June 29
St. Peter, Prince Of The Apostles.
Preparation. - “Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church” (Mat. 16. 18). Thus spoke our Saviour to the Prince of the apostles. St. Peter justified these words by practicing, first, humility which digs in us the foundations of our spiritual edifice, and secondly, faith which fills them with solid materials. Let us, after his example, profoundly humble ourselves before God, and believe in the Gospel with a complete adhesion of our judgment and will. “Thou are Peter, and on this rock I will build My Church.”
I. Humility Of The Prince Of The Apostles.
When we wish to build an edifice, we first dig out the ground to make room for the materials of a solid and immovable foundation. Thus did our Saviour act with St. Peter. Wishing to establish him as the visible basis of His Church in this world, He imparted to him a profound and constant humility, a proof against all earthly honors. Having been chosen by the Redeemer Himself as supreme head of the apostolic college, he was invested with all power in the kingdom of his divine Master, whose vicar and viceroy he became. The keys of heaven were given Him, that he might introduce therein those he would deem worthy. He was even appointed to enlighten, direct and govern his brother apostles, and the divine Redeemer promised to ratify in heaven what Peter would do on earth. What is more dazzling than such an unlimited power over men's souls? What is more liable to destroy a less grounded humility?
But this did not hurt his humility in the least. One day after a miraculous draught of fishes, the outcome of his docile obedience, instead of congratulating himself on it, as most of men would have done, he cast himself at the feet of Jesus, exclaiming: “Lord, depart from me, for I am a sinful man.” On all occasions Jesus honors him, takes him along with Him, preferably to the other apostles, associates him with Himself in the payment of tribute, and designates him to prepare the Last Supper. None of these things puffed up his heart. He distinguished himself above all the others by his humble sentiments, so that our Lord was obliged to threaten him with the loss of His friendship, to induce him to consent to have Him wash his feet.
After the Redeemer's resurrection the humility of the disciple became daily more deeply rooted. Every morning the crowing of the cock caused him to shed tears at the remembrance of his denial of our Lord, so that his cheeks were furrowed thereby towards the end of his life. Judging himself unworthy to be crucified, like the Head of the predestined, he wished to be crucified with this head downward, as the vilest of miscreants. O humility of the Prince of pastors, how forcibly dost thou confound our pride and vain pretensions!
“To be nothing in our own eyes,” says the Imitation, “and to have always a good opinion of others, is great wisdom and eminent perfection. The most illustrious saints in the sight of the Lord, are those that are least in their own estimation; and the more humble they are interiorly.” - O Jesus, do not let me forget my ignorance in matters of salvation, my helplessness in doing good, my miseries, my sins, and the endless punishments I should have to endure, had not Thy mercy preserved me therefrom. Grant me the grace to mistrust myself and unceasingly to have recourse to Thee through an intimate conviction of my spiritual indigence.
II. The Faith Of The Prince Of The Apostles.
Our divine Saviour had said to Simon, son of Jona: “Thou art Peter, and on this rock I will build My Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” (Mat. 16. 18); “I have prayed for thee, Peter, that thy faith fail not; and when thou art converted, confirm thy brethren” (Luke 22. 31). After so express a choice of St. Peter as the foundation of the Church, it was indispensable that the chief of the apostles should be animated with a very lively faith, capable of dissipating the darkness of error, of correcting the erring, and of directing in secure paths the souls seeking salvation. Hence we see Simon Peter excelling by the liveliness of his belief. As soon as our Saviour calls him, he leaves all things and gives himself up to his guidance. After a night of useless efforts in fishing, he, on our Lord's word, casts his nets and gathers in an abundance of fish as a reward of his faith.
As the foundation of the spiritual edifice of the Catholic Church, which is to last to the end of time, Peter needs a firm and immovable faith. Seeing one day Jesus walking on the water, he, at His bidding, went to meet Him in spite of the waves; but hesitated a moment; and, says St. Maximus, this moment of weakness served only to manifest his faith, for he at once exclaimed: “Lord, save me.” And scarcely had Jesus given him His hand, than he recovered his firmness. And was it not Peter, who on every occasion acknowledged, speaking for the other apostles, the divinity of Jesus Christ? And when many of our Lord's followers left Him on account of His doctrine of the Holy Eucharist, Peter said: “Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal life; and we have believed and have known that Thou art Christ, the Son of God” (John 6. 69, 70).
By thus proclaiming Jesus as God and His works as divine, the first pastor laid the true belief on the solid rock, - overthrowing all heresies, and rendering indefectible the supreme See, in which he was to take his place; and all this will be perpetuated by his successors until the consummation of ages. - O Jesus, with Peter I believe that Thou art the eternal Word, the Creator of the universe and the Redeemer of our souls. Increase my faith, make it lively, like St. Peter's, capable of inducing me ever to do Thy will cheerfully and unhesitatingly. Make it as firm as a rock amid the furious waves of this unbelieving and seductive world. May no difficulty, trial or tribulation ever alter it to my last breath, or prevent me from submitting, with childlike reverence, to the teaching of the Church, of our Holy Father, the Pope, and to the dispositions of Thy infinitely wise Providence. “Where Peter is, there also is the Church” (St. Cypr.). “My just man liveth by faith” (Hebr. 10. 30).
