Who Do You Say You Are? | Catholics on Call

by Barbara E. Reid, O.P., Ph.D. | August 18, 2011

Scripture Reflection for the Twentyfirst Sunday in Ordinary Time (Sunday, August 21, 2011)

Scripture Readings:
Isaiah 22:15, 19-23
Psalm 138
Romans 11:33-36
Matthew 16:13-20

WHO DO YOU SAY YOU ARE?

"Who do you say that I am?" (Matt 16:15)

The question Jesus poses in today's Gospel is not a pop quiz for the disciples. Since it comes half-way through the Gospel narrative, at a critical turning point, we might be tempted to think Jesus is giving a kind of mid-term exam to see how well the disciples are understanding him and to test whether they have what it takes to go the rest of the journey with him. However, the scene may also reflect Jesus' own development of how he came to understand his identity and mission. Taking Jesus' humanity seriously, and recalling Luke's assertion that "Jesus increased in wisdom and in years, and in divine and human favor"(Luke 2:52), we might say that in today's Gospel and that of next Sunday, we see a glimpse of Jesus' deepening understanding of what it meant to be "the Christ, the Son of the living God" (v. 16).

In contrast to modern Western cultures in which individuals expend energy trying to find themselves and their own unique identity as a person distinct from others, in Jesus' culture, characterized by dyadic personality, a person understood him or herself only in relationship to the groups in which she or he was imbedded: family, clan, nation, and religion. Paul, for example, identifies himself as "a member of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews, as to the Law, a Pharisee" (Phil 3:5). Earlier in the Gospel, the people of Jesus' hometown identify him as "the carpenter's son, whose mother is Mary, and whose brothers are James, Joseph, Simon, Judas, and who also has sisters" (Matt 13:55-56). In addition, in such a culture, the perceptions of others also help to shape a person's identity.

In today's Gospel, Jesus seeks out others' perceptions as he solidifies his understanding of himself. The disciples first align Jesus with revered prophetic figures: John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah. While there are many parallels between Jesus and these prophets, Matthew clearly distinguishes Jesus from them. He is the more powerful one " coming after John" (Matt 3:11). And it is John who embodies the returned Elijah (Matt 11:14; 17:12). As Jesus presses the disciples for their own response, Peter, the spokesperson for the group, rightly declares, "You are the Messiah (christos)." This is a term used in the Old Testament for one who is set apart by God for particular service, such as kings (Ps 2:2; 89:20); priests (Lev 4:3, 5), and prophets (1 Kgs 19:16). That Jesus is christos, anointed,is not a new revelation in Matthew's Gospel (see 1:1, 17, 18; 11:2). But the nature of Jesus'messiahship as entailing suffering and death is articulated for the first time in the ensuing verses (16:21-27), the Gospel for next Sunday.

As Jesus'identity emerges and solidifies, so too, that of Peter. Verses 17-19 are unique to Matthew, with a word play on the name, Petros, rock, in Greek. Jesus exalts the emerging rock-like faith, of Peter, and of the whole community of disciples whose identity is tied up in that of Jesus. Yet in the very next verses, the rockwill falter when confronted with the stumbling block (scandalon, 18:6, 7) of Jesus' passion. Nonetheless, as the Gospel progresses, Jesus continues to call him Peter, enabling him to become what he is named.

Just as the disciples' naming of Jesus as Messiah and partnering with him in his messianic mission enabled him to embrace all that being the anointed entailed, so Jesus' identification of the believing community as rock solid brought forth that quality in them. Likewise, we are invited to let Jesus and our faith community call forth our deepest identity as followers of the anointed, whose solidity is sure.

PRAYING WITH SCRIPTURE

What is Jesus saying to your about your identity as his follower?
How are your gifts for mission identified by your faith community?
Who do you say you are?

This reflection will appear in America.

Barbara E. Reid, O.P., Ph.D.

Professor of New Testament Studies
Vice President and Academic Dean

M.A., Aquinas College; Ph.D., Catholic University of America

Barbara E. Reid, O.P. is a Dominican Sister of Grand Rapids, Michigan. She holds a Masters from Aquinas College in Religious Studies and a Ph.D. in Biblical Studies from The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. She is the author of Taking Up the Cross: New Testament Interpretations Through Latina and Feminist Eyes (Fortress Press, 2007), The Gospel According to Matthew, New Collegeville Bible Commentary Series (Liturgical Press, 2005), Parables for Preachers (3 volumes; Liturgical Press, 1999, 2000, 2001), Las Parábolas: Predicándolas y Viviéndolas (Liturgical Press, 2008, 2009), Choosing the Better Part? Women in the Gospel of Luke (Liturgical Press, 1996), A Retreat With St. Luke (St. Anthony Messenger Press, 2000), and many journal articles. Currently she is writing Sophia’s Table: An Introduction to Feminist Interpretation of the Scriptures (forthcoming from Eerdman’s Press) and is General Editor for a new 60-volume feminist commentary on the Bible (forthcoming from Liturgical Press). She writes the weekly column on “The Word” forAmerica magazine.

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Books written by Barbara E. Reid