60-70. Memorial of blessed Raymond Lullo (1232-1316). A Catalan close to the spirit of Saint Francis he loved the Muslims and promoted dialogue among believers.
Reading of the Word of God
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
If we die with him, we shall live with him,
if with him we endure, with him we shall reign.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
Matthew 16,13-19
When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi he put this question to his disciples, 'Who do people say the Son of man is?' And they said, 'Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.' 'But you,' he said, 'who do you say I am?' Then Simon Peter spoke up and said, 'You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.' Jesus replied, 'Simon son of Jonah, you are a blessed man! Because it was no human agency that revealed this to you but my Father in heaven. So I now say to you: You are Peter and on this rock I will build my community. And the gates of the underworld can never overpower it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of Heaven: whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven; whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.'
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
If we die with him, we shall live with him,
if with him we endure, with him we shall reign.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
Today we celebrate the feast of the apostles, Saints Peter and Paul. Tradition holds that Peter and Paul died as martyrs on the same day, June 29th, in the year 67 or 68. One was crucified on Vatican hill, and the other was beheaded in Via Ostiense. Both are called the columns of the Church, particularly of the Roman Church that venerates them not only as saints, but also as the foundation of its spiritual edifice. Therefore, along with the Oriental Church, we can sing, "Praise be to Peter and Paul, these two magnificent lights of the Church; they shine in the firmament of faith." They shine not only in the heavens above Rome, but also in the hearts of those believers who preserve their teachings in their hearts and cherish the precious witness of their faith lived to the point of shedding their blood. The Church of Rome is founded on the faith of these two martyrs, and it is in this faith that our poor, fragile, and weak faith as Christians in this last hour is rooted.
Peter and Paul were two men who were very different from each other: the first "a humble fisherman from Galilee" and the second "a teacher and doctor of the Law," as we sang today in the preface today's Holy Liturgy. Jesus called Peter while he was mending his nets along the shores of the Sea of Galilee. As soon as the young teacher from Nazareth called him to a greater life and to fish for people, not fish, "immediately he left his net and followed him." We find him among the Twelve, with a temperament typical of a fiery and self-assured man, and yet it only took a servant woman to lead him to betrayal. The true Peter is the one who is weak, who lets the Spirit of God touch him, and who is the first to proclaim, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God," (Mt 16:16) as we heard in the Gospel. The Lord made of Peter's weakness the "rock" that would confirm his brothers and sisters.
We see Paul as a young man standing near those who are stoning Stephen. He was standing guard over the cloaks of those who were casting the stones. He was a zealous combatant against the young Christian community and was even authorized to persecute it. But on the road to Damascus, the Lord threw him down from the horse of self-assuredness and pride. Finding himself face down in the dust, he looked up to heaven and saw the Lord. This time, like Peter after his betrayal, Paul felt his heart touched. Tears did not flow from his eyes, but they were blinded and he was no longer able to see. Once he was used to leading others, and now he had to be taken by the hand and led to Damascus. There, the Gospel preached by Ananias opened his heart and his eyes. Paul preached, first to the Jews and then to the Gentiles, and he founded many communities. "But the Lord stood by me," Paul writes to Timothy, "and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. So I was rescued from the lion's mouth. The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and save me for his heavenly kingdom" (2 Tim 4:17-18).
From the beginning, the Church has wanted to remember both together, as if to hold both of their testimonies together in unity. With their different gifts and charisms, both founded one Church of Christ. Our faith ought to breathe with the spirit of these two witnesses, with the humble and steadfast faith of Peter and with the out-stretched, universal heart of Paul. Today, the apostles Peter and Paul return to sit among us and to exhort us not to close in on ourselves, not to think exclusively of our problems, but to feel the urgency of confirming the faith of our brothers and sisters and going out to announce the Gospel to those who have yet to receive it.
Het gebed is het hart van het leven van de Gemeenschap van Sant’Egidio. Het is haar eerste “werk”. Aan het einde van de dag komt elke Gemeenschap, of die nu klein of groot is, samen bij de Heer om het Woord te beluisteren en zich tot Hem te richten in het gebed. De leerlingen kunnen niet anders dan aan de voeten van Jezus zitten, zoals Maria van Bethanië, om het “betere deel” te kiezen (Lc 10, 42) en van Hem zijn gezindheid te leren (vgl. Fil 2, 5).
Elke keer dat de Gemeenschap zich tot de Heer richt, maakt ze zich die vraag eigen van de anonieme leerling: “Heer, leer ons bidden!” (Lc 11, 1). En Jezus, meester in het gebed, antwoordt: “Wanneer jullie bidden, zeg dan: Abba, Vader”.
Wanneer we bidden, ook in de geslotenheid van ons eigen hart, zijn we nooit alleen of verweesd. Integendeel, we zijn leden van de familie van de Heer. In het gemeenschappelijk gebed wordt naast het mysterie van het kindschap, ook dat van de broederschap en zusterschap duidelijk.
De Gemeenschappen van Sant’Egidio, verspreid over de wereld, verzamelen zich op de verschillende plaatsen die gekozen zijn voor het gebed en brengen de hoop en het verdriet van de “uitgeputte en hulpeloze mensenmenigte” waarover het Evangelie spreekt (Mt 9, 37) bij de Heer. Deze oude menigte omvat de inwoners van onze hedendaagse steden, de armen die zich bevinden in de marge van het leven, en iedereen die wacht om als dagloner te worden aangenomen (vgl. Mt 20).
Het gemeenschappelijk gebed verzamelt de schreeuw, de hoop, het verlangen naar vrede, genezing, zin en redding, die beleefd worden door de mannen en vrouwen van deze wereld. Het gebed is nooit leeg. Het stijgt onophoudelijk op naar de Heer opdat verdriet verandert in vreugde, wanhoop in blijheid, angst in hoop, eenzaamheid in gemeenschap. En het rijk Gods zal spoedig temidden van de mensen komen.
