The rock in Caesarea Philippi vs. the rock of our Catholic Church: 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time

Listen to the homily here.

Notes:

In 2011 my seminary class was able to go to the Holy Land

·      Caesarea Philippi

·      It was powerful

·      I looked up and down a massive rock structure—100 feet high and 500 feet wide

·      We were also taught about four historical facts on this rock

First

·      The bottom opened a cave

·      This area was a place to worship Pan—a god Greek mythology

·      Also a place between earth and hell

Second

·      In the Jewish family, they did not go to this rock

·      Polytheism with many gods

·      Atrocities, evil, prostitution for worship

Third

·      The Romans took over this rock

·      They put up an idol statue for one of the emperors and it was called “the son of God”

Then Jesus brought his disciples

·      "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" 

o   Pan?  Emperor?

o   Nope…they guessed John the Baptist…Elijah…Jeremiah…prophet

·      They were on track

·      Then Peter said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." 

o   This was the God!

·      Jesus answered, “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 the netherworld 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.”

o   The real God

o   Peter = rock = were the Church would be built

o   The keys to the kingdom goes to Peter, not “gods” who persecute humans or care for humans

o   Jesus Christ called Peter and his church with power between us and God

At Caesarea Philippi, Jesus brought them to face evil, to destroy evil, to show the power of God and gave it to our Church

Caesarea Philippi

·      Rock

·       In the Gospel, Jesus takes his disciples to Caesarea Philippi and Peter utters his famous proclamation: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”  Jesus then gives Peter his name (until this point he was referred to as Simon) which actually means rock and gives him the keys of heaven and earth.  This whole sequence took place beside a massive rock structure—100 feet high and 500 feet wide.  (No, Fr. Rich, this is not a monadnock).  Jesus uses this tangible image of strength and endurance to show how His Church would be established on Peter, the rock.

·       

Isaiah:

·      “I will place the key of the House of David on Eliakim's shoulder;
when he opens, no one shall shut
when he shuts, no one shall open.
I will fix him like a peg in a sure spot,
to be a place of honor for his family."

Gospel: Matthew 16

·      dkd

The “gods”

·      Pan = a god controlling hell and earth

·      The community was filled with atrocities and Jews would not go to it

·      Jesus did…face to face with evil

·      And starting our church on the rock of Peter