Beloved in Christ,
"Follow me," says Jesus to Peter after the latter's triple confession of love to the former. In the post-resurrection appearances of Jesus to his apostles and disciples, they don't initially recognize him in his glorified body, but after they come to some form of comprehension of his identity- a divine person, they are moved to make a confession and commitment to witness to his life. The disciple whom Jesus loved was the first to recognize the risen Christ. "It is the Lord!" the beloved disciple exclaimed (Jn 21:7). There is a process to following Jesus, as this section of the Gospel of John shows. First, Jesus reveals himself in his glorified body. Second, they come to recognition after initial failure to do so. Thirdly, Jesus addresses them, leads them to faith, and invites them to follow him.
Knowing, loving, and following Jesus is the goal of all Christians, not just Peter. We must note, however, that Peter was given primacy among the twelve. He is the one Jesus directly engages in discussion with at breakfast. To Peter, the first Pope, the vicar of Christ, the visible head of Christ's Church after his ascension to heaven, Jesus gave the command to follow him, to teach the way and life in his name and lay down his life "for the sake of the name" (Acts 5: 28, 41 ). Followers of Jesus are to teach that to Jesus, the divine one, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, all creatures in heaven and earth must render adoration (Rev 5:13 ). Jesus restores the dignity of leadership that Peter lost when he denied him thrice during his passion. Jesus leads Peter to renew his confession of love for Jesus as he takes up anew his role as the shepherd of the Church.
At the same time that Jesus confirms the primacy of Peter in the body of Christ, so does Jesus renew the primacy of love as a precondition for anyone who wishes to follow him. Christians must affirm their love for Jesus in words and deeds to truly follow him. Like Peter, Jesus addresses us: "Do you love me?" Do we love Jesus? We should not be too quick to answer that question in the affirmative. We must process what our confession of love for Jesus means or entails. Do we love him like he loves (agapao) us? Jesus knows we may not live up to the promise to love (agape) as he loves us, but he is willing to accept our fraternal love (phileo) for him if that is all we can offer as humans. Whatever the status of our love, it is a fundamental requirement in following Jesus. We must continue in line with Jesus by asking ourselves questions about our love for him: Do we love him above all other persons? Do we love him more than our work, lifestyle, livelihood, and place of shelter? Do we have a greater love for him than others in this culture do? Everyone, from the pope to the most inconspicuous Christian, must strive to answer these questions about love to respond to Jesus' command to follow him.
As the Easter season progresses, we must continue to grow in our knowledge and love of the Risen Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. We cannot allow all Lent's gains to be lost. Instead, we are called to follow Jesus more closely, living and witnessing through the power of the resurrection. We need Jesus to sustain us in this call to love and follow him. This is why we must never flag in zeal in worship. As an indication of love, we must pray intensely and intentionally at every opportunity the Holy Spirit offers us. One such opportunity is our parish's monthly Holy Hour Eucharistic adoration this Monday at 6 p.m. Come to adore Jesus, the sustainer of our faith, in sacred songs and silence.
In Christ's love,
Fr. Bernard Alayode, OP
"Follow me," says Jesus to Peter after the latter's triple confession of love to the former. In the post-resurrection appearances of Jesus to his apostles and disciples, they don't initially recognize him in his glorified body, but after they come to some form of comprehension of his identity- a divine person, they are moved to make a confession and commitment to witness to his life. The disciple whom Jesus loved was the first to recognize the risen Christ. "It is the Lord!" the beloved disciple exclaimed (Jn 21:7). There is a process to following Jesus, as this section of the Gospel of John shows. First, Jesus reveals himself in his glorified body. Second, they come to recognition after initial failure to do so. Thirdly, Jesus addresses them, leads them to faith, and invites them to follow him.
Knowing, loving, and following Jesus is the goal of all Christians, not just Peter. We must note, however, that Peter was given primacy among the twelve. He is the one Jesus directly engages in discussion with at breakfast. To Peter, the first Pope, the vicar of Christ, the visible head of Christ's Church after his ascension to heaven, Jesus gave the command to follow him, to teach the way and life in his name and lay down his life "for the sake of the name" (Acts 5: 28, 41 ). Followers of Jesus are to teach that to Jesus, the divine one, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, all creatures in heaven and earth must render adoration (Rev 5:13 ). Jesus restores the dignity of leadership that Peter lost when he denied him thrice during his passion. Jesus leads Peter to renew his confession of love for Jesus as he takes up anew his role as the shepherd of the Church.
At the same time that Jesus confirms the primacy of Peter in the body of Christ, so does Jesus renew the primacy of love as a precondition for anyone who wishes to follow him. Christians must affirm their love for Jesus in words and deeds to truly follow him. Like Peter, Jesus addresses us: "Do you love me?" Do we love Jesus? We should not be too quick to answer that question in the affirmative. We must process what our confession of love for Jesus means or entails. Do we love him like he loves (agapao) us? Jesus knows we may not live up to the promise to love (agape) as he loves us, but he is willing to accept our fraternal love (phileo) for him if that is all we can offer as humans. Whatever the status of our love, it is a fundamental requirement in following Jesus. We must continue in line with Jesus by asking ourselves questions about our love for him: Do we love him above all other persons? Do we love him more than our work, lifestyle, livelihood, and place of shelter? Do we have a greater love for him than others in this culture do? Everyone, from the pope to the most inconspicuous Christian, must strive to answer these questions about love to respond to Jesus' command to follow him.
As the Easter season progresses, we must continue to grow in our knowledge and love of the Risen Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. We cannot allow all Lent's gains to be lost. Instead, we are called to follow Jesus more closely, living and witnessing through the power of the resurrection. We need Jesus to sustain us in this call to love and follow him. This is why we must never flag in zeal in worship. As an indication of love, we must pray intensely and intentionally at every opportunity the Holy Spirit offers us. One such opportunity is our parish's monthly Holy Hour Eucharistic adoration this Monday at 6 p.m. Come to adore Jesus, the sustainer of our faith, in sacred songs and silence.
In Christ's love,
Fr. Bernard Alayode, OP
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