Walking on Water

Seeing the power of the command of Christ

08/03/2020

Matthew 14:22-36 Jesus made the disciples get into a boat and precede him to the other side of the sea, while he dismissed the crowds. After doing so, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When it was evening he was there alone. Meanwhile the boat, already a few miles offshore, was being tossed about by the waves, for the wind was against it. During the fourth watch of the night, he came toward them, walking on the sea. When the disciples saw him walking on the sea they were terrified. “It is a ghost,” they said, and they cried out in fear. At once Jesus spoke to them, “Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.” Peter said to him in reply, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” He said, “Come.” Peter got out of the boat and began to walk on the water toward Jesus. But when he saw how strong the wind was he became frightened; and, beginning to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me!” Immediately Jesus stretched out his hand and caught him, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” After they got into the boat, the wind died down. Those who were in the boat did him homage, saying, “Truly, you are the Son of God.”

Today’s gospel from Matthew 14 and Peter’s walking on the water reminds me of an embarrassing episode when I was a teenager. I was on a retreat out in the country and there was a small lake nearby the retreat house. We had just heard an inspiring sermon on this passage about Peter walking on the water, even though he had “little faith.” I thought to myself, surely I have a “little faith” like Peter so perhaps I can walk on water, too. So, I decided to put my faith to the test (by the way, do not try this at home).

But I didn’t want to do it while anyone was around. Why? Well, I didn’t want to look as foolish as Peter when he sank in case my experiment didn’t work and I sank too. So, I stood on the shore of that little lake and made the most sincere and heartfelt act of faith my teenage soul could muster. I bravely stuck out my right foot and stepped on the water. Do you know what happened? My foot sank deep into the mud of that lake shore, and my shoe got stuck. I thought, oh well, at least it’ll make a good story someday when I need some sermon material, so it wasn’t a total loss.

Now, why was Peter able to walk on water and I wasn’t? And by the way, nor did the other 11 apostles, so I’m in good company. Well, I think it has to do with the command of Christ. Peter asked: “Lord if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” And Jesus replied: “Come.” And notice when I was a teen, I did not ask Jesus to command me to walk on the water of that little lake. In other words, walking on water depends as much on deep faith as it does on the command of Christ. Only if Jesus wants you to walk on the water will you be able to walk on the water. Everything depends on the will of Christ, which is nothing other than the will of God. Apparently, Jesus did not want me to walk on the water, just like he did not want the other eleven apostles to walk on the water either.

But then why did Jesus want Peter in particular to walk on the water? I believe it’s because Jesus would give Peter a share in his ministry of shepherding the whole Church. Indeed, Peter, and his successors the popes, would be called the “vicar of Christ,” standing in the place of Christ himself. We find other examples of this shared shepherding in symbolic language throughout the New Testament. In Mt. 16, Jesus says Peter is the “rock,” and in Ephesians 2, St. Paul will insist that Jesus is the “cornerstone.” Notice the shared ministry. Again, in Mt. 16 Jesus says Peter is entrusted with the “keys,” while in Rev. 1:18, St. John beholds that Jesus continues to carry the “keys” of the netherworld. Again, shared roles and responsibilities.

So, today, Jesus walks on the waters of the deep and so does Peter. In Hebrew the word “tehom” described the primordial waters of Gen. 1:2 out of which God created the original heavens and the earth. So, now Christ inaugurates a new heavens and a new earth by walking on the waters of the deep, the tehom. And even more surprisingly he invites Peter to walk with him. But it cannot be emphasized enough that everything Peter does and everything Peter is depends on the command of Christ, that is, the will of God. Christ commands, Peter obeys.

But I am convinced that Peter’s walking on the water not only contains consequences for him but also for us, indeed, consequences for the whole world. Those consequences can be summarized in one question: where is the Church that Jesus established, that is, where is the initial installment of the new heavens and the new earth that augur the new creation? The answer is found in an ancient maxim in Latin, “ubi Petrus, ibi ecclesia” that is, “where there is Peter, there is the Church.” In other words, as long you stay close to Peter and his bark (his ship), you will be close to Christ and his Church. Our love, our respect, our obedience, and our prayers for Pope Francis, the 265th successor of St. Peter, is what distinguishes Catholicism from Protestantism and even Orthodox Christianity.

And why do we care so much about Peter and the popes? Because he was the one who got to walk on the waters of the deep, the tehom, and share in the shepherding ministry of Christ himself, not the other eleven apostles, and not me. And again, this was not because Peter was so personally perfect or great, or even because of his “little faith,” but because Christ commanded it as a manifestation of the will of God. You know, I knew that embarrassing episode from trying to walk on the water as a teenager would come in handy in a homily someday. A similarly embarrassing episode from Peter’s history came in handy for him, too.

Praised be Jesus Christ!