September 9 2026 - St. Peter Claver - "Slave of slaves"

 

In the age of the explorers and conquistadors, many young men left Europe for the Americas in order to seek out a fortune. St. Peter Claver, a young Jesuit priest, left his native Spain for the Americas for a different reason—not to buildup earthly treasure, but to build up treasure in heaven.

In Cartegena, a port city in modern day Columbia, St. Peter Claver ministered to the African slaves who were brought there to work in the fields and the mines.

When the slave ships entered the port, Peter Claver would board the ships to care for the sick and malnourished. And when the slaves were herded to the slave-market, Peter, would bring them medicine, food, bread, and other items that would help them survive in this new land. 

With the help of interpreters, he gave the slaves basic instructions in the faith; he assured them of their human dignity and the salvation that awaited them in God's kingdom.  During the 40 years of his ministry in Columbia, it is estimated that Claver baptized more 300,000 slaves. 

Peter Claver remarked more than once how it took everything in him at times to go down into the disgusting conditions of the slave-ships filled with filth and stench.  He reminds us that true loving service isn’t always pretty, neat and clean—we might even experience revulsion at the conditions in which the destitute live.  

On this Memorial we read from Matthew 25, the Lord’s teaching on the final judgment, a reminder that service of those in need is never a waste of time. In each slave, to whom he ministered, Peter Claver ministered to Christ himself. And for this, he is counted among the blessed. In the words of Mother Theresa: "At the end of life we will not be judged by how many diplomas we have received, how much money we have made, how many great things we have done. We will be judged by "I was hungry, and you gave me something to eat, I was naked and you clothed me.”

We might not be called to enter into the filth of slave-ships, but we are certainly called to enter into the lives of others to help someone other than ourselves today. Again, in the words of Mother Theresa, “If you can't feed a hundred people, then feed just one."

The saints challenge us, don’t they, out of our comfort, to not be afraid to get our hands dirty and smelly for the sake of the kingdom, to bring the love of Christ to those whom the world discards.

The collect prayer said that St. Peter Claver became a slave of slaves. Each of us does well to prayerfully consider how God is calling us to follow his example of charity, courage, and devotion for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That all Christians may be diligent in bringing the truth and goodness of the Gospel into every sphere of society.

For an end to slavery, human trafficking, and all forms of inhumane oppression; and for the protection and respect of all human life.

For those whose lives are marked by suffering, illness, or grief, that they may find hope in the promises of Christ.

For the repose of the souls of our beloved dead, for all of the poor souls in purgatory, and for N., for whom this mass is offered.

Heavenly Father, hear the prayers of your pilgrimage Church, through the intercession of St. Peter Claver and all the saints, grant us what we truly need to remain faithful to your Son in all things. Through Christ Our Lord.

September 8 2026 - Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary - Joy and Light

 

Two themes pervade the readings and prayers of this feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary: joy and light.

The Entrance Antiphon gives us the tone of the whole celebration: “Let us celebrate with joy the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, for from her arose the sun of justice, Christ our God.” We rejoice today because Mary’s birth in history announced that the coming of Christ was near. Her nativity was like the first light on the horizon before sunrise. The world was still waiting for the Savior, but already the darkness was beginning to break.

Justice, and our desire for God to set things right, to heal what was wounded by sin, to save us from the mortal wound of sin, to restore what was lost by sin, was about to be fulfilled. And there is joy in that—like a flood of light washing over a world drowning in darkness.

The Prayer after Communion today will repeat those themes of joy and light. We’ll pray, “May your Church exult, O Lord…as she rejoices in the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, which was the hope and the daybreak of salvation for all the world.”

And yet, today, we celebrate not just an event that happened millennia ago, but also for our individual souls.

Where Mary is honored, faith in Christ is strengthened. Imitating her virtues, opens our souls more fully to the grace of her Son. She, who bore Christ in her womb, teaches us how to become a dwelling place for God: through humility, purity, obedience, and prayer.

We celebrate joyfully, but also this feast calls to mind our need to turn to our lady’s assistance in overcoming the darkness and selfishness that still afflict us.

Mary will always help those who turn to her assistance to overcome vice, and to know the peace and joy of living more fully for God, as she did. Are you having a hard time seeing the light of God amidst the darkness in your life? Turn to Mary. Are you experiencing the darkness of lonliness or shame? Turn to Mary. Are you confused about what path God wants for you for your future? Turn to Mary.

Turn to Mary that the light of Christ may rise ever more fully in your lives, families, relationships, and in our world, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

 

That Pope Leo and all members of the Church, like the Virgin Mary, may magnify the goodness of God through word and deed.

That all Christians may find in Mary the paramount example of faithfulness in living out our vocations. May devotion to Mary sanctify families, protect young people from the evils of error and sin, and bring peace to our troubled world.

For an end to indifference to God and human dignity in our communities, institutions, businesses, and personal attitudes. Let us pray to the Lord.

 

During this month of September, dedicated to Our Lady of Sorrows, we pray for all those who grieve, and that we may grieve sufficiently for our sins. Let us pray to the Lord.

 

For those who struggle because of addiction, mental illness, chronic sickness, unemployment, or ongoing trials of any kind. May Christ, the Divine Physician, bring healing to all of the suffering. Let us pray to the Lord.

 

For the deceased members of our family and friends, for all of the poor souls in purgatory…

 

We pray, O Lord our God, that the Virgin Mary, who merited to bear God and man in her chaste womb, may commend the prayers of your faithful in your sight. Through Christ our Lord.

 

 

Labor Day 2026 - Babel or Jerusalem

 For over a century, Americans have celebrated Labor Day on the first Monday in September. This national holiday was established in the 1880s for two reasons: to mark the irreplaceable role of the American worker in making this country prosperous and strong; and to have time to attend speeches and events on the spiritual and educational aspects of work, the worker and the good that comes from work.

Likely, not many of our contemporaries will be focusing on the spiritual meaning of work today, they simply see today’s civic holiday as a celebration of not having to work. 

So, it’s good for us to gather to celebrate today a special Mass for the Sanctification of Human Labor—to ask God to make our labors fruitful, to protect us from allowing our labors to go astray, and to be in vain.

A few months ago, on May 15 2026, the Holy Father, Pope Leo XIV published the first Encyclical of his pontificate titled Magnifica Humanitas (which you can read for free on the Vatican website) in which he addresses the importance of protecting and promoting the human person in the digital age, this age of emerging Artificial Intelligence. I wrote about this in my bulletin column two weeks ago.

At the forefront of the Encyclical, Pope Leo draws upon two images from scripture. The first is the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11:1-9)—the story of humanity using its collective power and technology to build something grand, but without God. The result is not unity but fragmentation—not progress but confusion. The story of Babel no doubt inspired the words of our Psalm today, ““If the Lord does not build the house, in vain do its builders labor”.

The second image Pope Leo drew upon was that of Nehemiah rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem (cf. Neh 2–6), a different kind of building project undertaken by God’s people, not driven by pride or profit, but by prayer, shared responsibility, listening, and a genuine concern for every member of the community.

What a wonderful image for us to consider on this Labor Day. What a wonderful image for us to consider on this Labor Day. The question is not simply whether we are building, producing, advancing, or becoming more efficient. The deeper question is: what are we building, for whom, and with whom?

Our labor is sanctified when it is undertaken with God and according to His purposes—when it respects the dignity of the human person, serves our families and neighbors, contributes to the common good, and helps to build up rather than tear down.

That is why Jesus tells us in the Gospel, “Seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness.” Our work must never become our master, nor wealth or technological progress our highest good. All these things must remain subordinate to the Kingdom. It is likely that most of our contemporaries will miss the mark on this, but we are called to be faithful, even when surrounded by the unfaithful.

So today we ask the Lord to bless the work of our hands. May He preserve us from building new Towers of Babel, and make us instead like Nehemiah: prayerful, faithful laborers, building together what serves God and our neighbor for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

 

That all Christians will work together in harmony for the building up of the Church and the spread of the Gospel

For civil leaders, employers, and those entrusted with economic decisions, that they may protect the dignity of workers, promote just conditions, and ensure that technological progress serves the human person and the common good, let us pray to the Lord.

For all who labor with their hands and minds, that the Lord may bless their efforts, make their work fruitful, and enable them to provide for their families and contribute to the good of society, let us pray to the Lord.

For those who are unemployed, underemployed, exploited, or anxious about their livelihood, that God may open new paths of opportunity and sustain them in hope, let us pray to the Lord.

For those whose work is driven by greed, pride, fear, or excessive ambition, that they may be freed from laboring in vain and learn to seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness, let us pray to the Lord.

For our own labors, visible and hidden, that the Lord may build with us, purify our motives, and make our daily work an offering of service, charity, and praise, let us pray to the Lord.

For the faithful departed, especially those whose earthly lives were marked by faithful labor and service, that they may enter into the eternal rest promised by Christ, let us pray to the Lord.

Almighty God, source of every good gift, bless the work of our hands. Preserve us from building apart from you, and make our labor fruitful for our families, our neighbors, and your Kingdom. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

 

 

23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time 2026 - "If your brother sins against you..."

 

A number of years ago, a television show premiered on the Arts & Entertainment network called “Intervention”. I haven’t watched it in years, but I guess the show is in its 25th season.  The show follows one or two participants who are abusing or severely addicted to drugs or alcohol. Relatives and friends of the addict are interviewed, who detail the effects the addiction has had on the family—the sadness, the grief, the lies that often accompany addiction. And they share their concern for the harm the addict is doing to themselves and the family.

A trained intervention specialist then prepares the family for staging an intervention, in which the family and friends gently confront the addict about their addiction. At the intervention, the addict is given a choice: enter a rehabilitation program or risk losing contact and financial assistance from their relatives. From what I’ve read, the show has had tremendous success in getting help for addicts and their families.

I’ve had some personal experience with intervention: In seminary, I volunteered at a drug and alcohol treatment facility for teenagers, and I would participate in group family counseling sessions, in which parents and relatives would gather, in a very gentle setting. And they would share with their teenager how the addiction has brought harm to the them and the family life.

Most priests are not trained intervention specialists or drug counselors, but for families facing these issues, the Church can help connect your family with those with this expertise. Please call me if I can be of any assistance in this matter.

This method of loving confrontation is biblical. As we heard today, If your brother falls into sin, try to help them, confront them. If they don’t listen to you, bring another with you. A family effort is often needed in helping someone who has fallen into sin, addiction, or unhealthy behavior. Notice, the Lord doesn’t say, embarrass the sinner by bringing up their faults in public. That’s not ever one of the steps, is it? Rather, correction is done in private. Calmly, rationally. Not out of revenge, but concern.

It’s interesting to note that the Lord’s teaching on intervention follows his parable of the lost sheep, in which the Lord speaks of the love his heavenly Father has for those who have strayed into sin and error. Jesus, the Son, is sent by the Father to seek out the lost sheep.

As members of the body of Christ on Earth, one of the ways God seeks out and saves his lost sheep is through us: through family members who lovingly and gently confront those who struggle with addiction to drugs, gambling, pornography, internet shopping, video games, parents who act as watchmen over their children, as we heard in the prophet Ezekiel today. If a family member stops going to Church, ignores Church teaching, blasphemes in public, we have a duty to gently correct them, especially parents toward their children.

Of course, the point of correcting fellow Christians when they fall into sin isn’t to prove that we are holier than they are. The point is concern for their souls, and helping them to be the people God made them to be.

God loves lost sheep, which is why he sends us out. God loves addicts. Many people I’ve known who have struggled with addiction have great intellectual gifts, have tremendously large hearts. And sometimes they turn to addiction because they feel emotions like grief so deeply they turn to other mind-altering substances to numb their pain. Though they act in unlovable ways, the addict is a child of God, loved by God.

Intervention and fraternal correction aims to help people who sometimes become incapable of helping themselves, who have fallen into a cycle of hurting themselves and their families, who have started making self-destructive choices. Part of being pro-life, is to help people when they are making anti-life decisions, choices that are destructive to their eternal life, their spiritual life, emotional life, physical life, or family life.

In the Reading from Romans today, St. Paul teaches that all the 10 commandments, don’t commit adultery, don’t break the sabbath day, don’t commit murder, don’t steal or covet, can all be summed-up by the command: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself. Love does no evil to the neighbor; hence, love is the fulfillment of the law.”

Fraternal correction, confronting the sinner, the addict, is done out of love. Correct the sinner is listed in every Catholic religious textbook as an act of mercy—a spiritual act of charity. Parents correcting their children when they act selfishly, gently correcting your spouse when they act selfishly is done out of love. Helping someone to be the person God made them to be, to walk righteously in the Law of the Lord, is an act of love.

It takes a lot of courage, doesn’t it, to confront someone with gentleness and patience. It’s easier to ignore it, minimize it, justify it, or just complain about it to a third party. It takes courage and carefulness. Engaging a loved one in fraternal correction is a delicate operation: you need to have your facts straight, and you better think before you speak, and ensure that you are rooted in the truth of the Gospel, thinking not as the world thinks, but with the mind of Christ. You need to make sure you aren’t just complaining about valid choices that differ from your own way of doing things—that you aren’t reacting out of a bruised ego, but out of patience and love. That’s hard! This isn’t an easy Gospel.

It is important to take up this difficult task is because we would want someone to help us if we fell in to behavior that was truly hurtful to our family or to the church. “Do unto others, as you would have them do unto you” Jesus teaches in his sermon on the mount. If it was me whose life was on a downward spiral of self-destruction, if it was me choosing a lifestyle contrary to the Gospel, I hope I’d have people in my life who loved me enough to help me see the truth about my actions or errors, and help me to reconcile with God and repair the damage I’ve wrought.

We have a duty to speak the truth with love, to care enough about the people in our life that we will help them know and follow Jesus Christ to help others become the people God made them to be, to live in the freedom of the children of God and receive an everlasting inheritance in heaven for the Glory of God and salvation of souls.

 

 

22nd Week of Ordinary Time 2026 - Friday - The joy of the wedding feast

 

Already having gained a number of disciples early on in his public ministry, the Lord attended a dinner in the house of Levi, also known as St. Matthew, a tax collector. And while at dinner in the house of Levi, some Pharisees and scribes begin to murmur about Jesus’ unconventional behavior—of dining with tax collectors and sinners. The word St. Luke uses to describe the Pharisees’ murmuring is the same word found in the book of Numbers, when the rebellious Israelites murmur and complain about the leadership of Moses out in the desert.

Then the Lord, really gave them something to murmur about. When the Scribes and Pharisees question the Lord’s practice of dining with sinners, Jesus compares what he is doing in the house of Levi, and in his ministry in general, to a wedding feast.

The Scribes and Pharisees, who were versed in the scriptures and traditions of Israel, would no doubt have picked up on the messianic undertones of the Lord’s explanation. The age of the Messiah, the long-awaited final stage of human history, when the Messiah would definitively usher in the kingdom of God—is scripturally linked to the wedding feast.

The Scribes and Pharisees would no doubt have detected that Jesus was claiming the role of the Messianic Bridegroom who was ushering in the kingdom of God.

In the Gospel of John, Jesus’ first miracle takes place at a wedding, the wedding at Cana, where water is turned into an abundance of wine. It was there that Jesus revealed that He wasn’t just a teacher, he wasn’t just a commentator on scriptures: that first miracle at the wedding, signaled something new in God’s plan of salvation for sinful humanity.

 Just as a wedding is filled with joyful celebration, so too, Jesus’ public ministry is a time of great joy for sinners. Sinners are invited to repent so that may be join the wedding feast. The wedding feast is not just for a particular ethnic group. All people, of all places and time, are invited into God’s presence.

We are poor, wretched sinners—but we are joyful sinners: sinners whom Christ has invited to cast off the old garments of sin and to take up a new life of friendship with God. And that is great cause for rejoicing.

That is why the Church is never merely a society of the self-satisfied, of those who gather to congratulate themselves on their virtue, their knowledge, or their respectability. The Church is the gathering of those who know they need a Savior.

Nor are we to distance ourselves from sinners and unbelievers out of fear that they might somehow infect us. We have a mission to them: to invite them to the Lord, to conversion, to the joy of the wedding feast. And that mission requires patience, prudence, humility, gentleness, and perseverance. If one approach does not work, we try another. We appeal to truth, yes; to beauty, yes; but also to goodness.

We witness to Christ through charity: charity that is patient and kind, generous and self-sacrificial. We show by our lives that friendship with Christ is not a burden, but a joy; not a restriction of life, but the beginning of life in abundance.

So that is our task. Let us take it up with courage and with joy, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

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That Christians may take up the task of evangelization with renewed conviction, with generosity and creativity, to spread the saving Gospel of Christ.

For an end to indifference to God and human dignity in our communities, institutions, businesses, and personal attitudes.

During this month of September, dedicated to Our Lady of Sorrows, we pray for all those who grieve, and that we may grieve sufficiently for our sins.

That the love of Christ, the divine physician, may bring healing to the sick and comfort to all the suffering.

For the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, and all the poor souls in purgatory, for deceased priests and religious, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom. We pray.

O God, who know that our life in this present age is subject to suffering and need, hear the prayers of those who cry to you and receive the prayers of those who believe in you. Through Christ our Lord.

 

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That Christians may take up the task of evangelization with renewed conviction, with generosity and creativity, to spread the saving Gospel of Christ.

For an end to indifference to God and human dignity in our communities, institutions, businesses, and personal attitudes.

During this month of September, dedicated to Our Lady of Sorrows, we pray for all those who grieve, and that we may grieve sufficiently for our sins.

That the love of Christ, the divine physician, may bring healing to the sick and comfort to all the suffering.

For the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, and all the poor souls in purgatory, for deceased priests and religious, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom. We pray.

O God, who know that our life in this present age is subject to suffering and need, hear the prayers of those who cry to you and receive the prayers of those who believe in you. Through Christ our Lord.

 

22nd Week in Ordinary Time 2026 - Wednesday - I planted, Apollos watered, but God caused the growth

 

Today we read a well-known passage from St. Paul’s letter to the Corinthians in which Paul begins to address some of the problems afflicting the Christian community at Corinth, problems that were hindering the spiritual growth of the Christians there, and consequently hindering the growth of the Church, and the mission of the Gospel.

Paul begins explaining how the overall situation is that the Corinthian Christians were in their spiritual infancy. Like infants, the Corinthian Christians, although baptized and reborn in the Spirit, were still spiritually immature in their faith, attitudes, and behavior. They were still too attached to their former lives.

Proof of this was their factionalism—their jealousy and rivalries. Paul was the founder of the Corinthian church, and Apollos followed him as a leader of the church not long after. And people were claiming that they were superior Christians based on whose leadership they adhered to.

Paul then corrects the Corinthians, “What is Apollos, after all, and what is Paul?
Ministers through whom you became believers, just as the Lord assigned each one. I planted, Apollos watered, but God caused the growth.”

This is a beautiful image of the Church’s mission. Paul planted. Apollos watered. God caused the growth. Each had a role. Each had a task. Each served the same mission.

That is an important lesson for every parish, every family, every Christian community. We all have some role to play in the mission of the Gospel. Some plant seeds by teaching the faith to children, inviting someone back to Mass, speaking a word of encouragement, or giving quiet witness by their example. Others water what has already been planted, by patience, friendship, prayer, service, sacrifice, and perseverance. Sometimes we do not even know whether we are planting or watering. But God knows.

And that means we must be patient. The growth of grace is often hidden. Parents may not immediately see the fruit of their prayers. Teachers may not see the long-term effects of their lessons. Priests may not see how a homily touches a soul. Parishioners may not see how their charity, reverence, or fidelity strengthens others. But God is at work.

So there is no need for competition, jealousy, or comparison. The Church is not a contest of personalities or ministries. It is the Lord’s field. It is the Lord’s building. We are fellow workers, each called to play our part faithfully.

May we encourage one another, support one another, and labor patiently together, trusting that if we plant and water with faith, God himself will give the growth, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

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For the Church: that all her members may labor faithfully in the mission of the Gospel, planting and watering the seeds of faith while trusting God to give the growth. Let us pray to the Lord.

For our leaders, both in the Church and in society, that they may be guided by the wisdom of Christ and work for the common good, promoting peace, justice, and unity among all people.

For parents, teachers, and catechists: that they may be diligent in their duties to plant the seeds of faith. Let us pray to the Lord.

For those whom the Lord is calling to conversion or full membership in the Church: that they may be open to deeper faith and know the assistance of the Church in their journey.

For our parish community: that each of us may recognize our role in the mission of the Gospel and encourage one another in faithful service. Let us pray to the Lord.

For all those who are suffering, especially those burdened by violence and conflict or illness, that they may experience the healing presence of Christ and find peace in His love and unity in His Church.

For the faithful departed: that the seeds of faith planted in their earthly lives may come to full harvest in the kingdom of heaven. Let us pray to the Lord.

Gracious Father, hear these prayers that we offer with faith and humility. Grant us the grace to grow in spiritual maturity that we may bear witness to Your kingdom and glorify Your name. Through Christ our Lord.

22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time 2026 - "Get behind me, Satan"

 

Well, St. Peter certainly went from hero to zero pretty quickly, didn’t he? Last week, our Gospel reading from the beginning of Matthew chapter 16 described the Lord extolling and praising Peter’s faith: “Blessed are you, Simon, Son of Jonah”. The Lord then promoted Peter, we might say, as prince of the apostles. “You are Peter, the rock, and upon this rock I build my Church, and I will give to you the keys to the kingdom of heaven.” Here, Peter and his successors, the Popes, were given by the Lord himself, the highest authority in the Church—the power, authority, and responsibility to loose and bind.

This fact is expressed in canon law, which says “The bishop of the Roman Church, in whom continues the office given by the Lord uniquely to Peter, the first of the Apostles, and to be transmitted to his successors, is the head of the college of bishops, the Vicar of Christ, and the pastor of the universal Church on earth. By virtue of his office he possesses supreme, full, immediate, and universal ordinary power in the Church, which he is always able to exercise freely.”

So, a pretty big promotion there, for St. Peter, on their way to Caesarea Philipi.

But then, this week, just seven verses later in Matthew chapter 16, the Lord refers to Peter as Satan: “Get behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle to me. You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.” One can hardly imagine a more serious rebuke.  Peter you have become a stumbling block—an obstacle to the will of God, an obstacle to the sacred mission of Jesus. Peter, you are obstructing God as Satan does.

How so? When the Lord foretold how he must go to the cross, suffer and die and then be raised, Peter sets his will at odds with Jesus. “May God forbid you to do this,” he says.

Peter here insinuates that Jesus turn away from the cross, that the He turn away from the mission to save humanity, that he turn away from his commitment to love his people to the end because it might hurt.

The Lord says, “Get behind me Satan” because Peter was siding not with God, but with God’s enemy, the one who desires not our salvation but our damnation, the one who works to keep man in his fallen state, who would see us deprived of God’s presence for all eternity, just like him.

“Peter, You are thinking as human beings do”, not as God does, what is "good, and pleasing, and perfect" as Paul writes in our second reading. What’s that say about human ways of thinking? That we don’t always think with the mind of God, in fact, sometimes our thoughts are downright Satanic.

Our thoughts are sometimes quite disordered, aren’t they? Perverted thoughts. Violent thoughts. Selfish thoughts. And when we act on these thoughts, we side not with God, but with Satan.

This tendency, this vulnerability is in all of us. It’s the part of us that gives-in to pressure all too easily, a part of us that caves when obedience to God requires effort. We see this all the way back in the garden of Eden. At the foot of the Tree of Knowledge—Eve begins listening to that voice—that Satanic voice that doesn’t force, but merely whispers that her own will, her own strength, her own plan, could bring her happiness—that setting her will in opposition to God’s could bring her fulfilment.

So, too with Adam. And with Adam, we see even less of a struggle. When presented with the forbidden fruit from the hands of his wife, we don’t even see an argument. We don’t see Adam calling to mind the command of God given to him directly: “Do not eat of the tree,” God says, “or else you will die”. Adam caves without any recorded resistance. How pitiful! And yet, are we any better? St. Dominic Savio would say that “he would rather die than commit sin.” How often we fail to exercise the slightest resistance!

Most of us are a lot like Peter. We have moments where we profess our faith, our minds and hearts and lips are open to God’s truth. And then we have moments of “thinking as human beings do” and fall to the temptations whispered by the Enemy.

But we shouldn’t despair because of this. It’s the Christian condition. We’re believers who also sin, sinners who also believe. We’re imperfect. We’re all learning. That’s what it means to be a disciple. And God loves us for it. Jesus died not for the perfect, but for the imperfect. But he also expects that when we sin, we humbly admit it. We confess it. We seek to amend our life—to change our thinking and behavior, just like Peter.

Following Peter’s story through the New Testament. He stumbles and falls. He literally sinks into the sea when he takes his eyes off Jesus. He runs away from the cross. He denies the Lord, thricely. Even after the resurrection, scripture records Peter’s imperfections. He goes back to fishing. He locks himself behind the doors of the upper room. Even after Pentecost, Peter makes mistakes. Paul writes to the Galatians how when Peter came to Antioch, Paul had to tell Peter face to face that he was wrong for refusing to eat with the Gentile converts.

There’s even a Christian legend how when Peter finally arrives in Rome, he flees out of fear of martyrdom, and it’s not until the Lord appears to him personally, that Peter finally has the courage to carry his cross.

“Get behind me” it was a strong rebuke. But in a sense, it was also an invitation, wasn’t it? “Get behind me” is the proper place of the disciple. Peter, a sinner, had stepped in front of Jesus, trying to direct him away from the Cross. Jesus invites him back to his proper place, and he does.

Peter had placed himself in front of Christ, as if he knew the path better than the Lord. Jesus tells him: get behind me. Take your proper place again. You are not the master. You are the disciple. And that is where all of us belong: not telling God what He should do, but behind Jesus, following him wherever he leads. Following Jesus requires obedience, but brings freedom. Following Jesus, requires humble admittance of sin, but brings mercy. Following Jesus involves the cross, but leads to resurrection and eternal life.

We’re not to despair because we stumble, nor are we to pretend that our sins and compromises are irrelevant—their disordered, wicked, and at odds with God’s will. And through the teaching of the Church, the Lord rebukes us. But rebuke is part of the solution. Peter’s story does not end with the rebuke. It ends with sanctity—with the ultimate act of love for Jesus—the witness of his life and the winning of the martyr’s crown.

Through that series of stumbling and repentance, continuing to follow the Lord, Peter finally learned to think and act with the mind and heart of Christ. May the Lord give us that same grace: to recognize where we are thinking merely as human beings do, to repent with humility, and to follow Christ faithfully, unto the cross and resurrection, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.