21st Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A – August 23rd, 2020

This Sunday’s Gospel tells the famous story of Christ appointing Peter as head of His Church: “You are Peter, and on this rock I will build My Church.” We opened our discussion by reflecting on the double meaning in the phrase “the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” On the one hand, this could be seen as an assurance that the Church will have impregnable defenses against the Evil One. In the other hand, it could mean that the powers of darkness will be unable to resist when the Church goes on the offense! Both interpretations are valid, and taken together, they give us a fuller picture of what the Body of Christ is meant to be in her struggles with the Enemy. Some in the Church are called to “hold down the fort,” to establish centers of spiritual strength that supply the needs of those who are called instead to active, “front-lines” combat. Monasteries, and the religious who live in them, are very much called to build up these sorts of spiritual fortresses. Monks and nuns keep the “life-blood” of grace moving in the Church through their prayer, and they also often invite weary “soldiers” of the Church Militant to visit the monastery for rest and renewal.

However, this doesn’t mean that contemplatives don’t engage in battle. As a friend of our community is fond of saying, the prayers coming from monasteries are the “heavy artillery” being lobbed from a distant hilltop to decimate the Enemy’s forces! The Desert Fathers and other early monastic communities saw themselves as going out into the wilderness to do battle with the Devil and thus prevent him from attacking the spiritual good of those in the city. Because we as cloistered religious have many more external supports to live a holy life, God often asks more of us on behalf of those “in the fray.” For instance, one Sister shared how she finds it consoling to see her own struggles and temptations as a way of lightening the burden of some priest who is under great pressure and maybe would not have the spiritual stamina to bear those same difficulties.

The First Reading, from the book of Isaiah, gives the rich Old Testament background to St. Peter’s role as “Prime Minister” of the Kingdom of God. As we were discussing the different elements of this passage, however, a Sister pointed out that they very next verse (not included in the Lectionary) marks an abrupt shift. God says in the reading for today that He will “fix him [Eliakim] like a peg in a sure spot,” but soon after, He declares that the “peg” will break and everything hanging on it will crash to the ground! What are we to make of this sudden change? We discussed two possible interpretations. First, this metaphor shows the absolute importance for leaders in the Church to rely on God, rather than on themselves. Of itself, the peg cannot support the weight of the dishes it is carrying, and it is only the Lord who can give it the strength needed. In fact, St. Peter illustrates this very lesson in the passage following today’s Gospel: he starts believing that he knows what is best, and he even rebukes Christ for prophesying about His Passion! Jesus’ famous “get behind me, Satan” is a reminder to Peter – and to all of us – that no matter what position we hold in the Church, we must still take the Will of God as our highest standard.

Another interpretation of the broken peg image draws on the paradoxical quality of Christian victory. The world defines triumph as prevailing over one’s enemies, but the Christian sees the highest form of victory in the Crucified Christ. To the world, He seemed like nothing but a “broken peg,” a failure – but in fact, by His obedience unto death, He won the final victory over sin and evil. All members of the Church, and especially leaders, are called to imitate this mystery of death and resurrection, putting all our faith in God who will never allow the gates of Hell to prevail!