Jesus said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" So our Lord questioned Saint Peter and his other disciples, in that event we know as St. Peter's Confession. Jesus Christ well knew what the crowds were saying about him; he asks Peter individually, particularly, "But who do you say that I am?"
Because Peter's Confession is a primary source for those wishing to detail the organization of the earliest Church, typically people focus on what Jesus Christ said to Peter. I, on the contrary, wish to focus on what Jesus asked of Peter and of each of his other disciples in Caes-a-rea Philippi, and on what he asks of each of us here today, on the last Sunday of Father Mead's incumbency at the Advent, at the beginning of a new chapter in the life of the Church of the Advent, with Fr. Martin arriving the Sunday after next to lead us towards our new future.
One problem of focusing too much on Peter's confession is a neglect of our Lord's action. Yes, Jesus refers to Peter as a rock, but it is Jesus Christ who will build His Church on the rock; it is the Church of Jesus Christ against which the powers of death shall not prevail. As I was thinking about today's text, "But who do you say that I am?" I was looking for a contemporary illustration of it. Our Lord indeed provides: last week a barbecue at MIT was in full swing for my 240 colleagues in Information Systems. A few of the young in spirit had brought with them water canons - descendants of the water pistols with which we older folk are familiar. These canons shoot a liter of water in seconds, at great distance and with great force.
A young lady was about to fire her canon; a colleague cautioned her not to assault the Vice President. The assailant, looking towards me - the only white-haired person in view - sheepishly said, "Oh, I'm sorry." No, she was told, he's not the V.P. "All the same," I said in as stentorian a voice as I could muster," you'd better not fire." Her reply, "Who are you?" I replied, "David Hogarth." She said impatiently, "No, I mean really who are you?" I tried, "A human being." When she by her look showed that answer wouldn't do, I asked, "Do you mean, is my job big enough for you not to risk shooting at me?"
In other words, she didn't care who I was; her concern was only with my role; her question should have been , "What are you?" rather than "Who are you?" Sounds simple, doesn't it? Who do you say that I am? How does Jesus mean his question to Saint Peter and to us? Who do you say I am, the son of Mary whose spouse Joseph is a simple carpenter? Who am I, born in Bethlehem? Who am I, constantly questioning the Rabbis in Temple?
Some find reports by third parties prior to actual meeting a valuable way of getting to know a person. Any who have been on less than ideal blind dates or who know the anecdote of an elephant perceived by ants is aware of the problems with this method. All the same, reports or reputation from others can be useful here. Specifically, what have the trusted and beloved witnesses from the past said? How have prior members of the Church described Jesus Christ?
An answer to that question is found in the Creeds of the Church: Each faithful member of the Church affirms that Jesus Christ is the only begotten of God the Father; eternally begotten before Creation; God of God; Light of Light; Not made; of One Substance with the Father; Incarnate; Judge of the living and the dead. It is always fruitful, when doing a meditation, to read through any of the Creeds, thereby gaining a more intimate familiarity with Jesus Christ.
Or, we could examine who he is by reputation: what have others said about him? Here we note Our Lady, Saints Peter and Paul, the beloved John, Pontius Pilate, Pilate's wife, Judas Iscariot, John the Baptist, and so on. Note that enemies as well as friends of our Lord are included in the list of third party evaluators: we can often learn as much about a person from what their enemies and detractors say about them as from their supporters and advocates. There's another way of answering Our Lord's question, "But who do you say that I am?" Often when we are introduced to a new person, we assess them by their appearance - they look to be a child or teen or young adult, a parent or senior or oldtimer; of such and so race; clothed modestly or luxuriously, in good taste or bad; clean or unkempt; bright or dull appearing; appealing or repulsive.
Still another tack is to assess the person's environment: I think most of us upon visiting a person's home for the first time try to scope out the magazines scattered about, or the titles of the shelved books; whether the wall decorations are in good taste; how neat and orderly the house is. Let's try that tack with Jesus Christ. Let's take a few moments to look about his house here on Brimmer Street. In fact, I ask each of you here to find some item or view from where we are sitting that most fully portrays our Lord to you. One caveat here: we should recall that we are now looking through a glass darkly; then, face to face. That is, the rich majesty of human artifacts which make up the church on Brimmer Street is but a pale foretaste of the magnificent glory of God in His heavenly perfection.
.............. Now, "Who do you say that He is?" Did you look out the open door to undefined secular space on Mount Vernon Street; did your gaze wander up to the amorphous rafters? Or, did you focus on the flowers, natural color and beauty, with an imputed sweet scent, arranged in a neat and structured order?
Maybe your eyes caught on the shimmering candles, the seven lights of the gifts of the Holy Ghost who inspires our vision, or specifically the Sanctuary Lamp figuring the light of Christ? Perhaps you glanced over to the gilded wood behind the All Saints' altar, that wood which was the first hewn in New England to portray the Cross of Christ. Your eyes might have scaled the height of Mrs. Gardner's imposing reredos, imputing the full force of our Lord's majesty.
Might you have looked towards the saints in glass or wood or stone all about the Church, pointers in so many ways towards one or another of the virtues of the Christ? Some might have glanced towards the lectern, whence the Word of God is broadcast, limned by countless authors yet authenticated by the Church as of divine inspiration. But for its present occupant, you might have looked towards this pulpit whence we have all heard edifying, inspiring, captivating portraits of our Lord.
Or was it one of the paintings of the infant Jesus with his Mother on either side of the High Altar? You might have harkened with your mind's ear to the glorious organ pipes which shout out Christ's identity in a thousand voices. You possibly focused on one of the statues or windows representing our Lord or His mother - such a choice: the infant Jesus; Christ the King; Our Lady of Walsingham; the Queen of the Universe; Christ on the Via Dolorosa..
Was some concern with sin, imperfection, or falling short preoccupying you, leading to your focusing on the confessional booths at the west end of the Church? Or does the new birth we're given every day we come to Jesus so excite you that you looked over to the Baptistry?
Could the smell of brewing coffee in the air have led your sight to the back door, thence down to Moseley Hall and the secular side of koinonia, the fellowship in the Coffee Hour after Mass? Perhaps you looked with your mind's eye towards the Sacrament House or the Tabernacle in the Lady Chapel, knowing our Lord is there present under the accidents of bread and wine. Or, did you look up in pained awe at Jesus Christ on His Cross, being wafted by the angels towards mortal death?
Only as I progressed in this tour of the home of Jesus Christ in Brimmer Street did I become fully aware of what a rich, splendid, insightful place we have here. Last week Father Liias alluded to the richness of this place, the locus of the sacred traditions of the Israelites before us, of the early and medieval and renaissance Christians who have worshipped before us, and of the countless variety of seekers with us today. My little tour pales by comparison with that given by Betty Morris after Mass.
As an aside: I cannot too strongly to urge you who have been here for decades, as well as you newcomers, to arrange a tour with Mrs. Morris; looking at these stones and this glass and wood through new eyes can only enrich your perception of theMajesty for Whom this is a home.
Well, here we have it; Millennia before His coming Jesus was presaged; contemporaries of His incarnate life left their portraits for us; since that first Easter countless theologians and philosophers, scientists and poets, artists and priests, common folk and nobility have each given another view of who they say Jesus Christ is.
It's now up to us. We couldn't have a more important task than here and now, when our beloved Church of the Advent is finishing one chapter and pointing towards another, when Fr. Mead is leaving and Fr. Martin is arriving. Could we, in fact, be any better fortified for this coming journey, my fellow members of the Body of Christ, than we will be if we set out a sharper, more immediate, more personal and intimate image of our Lord?
....................... Now finally, who do you say that Jesus is? Wonderful? Counselor? The Prince of Peace? My Lord and My God? The Son of God? My Friend? The Son of Man? The Son of Mary? The Lamb of God? The Messiah? Emmanuel? The Christ? The Lord? The Rock?
We should be careful about what we decide, each of us with our own background, experiences, ideas. In fact, just as God the Father responded when asked who He is - "I am Who I am" - so we perhaps ought to conclude any statement we make about who Jesus is: He is who He is. Every day of our lives, our perception of him will change and grow and become less inadequate.
Hopefully the tour we've taken through the Brimmer Street home of Jesus Christ, and the statements/ assertions/ formularies we've received from the Saints who have gone before us, and our own personal experiencing of Jesus Christ - both in the Sacrament of his Body and Blood today, and throughout our daily lives in His creation - will bring us ever closer to our Lord Jesus Christ.
Indeed, with this armour of a lively personal response to our Lord's question, "But who do you say that I am?," with this insulation against the assaults of the world, the flesh, and the Devil (not to mention the occasional scuffles we'll have here within this household of faith), with this shield of Faith, this armour of Truth, this swaddling of Love, we will be so much better fortified for the coming journey, with all its bumps, challenges, and detours. Shield, arm, swaddle yourself with Saint Peter's response, "You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God!" You are my Lord and my God!