Peter, Soldiers, and the Call to Suffer
My dear brothers and sisters, today the readings inspire us to be soldiers, soldiers for Christ. That is the best description I can think of.
Especially when you look at the Gospel today. Just last week, Peter declared, “You are the Messiah, the Son of God.” And Jesus responded, “I call you Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church.” Not even ten minutes later, Jesus is saying to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan.”
Why? Because Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem, suffer greatly from the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, be killed, and on the third day be raised. And Peter took Jesus aside. “God forbid, Lord. God forbid that something like that would happen to you.”
And then, instead of Jesus saying, “Ah, Peter, thanks, man. I know you love me and I know you care about me,” he said, “Get behind me, Satan. You are an obstacle to me. You are not thinking as God does, but as human beings do.”
“You Duped Me, Lord”
Well, how does God think? In the first reading, from the prophet Jeremiah, we hear those striking words. “You duped me, Lord.” I love that.
You know what duped means? You fooled me. Jeremiah thought that when God called him to be a prophet, he was going to be the king of the hill. He imagined people running up to him, asking for his blessing. Instead, Jeremiah was mocked and ridiculed. “All the day I am an object of laughter. Everyone mocks me. No one wants to hear what I have to say.”
The Night Before Ordination
This first reading reminds me of the night before I was ordained a priest in Rome. It is very hard to remember what people tell you yesterday, let alone a week ago or a month ago. So imagine remembering something said to you almost thirty years ago. Whatever it was, it must have been powerful.
The night before my ordination, during the last meditation of our retreat, the priest directing us said, “Brothers, tomorrow you will be ordained priests. After ten years, you will finally be priests.” And all of us were relieved, just exhaling.
He said, “People are coming from everywhere to see you. Your parents are flying in. Your relatives, your siblings, your cousins, your friends are all flying in. When you are ordained, there will be envelopes. There will be, ‘Give me your first blessing, Father.’ People will kneel, and you will bless them in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. They will kiss your hands, still fragrant with chrism oil.”
And we were all nodding along, thinking, yes. This is it.
Then he said, “But do not forget. Tomorrow you will be crucified with Christ. Do not ever forget that.”
You duped me, Lord. I thought this was going to be a bed of roses. I thought this was going to be easy.
The Teeter-Totter
Think of your life like a teeter-totter. The people who love you most, your parents, they say you are great when you do what is right and good. And when you are faithful, you are at the top with the Lord.
But the moment you decide not to be faithful, you are deciding to go for what is convenient. Convenience rather than conviction. And anybody who tries to live their life for convenience or comfort will be crucified in a different way. You have to stick to your beliefs. Stay strong.
This is what the Lord was saying to Peter. “Peter, don’t you understand? I don’t have to die on the cross if I decide to give it all up. If I decide to be just like everyone else. If I decide to go with the flow instead of being the salmon that swims against the current, I could easily make my life comfortable.”
So when Peter said, “God forbid that this happens to you,” he just did not get it.
Beautiful Is Not the Same as Pretty
If you stand for what is right and good and beautiful, let me tell you something. Beautiful does not mean pretty. That cross is not pretty. That is ugly. But it is beautiful, because what is the Lord saying? “You are worth it. You are worth every drop of my blood.” That is what makes it beautiful.
When you stand for what you believe in, even when it hurts, you are doing the work of the Lord. You are a soldier.
The Ninth Graders
Not too long ago I was talking to a group of ninth graders. They had just entered high school. They were at the bottom of the barrel, no longer at the top of the hill. I asked what was wrong, and one of the girls said, “Father, no one has invited me to homecoming yet.”
Then I talked to the boys. I asked why they were not inviting the girls to homecoming. One of them said, “Father, the cool kids wait till the end.” And I told him, “But you are not cool.” He just nodded and said, “You wait.”
Do you believe in yourself? Do you have to settle for less in order to be popular or liked? Or are you willing to stick to your guns, stick to your beliefs, and see how things turn out? Hold steady. Guard the fort. Be convinced of the words of Jesus Christ.
Ulysses S. Grant and the Power of Conviction
I have been reading a book on Ulysses S. Grant. Can you imagine that three of the generals who surrendered to him at the end of the Civil War had all been at his wedding? James Longstreet, a Confederate general, was his best man. Two other Confederate generals were also there when Grant got married. And those were the three generals present when Lee surrendered to Grant.
What made the difference? When you believe in something, when you are truly convinced, the road will not always be easy. It can be an ugly road. But it can also be a beautiful road. It can change the world. It can change the lives of the people around you.
You have to stay convinced even when people make fun of you, especially when you are young. In high school, people mock you for being good. It can even seem like it is bad to be good and good to be bad. Be convinced. Humility is strength.
The Fire That Cannot Be Contained
Let us go back to the first reading one more time. Jeremiah says to himself, “I will not mention him. I will not speak in his name anymore. I won’t show my faith. I won’t speak about Jesus at work. I won’t pray before lunch at school. I’m not going to look like a fool anymore. I’m done.”
But when you are truly convinced, it does not stay silent for long. Then it becomes like a fire burning in his heart, imprisoned in his bones. “I grow weary holding it in. I cannot endure it.”
That is what we are looking for in today’s readings. Who is going to speak up for the Lord? Who will be a soldier for Christ? Who will stay at the top of that teeter-totter instead of sliding down?
Who will speak for Him?
Today we should be able to say, “Here I am, Lord. I come to do your will.”
Amen.
