… Jesus, after withdrawing to the mountain, prays throughout the night. The Lord, having distanced himself from the people and the disciples, manifests his communion with the Father and the need to pray in solitude, far from the commotion of the world.
This distancing, however, must not be seen as a lack of interest in individuals or trust in the Apostles. On the contrary, Matthew recounts, Jesus made the disciples get into the boat, “and go before him to the other side” (Mt 14:22), where he would see them again. In the meantime the boat “was many furlongs distant from the land, beaten by the waves; for the wind was against them” (v. 24). And so in the fourth watch of the night [Jesus] came to them, walking on the sea” (v. 25); the disciples were terrified, mistaking him for a ghost and “cried out for fear” (v. 26). They did not recognize him, they did not realize that it was the Lord.
Nonetheless Jesus reassured them: “Take heart, it is I; have no fear” (v. 27). This is an episode from which the Fathers of the Church drew a great wealth of meaning. The sea symbolizes this life and the instability of the visible world; the storm points to every kind of trial or difficulty that oppresses human beings. The boat, instead, represents the Church, built by Christ and steered by the Apostles….
The passage then continues with the action of the Apostle Peter, who, moved by an impulse of love for the Teacher, asks him to bid him to come to him, walking on the water. “But when he saw the wind [was strong], [Peter] was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’” (Mt 14:30).
St Augustine, imagining that he was addressing the Apostle, commented: the Lord “leaned down and took you by the hand. With your strength alone you cannot rise. Hold tight to the hand of the One who reaches down to you” (En. in Ps. 95, 7: PL 36, 1233), and he did not say this to Peter alone but also to us.
Peter walks on the water, not by his own effort but rather through divine grace in which he believes. And when he was smitten by doubt, when he no longer fixed his gaze on Jesus but was frightened by the gale, when he failed to put full trust in the Teacher’s words, it means that he was interiorly distancing himself from the Teacher and so risked sinking in the sea of life.
So it is also for us: if we look only at ourselves we become dependent on the winds and can no longer pass through storms on the waters of life.…
The troubled faith of the Apostle Peter enables us to understand that even before we seek the Lord or invoke him, it is he himself who comes to meet us, who lowers Heaven to stretch out his hand to us and raise us to his heights; all he expects of us is that we trust totally in him, that we really take hold of his hand.
Let us call on the Virgin Mary, model of total entrustment to God, so that amidst the… anxieties, problems and difficulties which churn up the sea of our life, may our hearts resonate with the reassuring words of Jesus who also says to us “Take heart, it is I; have no fear!”; and may our faith in him grow.
His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI
Angelus, 7 August 2011
For the complete text, please visit:
http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/angelus/2011/documents/hf_ben-xvi_ang_20110807_en.html
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| His Excellency Archbishop Rino Fisichella, President of the Pontifical Council for Promoting the New Evangelization, at the Press Conference presenting the Year of Faith |
The Year of Faith announced by His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI will begin on 11 October 2012, the 50th anniversary of the opening of Vatican Council II, and will conclude on 24 November 2013, the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ the Universal King. The Holy Father's aim in promulgating this Year is to focus the attention of the Church on the theme which, since the beginning of his Pontificate, has been closest to his heart: the encounter with Jesus Christ and the beauty of having faith in Him.
The logo of the Year of Faith includes a boat, symbolizing the Church, which is represented as sailing on waves. The main mast of the boat is a cross from which sails are displayed in the form of the traditional symbol of Christ (IHS). The background to the sails is a sun which refers also to the Eucharist.
For more information, please visit:
http://www.annusfidei.va/content/novaevangelizatio/en.html
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The boat on the logo of the upcoming Year of Faith reminds me of the wooden boats still sailing on the Sea of Galilee. To date, each time I have been on or near the Sea it is been calm, almost as smooth as glass. In this way it is easy to imagine the peace and stillness as gifts from the Lord for minds and hearts which can unfortunately be churned by problems, anxieties, or lack of faith as witnessed by Peter.
While my mind’s eye visualizes Jesus in many holy sites throughout the Holy Land, there is something special about Galilee: the sea, surrounding mountains and terrain which have not changed through the centuries. One is drawn to the water’s edge, to touch it, to wade in it, to gather shells as mementos of the visit. The presence, the hand of the Lord is deeply and gratefully felt in this exceptional corner of God’s creation.
Let us give thanks for the beautiful gift of the “boat of the Church, built by Christ, steered by the Apostles,” and handed on to the faithful.
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Karen Hurley, Steve Furjanic with Guide, Rami Munayer,
on Boat on the Sea of Galilee |
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Sea of Galilee
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