From: Matthew 16:13-20

Peter’s Profession of Faith and His Primacy

[13] Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His
disciples, “Who do men say that the Son of Man is?” [14] And they said, “Some
say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the pro-
phets.” [15] He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” [16] Simon Peter
replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” [17] And Jesus answered
him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jona! For flesh and blood has not revealed this
to you, but My Father who is in Heaven. [18] And I tell you, you are Peter, and on
this rock I will build My Church, and the powers of death shall not prevail against
it. [19] I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven, and whatever you bind
on earth shall be bound in Heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be
loosed in Heaven.”[20] Then He strictly charged the disciples to tell no one that
He was the Christ.

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Commentary:

13-20. In this passage St. Peter is promised primacy over the whole Church, a
primacy which Jesus will confer on him after His Resurrection, as we learn in the
Gospel of St. John (cf. John 21:15-18). This supreme authority is given to Peter
for the benefit of the Church. Because the Church has to last until the end of time,
this authority will be passed on to Peter’s successors down through history. The
Bishop of Rome, the Pope, is the successor of Peter.

The solemn Magisterium of the Church, in the First Vatican Council, defined the
doctrine of the primacy of Peter and his successors in these terms: “We teach
and declare, therefore, according to the testimony of the Gospel that the primacy
of jurisdiction over the whole Church was immediately and directly promised to
and conferred upon the blessed Apostle Peter by Christ the Lord. For to Simon,
Christ had said, ‘You shall be called Cephas’ (John 1:42). Then, after Simon had
acknowledged Christ with the confession, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the li-
ving God’ (Matthew 16:16), it was to Simon alone that the solemn words were
spoken by the Lord: ‘Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jona. For flesh and blood has
not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in Heaven. And I tell you, you are
Peter, and on this rock I will build My Church, and the powers of Hell shall not
prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven, and whatever
you bind on earth shall be bound in Heaven, and what you loose on earth shall
be loosed in Heaven’ (Matthew 16:17-19). And after His Resurrection, Jesus con-
ferred upon Simon Peter alone the jurisdiction of supreme shepherd and ruler
over His whole fold with the words, ‘Feed My lambs....Feed My sheep’ (John 21:
15-17) [...]

“Now, what Christ the Lord, Supreme Shepherd and watchful guardian of the
flock, established in the person of the blessed Apostle Peter for the perpetual
safety and everlasting good of the Church must, by the will of the same, endure
without interruption in the Church which was founded on the rock and which will
remain firm until the end of the world. Indeed, ‘no one doubts, in fact it is obvious
to all ages, that the holy and most blessed Peter, Prince and head of the Apos-
tles, the pillar of faith, and the foundation of the Catholic Church, received the
keys of the kingdom from our Lord Jesus Christ, the Savior and the Redeemer
of the human race; and even to this time and forever he lives,’ and governs, ‘and
exercises judgment in his successors’ (cf. Council of Ephesus), the bishops of
the holy Roman See, which he established and consecrated with his blood.
Therefore, whoever succeeds Peter in this Chair holds Peter’s primacy over the
whole Church according to the plan of Christ Himself [...]. For this reason, ‘be-
cause of its greater sovereignty,’ it was always ‘necessary for every church, that
is, the faithful who are everywhere, to be in agreement’ with the same Roman
Church [...]

“We think it extremely necessary to assert solemnly the prerogative which the
only-begotten Son of God deigned to join to the highest pastoral office. “And so,
faithfully keeping to the tradition received from the beginning of the Christian faith,
for the glory of God our Savior, for the exaltation of the Catholic religion, and for
the salvation of Christian peoples, We, with the approval of the sacred council,
teach and define that it is a divinely revealed dogma: that the Roman Pontiff,
when he speaks “ex cathedra”, that is, when, acting in the office of shepherd
and teacher of all Christians, he defines, by virtue of his supreme apostolic au-
thority, doctrine concerning faith or morals to be held by the universal Church,
possesses through the divine assistance promised to him in the person of St.
Peter, the infallibility with which the divine Redeemer willed His Church to be
endowed in defining doctrine concerning faith or morals; and that such defini-
tions of the Roman Pontiff are therefore irreformable because of their nature,
but not because of the agreement of the Church.

“(Canon) But if anyone presume to contradict this our definition (God forbid that
he do so): let him be condemned” (Vatican I, “Pastor Aeternus”, chaps. 1, 2
and 4).

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Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

Mass Readings

First reading	Isaiah 22:19-23 ©

Thus says the Lord of Hosts to Shebna, the master of the palace:

I dismiss you from your office,

I remove you from your post,

and the same day I call on my servant

Eliakim son of Hilkiah.

I invest him with your robe,

gird him with your sash,

entrust him with your authority;

and he shall be a father

to the inhabitants of Jerusalem

and to the House of Judah.

I place the key of the House of David

on his shoulder;

should he open, no one shall close,

should he close, no one shall open.

I drive him like a peg

into a firm place;

he will become a throne of glory

for his father’s house.

Psalm	Psalm 137:1-3,6,8

Second reading	Romans 11:33-36 ©

How rich are the depths of God – how deep his wisdom and knowledge – and how impossible to penetrate his motives or understand his methods! Who could ever know the mind of the Lord? Who could ever be his counsellor? Who could ever give him anything or lend him anything? All that exists comes from him; all is by him and for him. To him be glory for ever! Amen.

Gospel	Matthew 16:13-20 ©

When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi he put this question to his disciples, ‘Who do people say the Son of Man is?’ And they said, ‘Some say he is John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.’ ‘But you,’ he said ‘who do you say I am?’ Then Simon Peter spoke up, ‘You are the Christ,’ he said, ‘the Son of the living God.’ Jesus replied, ‘Simon son of Jonah, you are a happy man! Because it was not flesh and blood that revealed this to you but my Father in heaven. So I now say to you: You are Peter and on this rock I will build my Church. And the gates of the underworld can never hold out against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven: whatever you bind on earth shall be considered bound in heaven; whatever you loose on earth shall be considered loosed in heaven.’ Then he gave the disciples strict orders not to tell anyone that he was the Christ.