8.25.20 - Peter and the Jewish roots of the Papacy

Peter and the Jewish roots of the Papacy

Context of Gospel Reading (Matthew 16)

This was the winter before Jesus’ last trip to Jerusalem (4 months left). He had not discussed who he really was yet, although the Apostles were starting to understand recently with the feeding of 5000 and then walking on the water. Jesus seems to be waiting for his cue from the Father, much the way he received his cue from Him (through Mary) on the start of his ministry at Cana.

The setting is Caesarea Philippi, about 30 miles NW of the Sea of Galilee on the southern slope of Mount Harmon, a very rich land, plush with vegetation, the origin of the Jordan River. This was the territory that had once belonged to the lost tribe of Dan, which would have been the northern most boundary of King David’s Kingdom.

Matthew 16:13-20

Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi and he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”

They replied, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”

He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”

Simon Peter said in reply, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Jesus said to him in reply, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah.

For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father.

And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.

I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven.

Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”

Then he strictly ordered his disciples to tell no one that he was the Messiah.

There’s a lot in here so let’s take these passages one by one.

Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi and he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”

They replied, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”

Q: Why would Jesus go to Caesarea Philippi?

1) Because he has went to all the lands of the lost tribes, since that was one of God’s promises – to gather the sheep from the lost tribes of Israel.

2) This was the location the pagan worship of Baal. After the Greeks and Romans took over, they built an altar to the god Pan. In fact, this was the precise location of the Cave of Pan, the place of the Gate of Hades. Just like Yahweh used the Egyptian gods against them in the ten plagues, Jesus following suit. This is where Jesus will make his next startling statements.

Q: What could we conclude about people’s conjectures about Jesus’ identity?

A: Although they have mentioned some amazing prophets, the fact is they are all dead. So what would that mean?

It means they believe Jesus is not an ordinary man!

He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”

Simon Peter said in reply, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

The key here is that Peter not only names Jesus as Messiah (= Christ = the Anointed One), but also divine.

Btw, Peter’s real name was Simon bar-Jonah (=Simon, son of John). Although he is called Peter throughout the gospels, that’s because the Gospels were written 30-40 years later. The first time he was ever called Peter is in the very next passage.

Jesus said to him in reply, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah.

For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father.

This is the cue Jesus was waiting for. The beginning of the end is has begun.

And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.

Name Change. This is the first time Simon is called Peter. God changes the names of people only at momentous events. For instance, he changed Abram’s name to Abraham when He made his first covenant with him because he would be a father of many nations. He also changed Sarai’s name to Sarah, for she will be a mother of nations. He also changed Jacob’s name to Israel, and we know how significant that is. Now he is changing Simon’s name to Peter.

You are Peter (Greek “Petros”) and “upon this rock” (petra) I will build my church. Petros and petra both mean rock – the first is masculine, the second is feminine. If anyone is familiar with learning romantic languages, you know there can be masculine and feminine versions of a word. Strange, but even a table can be feminine. That’s the usage here. I only point it out since non-Catholics will say that the rock Jesus is talking about is the rock of faith, and that’s why it’s spelled differently. That’s not the meaning of Jesus but it was a good effort to strip Peter of any authority. Besides, the Aramaic and Hebrew word for rock is the same word – it does not have a male and female version.

Upon this rock I will build my church. The rock is not just a word Jesus grabbed out of the air because it sounded nice and he didn’t have his thesaurus with him. It has meaning. It refers to the foundation stone in the temple. Stone in Greek is the same word, petra.

What is the foundation stone?

Just before Jerusalem was sacked by the Babylonians in 586 BC, the Levitical priests moved the Ark of the Covenant to Egypt. (Story has it that it was moved to Ethiopia after that and resides there to this day in the town of Aksum, in the St. Mary of Zion cathedral.)

When the Jews were released from Babylonian captivity by Cyrus the Great and returned to Jerusalem, they rebuilt the Temple (a shadow of its former self) but they no longer had the Ark. In its place, the put the foundation stone for the Temple. This stone was purposely located in the Holy of Holies, where the Ark would have gone. When the priests completed their sacrifices, the would normally have sprinkled the animal blood on the Ark. Ever since 500 BC, they sprinkled the blood on the foundation stone instead.

Do you recall that the Messianic Era was to usher in a new Exodus, a New Jerusalem, and a New Temple? Jesus is ushering in the New Temple at this very moment.

I will build my church... The Greek word for church is actually Ekklesia, which means “assembly.” Why? Because the chosen people (the Jews) came to worship as an “assembly” (=members of the Temple).

The foundation stone was now being moved to Jesus’ new Ekklesia/Church/Temple.

And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.

The New Temple, the New Jerusalem, was not one that would fall like the Old Jerusalem. No sir. He says very clearly, the gates of Hades (Hell/Satan) shall not prevail against it. That does not mean it won’t have to suffer through its share of bad human beings – no more perhaps than Israel had – but His Church will not fall.

Btw, do you recall where is Jesus making these statements? The Cave of Pan – the place of the Gates of Hades. Coincidence? I think not.

I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”

What the heck does it mean to give Peter the keys to the kingdom of heaven?

For this, we must refer to our first reading for today, from Isaiah 22:15-23. Jesus quoted Isaiah numerous times and this one relates exactly to today’s reading.

First, the context of the Isaiah reading (Chapter 22)

Recall there are 3 sections to Isaiah. This reading is from First Isaiah (chs 1-39). Isaiah, one of the greatest of the prophets, appears at a critical moment in Israel’s history. The Northern Kingdom has already collapsed under the hammer-like blows of Assyria, in 722 BC.

Now, in 701 BC, Jerusalem itself sees the army of Sennacherib draw up before its walls. Hezekiah was king of Judah. His royal steward of the palace was Shebna, who was brought on by his father, King Ahaz. Shebna had acquired more and more power and was even adopting royal privileges for himself. He even had a tomb cut for himself in the area reserved for the royal sons of David. It is also thought that in his negotiations with Assyria and Egypt, he was not forthright with Hezekiah, making sure to protect himself in any outcome. As a result, the LORD sends an oracle to Shebna via Isaiah, to the effect that Shebna will be replaced in his position by a more righteous man, Eliakim.

I have BOLDED the important comparisons to the Gospel reading and numbered them below.

Isaiah 22:15-23

Thus says the Lord, the GOD of hosts: Up, go to that official, Shebna, master of the palace, and say,

“What have you here? Whom have you here, that you have hewn for yourself a tomb here, hewing a tomb on high, carving a resting place in the rock?”

I will thrust you from your office and pull you down from your station.

On that day I will summon my servant Eliakim, son of Hilkiah; I will clothe him with your robe, gird him with your sash, confer on him your authority.

He shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to the house of Judah.

I will place the key of the House of David on his shoulder;

what he opens, no one will shut, what he shuts, no one will open.

I will fix him as a peg in a firm place, a seat of honor for his ancestral house.

1. Role. Master of the Palace, also known as the Royal Steward, Hand of the King in Thrones, or a Prime Minister; it was the #2 position just after the king himself (at this time, King Hezekiah). It was a highly sought-after position because it had far-reaching authority over the day-to-day running of the kingdom, including the king’s household and possessions. Shebna abused this power in so many ways that God decided to intervene and replace him.

2. Office. Master of the Palace/Royal Steward/PM. This was an office. When Shebna was gone, Eliakim would take his place. The point of this is that this position is not just about the person, such that when that person is gone the job goes away. No sir, it passes on to a successor. This is kind of common sense, but there is a point, because some non-Catholics think that Peter’s authority should have ended when he died. Just like in Isaiah, the office that Jesus confers upon Peter is meant to have successors. If anyone would have understood this it would be Peter, who picked his own successor – Linus – in 67 AD, just before he died.

3. Servant Leadership. God is looking to give authority to a servant. Jesus also had authority and called himself a servant. Do you see a theme here? This is where we get the idea “servant leadership” from. He wants a kingdom where leaders don’t lord their authority over the people in their care. He wants them to show compassion and concern for their people (Matthew 20:25-26). That is the model set for Peter and his successors by Jesus himself.

4. Father. He shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem. The servant leader is also to act like a good father to the king’s people. A good father teaches and protects. Father to the Church is the title Peter office took, which was papas in Greek, a variant of Latin “papa.”

5. Keys. This position/office is given the keys to the kingdom. The keys are more than symbolic, it meant controlling access to the king. “What he opens, no one will shut; what he shuts, no one will open.”

Similarly, Jesus says to Peter, “what you bind on earth will be bound in heaven; what is loosed on earth will be loosed in heaven.”

Although one could say the meaning was about the same, why the difference between open/shut and bind/loose? Why didn’t Jesus just use Isaiah’s language?

Because “binding authority” was the terminology of the 1st century Rabbis/Pharisees. They possessed authoritative teaching. If they determined a rule or ritual or interpretation was binding, then it had to be followed. “Loose” meant a diversity of opinion was allowed.

Recall Jesus’ statement, “They (the Pharisees) bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not lift a finger to help them.” Matthew 23:4

Jesus gave that type of authority to Peter. Yes, Peter received the “keys to the kingdom” and the power to bind and to loose. But first and foremost, he was to be the rock, the foundation stone upon which the Church would be built. He would not be raised up above all his brothers and sisters; he would be beneath them to support them. That’s the type of leadership God wants parents or anyone in authority to exercise.

Godly leaders don’t put themselves first. They are not greedy for honor or power. His kingdom is a place where, instead of setting themselves up against one another, his people serve one another with love, respect, and honor.

Maranatha!

Ron