FEAST OF THE CHAIR OF SAINT PETER, APOSTLE - Gospel (Mt 16:13-19) - THE WORD OF GOD FOR EVERYONE

“You are Peter, and upon this rock, I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.” (Mt 16:18)

FIRST READING - 1 Peter 5:1-4

A reading from the First Letter of Peter

Beloved:

I exhort the presbyters among you,

as a fellow presbyter and witness to the sufferings of Christ

and one who has a share in the glory to be revealed.

Tend the flock of God in your midst,

overseeing not by constraint but willingly,

as God would have it, not for shameful profit but eagerly.

Do not lord it over those assigned to you,

but be examples to the flock.

And when the chief Shepherd is revealed,

you will receive the unfading crown of glory.

GOSPEL OF THE DAY - Matthew 16:13-19

From the Gospel according to Matthew

When Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi

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 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.”

FEAST OF THE CHAIR OF SAINT PETER - APOSTLE - Gospel (Mt 16:13-19)

THE WORD OF GOD FOR EVERYONE

Dear People of God,

The Word of God today declares to everyone that what Jesus taught and appointed cannot be changed by anyone: '"You are Peter, and upon this rock, I will build My Church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it."'

Jesus appointed Peter as the rock at the head of the Church, as the representative of Jesus to build the Church and to shepherd His flock. When Jesus ascended to heaven, the Church remained the Church of Jesus, the Church of God, of which He was the head, and the Church was its members. Therefore, even though He ascended to heaven, He was still present and gave the Holy Spirit to work in the Church.

This era is the era of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the fire, the wind, and the protector. He is always flexible in all places and at all times, never rigid.

To be a solid rock in a house, it is necessary to have bricks, stones, grains of sand, and gravel must be together combined. If there are stones alone, it is impossible to build a house. Therefore, today is the day of commemorating the day Jesus chose Saint Peter as the Rock to remind everyone that when there is a rock, there must be surrounding stones, there must be grains of sand, and grains of gravel, which are all members of the Church united together to build a solid house for God.

How is the Church of God today? Is it falling apart? Is it gradually dividing, with everyone wanting to separate themselves and be the leader?

This is Satan's plan to destroy the Church of God, to separate each stone, brick, and pebble that are members of the Church from the Holy Father. God clearly sees Satan's plan to gradually destroy the Church, destroy His plan, and destroy every member of His body.

Therefore, God desires to call on everyone—every member of the Church, from Cardinals, Bishops, Priests, religious men and women, and lay people, to unite with each other and with the head of the Church, Pope Francis. We must not separate but carry out the commandments that God has given to the head.

'"Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."' (Mt 16:18-19).

Today, God reminds us that His Word still exists and remains effective, but has the Church lived according to the commandments of God, or has it become more and more distant from His Word?

Today, have the shepherds cared for their flocks following the example of Jesus? If not, then let us return to the identity of the Church, to the nature of the Church's life as holy, catholic, and apostolic.

We must return to the life of the early Christians by fasting, praying constantly, living a life of love and charity, sacrifice, humility, humble oneself, and fearing God alone.

May we live with the fruits of the Holy Spirit: '"Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control."' (Gal 5:22-23). Only by living these fruits can God's commandments be effective; only then can heaven be united with God's shepherds, and only then can this Scripture be fully fulfilled: '"Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven."'

On the contrary, if leaders do not live according to God's commandments, their bindings will not be pleasing to God.

For that reason, God has chosen those He wants and filled them with the grace of the Holy Spirit, so that from these few people, the Holy Spirit continues to build and renew the Church.

On condition that these people must undergo God's direct purification. They must live according to God's teachings, love and respect the Church, they must obey God above all things, fear Him, and be united with His Church.

Through these purified people, God calls upon the shepherds of the Church, which are Shepherds of God the Father, to actively contribute to building the Church and to unite with the head of the Church, with the bishops, and the presbyterate, through understanding the working of the Holy Spirit that has existed since Jesus ascended to heaven. They must return to the apostolic character of the Church and the tradition of the apostles of old, by fasting, constant prayer, living in love and forgiveness, giving up passions, being humble and being self-abasement, wholeheartedly loving and serving God.

Today's Word of God announces to all mankind that the Holy Spirit is always flexible. He has worked everywhere in the Church and is not rigid to laws made by men, such as the law of fasting two days a year. For God said Satan has been rampant in the Church. God has given the Realistic Word of God to teach humanity, reminding us of the Word He has given in the Bible and the Church: We must fast, pray, and unite closely with God to defeat Satan.

We must sacrifice ourselves to work, love, fear God with all our hearts, and truly love our neighbors as ourselves. Otherwise, Satan will spread throughout the world, attack God's children, separate the members of Jesus Christ, and will steal many souls that God has lovingly created.

Thanks be to God. Amen.