By Fr. Marcel Uzoigwe, CSSp.
(Is.22:19-23, Ps.138:1-8, Rom.11:33-36 & Matt.16:13:20)
Beloved friends in Christ,
The readings of today invite us to review the basic foundation of our stewardship. This is necessary given that stewardship in God’s household is a vocation. God calls and choses us for various functions in the body of Christ. Only when our stewardship is inspired by the knowledge and love of God rather than love of wealth and vain glory can we be true partners with God in fulfilling his desires for his people.
The first reading is a continuation of the prophecy of Isaiah concerning Jerusalem at a time it was facing possible external attack and internal corruption. The portion we read is a prophecy concerning the disgrace and replacement of Shebna, a great officer entrusted with the treasury and the management of the revenue, and the choice of Eliakim to take over the post of honour. Shebna was described as a man of boundless ambition and covetousness, proud and treacherous to the point of having secret correspondence with the enemies of Israel. Eliakim, on the other hand, was the opposite of everything that Shebna represented in his behaviour. He was God-fearing, humble and diligent. Having proved himself a faithful servant of God in other employments, God approved him for the high position of taking charge of his household. Eliakim did not undermine Shebna, nor made an interest against him, nor did he intrude into his office; but God called him to it: and what God calls us to we may expect he will own us in.
God will place the keys of David on the shoulder of Eliakim such that when he opens no man shuts, and when he shuts, no man opens. He will also fasten him as a nail in a sure place, not to be removed or cut down. These statements point to the vast extent and long duration of the authority that God was going to confer on Eliakim. By diligent discharge of his office, he will be a great blessing in his family, and a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. He shall take care not only of the affairs of the king’s household, but of all the public interests in Jerusalem and Judah. In Eliakim we see that the honour men reflect by their piety and usefulness is more to be valued than that which they derive from their titles. Indeed the glory of this world which Shebna sought in his covetousness gives no intrinsic worth or excellency, but hangs like a cloth which will soon be dropped. But that which God bestows is eternal.
Jesus confers similar, but even greater authority, to Peter in the gospel reading. In the account of the events leading to Jesus’ statement, Jesus sought feedback from his disciples regarding who the people say he is. Since there are usually as many opinions as there are persons, the people’s opinion regarding the identity of Jesus varied from being John the Baptist or Elija to one of the ancient prophets that has come back to life. Jesus then threw the question directly to his disciples, “But who do you say that I am?” There is a wide gap between knowing about a person and knowing a person. Knowledge about a person is based on available information, which could be false. A woman once heard a gossip about her husband. While the gossiper was expecting the woman to get elated and react furiously, she calmly turned to her and said, “I know him. You better go home and fix your family and stop spying on my husband.” Eventually, she was right because the gossip turned out to be false. Knowing a person is based on first-hand personal experience of the person. The woman in the story was unwilling to exchange her experience of her husband with rumours flying around about him.
Having been with his disciples for a long time, one would not expect Jesus to throw such a question to them. But there is more to it because it borders on the question of identity, and how we arrive at it. The people guessed the identity of Jesus based on what they saw: the authority of his teaching was similar to that of John the Baptist; the signs he performed likened him to Elija, etc. It was necessary for Jesus to know if his disciples trully understand who they were following and what they were doing by following him. Without such a knowledge, it would be nearly impossible for them to face the challenges that will follow.
Peter, guided by the Holy Spirit, spoke up, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” That was the first public proclamation of the identity of Jesus by his disciples. Such knowledge from on high cannot be mediated by information gathering without personal faith and commitment. We must realize that by this question Jesus is as well asking us individually today, who am I to you? Do you really know me? Why are you following me? It is not enough to have a knowledge of Jesus based on what other people say or write about him without having your own personal experience of who Jesus is to you. By building a personal relationship with Jesus, we grow in discovering who he is on first-hand bases.
In response to Peter’s declaration of faith, Jesus pronounces: “You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my Church.” Of course the true rock, the “cornerstone” is, and remains, Jesus himself. But once he has risen and ascended into heaven, this cornerstone, though present and active, is invisible. It is necessary for a sign to represent him, a sign that makes Christ, who is the “unshakeable foundation,” visible and efficacious in history. This sign is Peter and, after him, his successor, the Pope, as head of the college of apostles.
Thereafter follows Jesus’ assurance that the Church will endure against all assaults of evil. This has been remarkably kept through twenty centuries down to our own day, a testimony to the firmness of a foundation whose strength basically comes from Truth and Love. As long as these divinely originating qualities are in the Church, and any part of it, there is nothing to fear. Peter is then given a special stewardship and responsibility for the community: “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be considered bound in heaven”.
The leadership of Peter and his successors is not one of dictatorship but of example and service. We see in the first reading the contrast between the stewardship style of Shebna who was dethroned and that of Eliakim whom God promoted to replace Shebna. Thus, the Pope is not a dictator. He is limited by the faith of the whole Church. He is thus the focal point of unity of that one faith, the unity in the Spirit. In our fragmented Church of today, with so many conflicting theologies and spiritualities, there has never been a greater need for a focal point of Christian unity as we creatively search for new understandings of what it means to be a disciple of Christ in a constantly changing world.
Though Eliakim and Peter were God-fearing, diligent and committed, the choice of them and the authority conferred on them came directly from God. Like Eliakim and Peter, each one of us has been chosen and entrusted with certain responsibility in the church community, family, work place or in the society. We need to recognize and appreciate the trust God has vested in us in calling us to his service, and allow it to inspire us to seek even deeper knowledge and commitment with him. Such personal experinces of God in our lives would help us to be good steawards in God’s household.