Where Are You Going, Peter?

“Our loyalty is not just to Rome of 2020, but to Roma aeterna, the Rome of all time. Our love is not just for the Pontiff, but for the papacy as instituted by Jesus Christ in existence for two millennia, and no clever deviltry should make us think that one can be legitimately used against the other. Our loyalty is to the Church, which exists not just in space but in time—to Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today and forever.”

It’s raining spiritually again. The Pope has scandalized faithful Catholics and delighted progressives of every stripe by expressing support for civil same-sex unions. Waugh fans will recall one of English literature’s most obnoxious Canadians, Rex Mottram, receiving instruction for baptism from a priest who quizzes him on his grasp of the doctrine of infallibility. What if the Pope were to say it was raining, but it wasn’t? Well, Rex says, “I suppose it would be sort of raining spiritually, only we were too sinful to see it.”

Once again, our beloved Holy Father has put us Catholics in the spot of figuring out whom we’re going to believe: him, or our own lying eyes. What’s particularly frustrating this time is that both he and said lying eyes are telling us the same thing, and so no escape is possible—except for those agile intellects who defy any circle to resist their powers of squaring. It must be rather amusing from the Devil’s perspective, watching Catholics tear their hair out trying to reconcile their allegiance to the Pope with their allegiance to the Faith. Wasn’t there an era when the sheep didn’t have to bend their wooly, easily muddled wits to such complicated matters? “The time is out of joint; o cursed spite/ That ever I was born to set it right,” as Hamlet groaned. But Divine Providence has placed us (poor ovines that we are) in this situation, and saying things like “O cursed spite” is precisely the wrong response. We were handpicked by God to live in this era, so there can’t be anything cursed about that. It would seem more productive to ask God, since He put us here and now, what we are supposed to do about it?

In fact, this particular situation doesn’t seem quite as bad to me as the controversy surrounding the Pope’s attempt to change Church teaching on the death penalty, or the Abu Dhabi declaration, or the approval of idolatry in the Vatican gardens. There’s no way a remark made in the context of a documentary counts as part of the Magisterium of the Church, let alone enjoys the infallible protection of the Holy Ghost. And while it will doubtless encourage souls on their merry way to Hell, at least it doesn’t directly deny the true God and the duty all men have to worship Him in accordance with His expressed wishes. It’s less bad, shall we say, to promote sins of the flesh than to promote worship of false gods.

That doesn’t mean I think Catholic commentators should downplay the damage caused by scandal. We know what our Lord said about those who scandalize little ones. We are little ones, and we are scandalized. But how much worse is this for uninstructed Catholics, or non-Catholics who look vaguely towards the Catholic Church to uphold some kind of moral standard? There are very clear things written about millstones and the bottom of the sea. What Catholic commentators should be very careful of, it seems to me, is any distortion of how this latest scandal should affect our relationship with our Sovereign Pontiff. While our emotional relationship with the Pope may change, as our emotional relationship with a parent would change if we witnessed them committing some terrible deed, our spiritual relationship with the Pope does not change, just as our father remains physically and ontologically our father, no matter how far from him we have to run for safety.

Pope Francis remains the Bishop of Rome, the visible Head of the Church, and the Vicar of Christ. It seems to me not terribly productive for us lambs to speculate on whether he could be deposed and who could do it, especially when God is in charge and could remove this Pontiff at any second should He choose to do so. We are duty-bound to pray for the visible Head of the Church and to support him when he fulfils the duties of his high office. We are, however, entitled to distance ourselves from him and even to disobey him when he asks us to help him betray the duties of his high office—out of love for that very office. In Shakespeare’s King Lear, the king refuses to act as a king. Instead of shouldering his responsibilities and living justly, he decides for the sake of greater comfort to divvy up his kingdom and give it away to the daughters who flatter him the most. Those who truly love him—Cordelia and Kent—refuse to play along with this destructive behavior and are banished for their pains. The kingdom quickly falls into disarray, and Lear himself ends up insane with grief, wandering the moors with a motley and inglorious crowd: the disgraced Kent, the Fool, and the true heir masquerading as a madman. The kingdom is only saved through the sacrifice of the innocent Cordelia.

Who was truly loyal to the kingdom and the King? Those who loved him enough to tell him the truth, of course. (Even the Fool told Lear what he thought, but being a Fool got away with it.) Yet none of them cast Lear off or changed their allegiance because of his irresponsible, even wicked decisions. When Lear and the kingdom needed their help, they were ready.

Without wanting to downplay the doctrinal tangle into which this pontificate has cast us—a tangle that desperately needs to be sorted out—let us recall that true loyalty to, and true love of, the Pope and the Church remains an honor and a privilege as it ever was. This does not mean we should condone behavior or words that are offensive to the Faith given us by Christ and his Apostles.

Our loyalty is not just to Rome of 2020, but to Roma aeterna, the Rome of all time. Our love is not just for the Pontiff, but for the papacy as instituted by Jesus Christ in existence for two millennia, and no clever deviltry should make us think that one can be legitimately used against the other. Our loyalty is to the Church, which exists not just in space but in time—to Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today and forever.

Let us not waver in our allegiance and our love for Peter and the Petrine office. When Peter eventually stumbles out onto the moors, battered by rain and disfigured by sorrow, he will need loyal sheep, ready to huddle around him and fight at his side, ready to restore what must be restored and rebuild what must be rebuilt. It demands great patience and great holiness of us sheep, that we may truly know and profoundly love the Faith to which we would be loyal. It doesn’t sound easy, but Our Lord who knows all things, knew that this particular moment in history would come. “Fear not, little flock,” He said, “for it hath pleased your Father to give you a kingdom.”

Outstanding points... so you mean that Brother Pete wasn’t unique in his confession, but that Scripture was pointing to the Rock Jesus Christ.

I mean nothing; other than what Scripture SAYS!!

David picked up 5 smooth stones; I'll now start an AVALANGE of them!!

Did JESUS change Simon's name to PETER?

NIV Matthew 4:18-19
18. As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen.
19. "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men."

NIV Matthew 8:14
When Jesus came into Peter's house, he saw Peter's mother-in-law lying in bed with a fever.

NIV Matthew 10:1-2
1. He called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal every disease and sickness.
2. These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon (who is called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John;

NIV Matthew 14:28-31
28. "Lord, if it's you," Peter replied, "tell me to come to you on the water."
29. "Come," he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus.
30. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, "Lord, save me!"
31. Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. "You of little faith," he said, "why did you doubt?"

NIV Matthew 15:13-16
13. He replied, "Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be pulled up by the roots.
14. Leave them; they are blind guides. If a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a pit."
15. Peter said, "Explain the parable to us."
16. "Are you still so dull?" Jesus asked them.

As you can plainly see, Simon was already known as 'Peter'

BEFORE the following verses came along.....

NIV Matthew 16:13-18
13. When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say the Son of Man is?"
14. They replied, "Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets."
15. "But what about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I am?"
16. Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."
17. Jesus replied, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven.
18. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.

19. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."

"You are Simon, son of John; you will be called Cephas, meaning Rock" (John 1:42).

NIV 1 Corinthians 10:4
and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ.

NIV Luke 6:48
He is like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built.

NIV Romans 9:33
As it is written: "See, I lay in Zion a stone that causes men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame."

NIV 1 Peter 2:4-8
4. As you come to him, the living Stone--rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to him--
5. you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
6. For in Scripture it says: "See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame."
7. Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe, "The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone, "
8. and, "A stone that causes men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall." They stumble because they disobey the message--which is also what they were destined for.

But, since there WAS no NT at the time Christ spoke to Peter, just what DID Peter and the rest of the Disciples know about ROCKS???

NIV Genesis 49:24-25
24. But his bow remained steady, his strong arms stayed limber, because of the hand of the Mighty One of Jacob, because of the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel,
25. because of your father's God, who helps you, because of the Almighty, who blesses you with blessings of the heavens above, blessings of the deep that lies below, blessings of the breast and womb.

NIV Numbers 20:8
"Take the staff, and you and your brother Aaron gather the assembly together. Speak to that rock before their eyes and it will pour out its water. You will bring water out of the rock for the community so they and their livestock can drink."

NIV Deuteronomy 32:4
He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he.

NIV Deuteronomy 32:15
Jeshurun grew fat and kicked; filled with food, he became heavy and sleek. He abandoned the God who made him and rejected the Rock his Savior.

NIV Deuteronomy 32:18
You deserted the Rock, who fathered you; you forgot the God who gave you birth.

NIV Deuteronomy 32:30-31
30. How could one man chase a thousand, or two put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them, unless the LORD had given them up?
31. For their rock is not like our Rock, as even our enemies concede.

NIV 1 Samuel 2:2
"There is no one holy like the LORD; there is no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God.

NIV 2 Samuel 22:2-3
2. He said: "The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer;
3. my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation. He is my stronghold, my refuge and my savior-- from violent men you save me.

NIV 2 Samuel 22:32
For who is God besides the LORD? And who is the Rock except our God?

NIV 2 Samuel 22:47
"The LORD lives! Praise be to my Rock! Exalted be God, the Rock, my Savior!

NIV 2 Samuel 23:3-4
3. The God of Israel spoke, the Rock of Israel said to me: `When one rules over men in righteousness, when he rules in the fear of God,
4. he is like the light of morning at sunrise on a cloudless morning, like the brightness after rain that brings the grass from the earth.'

NIV Psalms 18:2
The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge. He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.

NIV Psalms 18:31
For who is God besides the LORD? And who is the Rock except our God?

NIV Psalms 18:46
The LORD lives! Praise be to my Rock! Exalted be God my Savior!

NIV Psalms 19:14
May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.

NIV Psalms 28:1

To you I call, O LORD my Rock; do not turn a deaf ear to me. For if you remain silent, I will be like those who have gone down to the pit.

NIV Psalms 31:2-3
2. Turn your ear to me, come quickly to my rescue; be my rock of refuge, a strong fortress to save me.
3. Since you are my rock and my fortress, for the sake of your name lead and guide me.

NIV Psalms 42:9
I say to God my Rock, "Why have you forgotten me? Why must I go about mourning, oppressed by the enemy?"

NIV Psalms 62:2
He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken.

NIV Psalms 62:6
He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.

NIV Psalms 62:7
My salvation and my honor depend on God ; he is my mighty rock, my refuge.

NIV Psalms 71:3
Be my rock of refuge, to which I can always go; give the command to save me, for you are my rock and my fortress.

NIV Psalms 78:35
They remembered that God was their Rock, that God Most High was their Redeemer.

NIV Psalms 89:26
He will call out to me, `You are my Father, my God, the Rock my Savior.'

NIV Psalms 92:14-15
14. They will still bear fruit in old age, they will stay fresh and green,
15. proclaiming, "The LORD is upright; he is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in him."

NIV Psalms 95:1
Come, let us sing for joy to the LORD; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation.

NIV Psalms 144:1
Praise be to the LORD my Rock, who trains my hands for war, my fingers for battle.

NIV Isaiah 17:10
You have forgotten God your Savior; you have not remembered the Rock, your fortress.

NIV Isaiah 26:4
Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD, the LORD, is the Rock eternal.

NIV Isaiah 30:29
And you will sing as on the night you celebrate a holy festival; your hearts will rejoice as when people go up with flutes to the mountain of the LORD, to the Rock of Israel.

NIV Isaiah 44:8
Do not tremble, do not be afraid. Did I not proclaim this and foretell it long ago? You are my witnesses. Is there any God besides me? No, there is no other Rock; I know not one."

NIV Habakkuk 1:12
O LORD, are you not from everlasting? My God, my Holy One, we will not die. O LORD, you have appointed them to execute judgment; O Rock, you have ordained them to punish.

.....No other rock.............

And now you know the Biblical position!

The religion of Nimrod?... Well, what was the central aspect of that religion?

satan always appeals to the deepest hidden aspect of humankind, pride, thus false religion appeals to the 'work for it to get the reward'.

Sacraments and rituals are appealing directly to our weakest aspect, our pride of self.

satan started that assault in the Garden with Eve. The rituals and works aspect to the religion started by Nimrod's master, through Numrod's pride, and the mutation of that prideful religion as Semiramis fashioned it having satan impelling her to fashion her version to have a 'lookalike' fraud of Mary and Jesus (which Catholiciism embraces in soades). IT is an indication that the religion is satan's handiwork. It shows up in EVERY religion except Christianity.

Why?

Because it strikes at the most fundamental aspect of the human psyche, self worth. In Christianity we are shown the ABCs of salvation, beginning with the truth that there is nothing righteous in us so we must be kept spiritually separate from the Perfect Righteousness of God, UNLESS we accept the Grace of God in Christ which imoputes His righteousness to us, individually.

The imputation of His righteousness comes by faith alone in Christ alone, when we believe (the "B" in the ABCs) God sent Jesus for our salvation and raised Him from the dead as Proof of His purpose and Gift.

When confession to GOD is made that one believes God's Promise, He, GOD, cleanses the sin-laden spirit and then abides therein imparting eternal life to the individual ((1 John 3:9).

Only God can do this thing. It cannot be earned by a sin nature we inherit from Adam. Thus Christianity is opposite the false religions which appeal to pride of self.

Why did Cain murder his brother, Abel? Wasn't it sourced in Cain's pride of what he produced by his hand? Why was Abel's sacrifice acceptable before God? No pride of works, just relying on substitutionary innocence. Why does The word of God tell us that David was a man after God's own heart? When one discerns that, there is a joy not matched by any human endeavor, for it is the essence of Grace to the humble one, in confession to GOD and cleansing from unrighteousness by faith alone in HIS work not ours.

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