Who do you say I am?

 The naming of someone changes our relationship with them. When we are able to use a name it changes the nature of what we seek from the other and how their life affects our own. We see this in the dialogue between Jesus and Peter. Jesus asks his disciples what people are saying about him. They draw on images of previous prophets and inspired teachers of Jewish law. Yet it is Peter who starts to recognize that Jesus is the anointed one who draws people into a living relationship with God. No longer is Peter's faith shaped by the teaching of others but through a personal encounter with who Jesus really is. This transformation draws us into a deeper consideration of who Jesus is for us today.

How we name Jesus in our daily life shapes who we seek to become. Our experience of prayer calls us to ponder through scripture and daily life the Good News of the incarnation. God does not relate to us as a distant entity but as a person who touches our own reality. Through the love of the Father, the twofold nature of Jesus and the presence of the Holy Spirit shapes how we are enmeshed in the life of the Trinity. The invitation is to allow our viewpoint to be broadened into a rich panorama rather than a narrowing of our vision. Jesus invites us into a living relationship that looks at the heart of creation through the eyes of God who sustains us.

This incarnate way of living helps us to see that life does not centre on ourselves and our own perceptions but on the life-giving work of Jesus Christ who labors with and for us. This is a prayerfulness that encaptures our hearts for the good of others not just for our own good. It forms the groundwork of compassion and justice for the good of all creation. It becomes a rule of life not just rules for life! When we are animated by the Holy Spirit we notice that the charisms entrusted to us are for the good of the whole community.

As we ponder the affirmation of Peter we are called to see how naming Jesus as the Christ shapes our way of life for the good of God, the good of others, and the good of ourselves.

Where is my true home?

Undertaking international travel helps us to see our world differently. We are called to open our hearts to new people and fresh experiences. We notice that when we travel we are welcomed as visitors. This helps us to notice how we can receive rather than demand hospitality. We trust ourselves to the generosity of our hosts who seek to share what is precious to them.

We see this in the readings for this weekend. Do we see ourselves as residents seeking to welcome others or as visitors in a foreign land. I believe this will shape how we seek to live our lives. Do we seek to possess the gifts entrusted to us by God or do we seek to share them. I feel that our sacred authors call us to see how our lives are shaped by these attitudes. Do we see ourselves as pilgrims or tourists?

As pilgrims we travel the way together and welcome the people who share their time with us. As tourists there can be a temptation to hoard experiences that seeks to contain our world to a privatised sense of self where we are entitled to consume these events. As pilgrims we are transformed where as tourists we are limited to our last experience. 

I feel that this is the challenge for our Church today. Do we seek to become pilgrims who accompany others or are we tourists consuming the Holy for ourselves?