Each time I travel from Kentucky to the East Coast of the US, I pass a sign somewhere at the top of one of the Appalachian Mountains which says, “Eastern Continental Divide.” The raindrops which fall on the East side of this mountain eventually flow into the Atlantic Ocean. The raindrops which fall on the West side of the mountain eventually flow into the Mississippi River and the Gulf of Mexico. The ridge of this mountain is a watershed. If you are water falling as rain or flowing in stream, which side of that mountain you are on eventually makes a difference of over a thousand miles in where you enter the sea.
Watershed Words
Words and decisions can also be watersheds. They can make all the difference in where you end up. In today’s Gospel Peter speaks watershed words. It is a watershed moment. John the Baptist has been beheaded. The disciples have been out healing and casting out demons. They have spent some time alone with Jesus afterwards. They have watched as Jesus broke the bread and shared the fish to feed the multitudes.
Now I can imagine Jesus casually asking them a warm-up question, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” They answer, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, still other Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
Then Jesus asks the watershed question, “But who do you say that I am?”
Peter answers, “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.”
Was Jesus waiting for one of his disciples to name this? Was he waiting for all of them to get the picture? We don’t know.
But Jesus named the watershed moment with his watershed words, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father. And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.”
This moment was a watershed moment for Peter, because Jesus went on to say, “I will give you the keys to the Kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”
Peter, known to be quick to speak, got this one right. Jesus then named him to be the “first pope,” the one to lead the Church after Jesus’ ascension.
But the watershed moment was not just for Peter. Peter’s words changed things for Jesus, for all the disciples…and for you and me.
The Other Side of the Watershed
The Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke all tell of Peter’s profession of faith, his watershed moment. AND ALL THREE follow with (1) Jesus’ first prediction of the Passion (2) a description of the cost of discipleship (3) and then the Transfiguration with Peter, James, and John on Mt. Tabor.
Once Peter said, “You are the Christ,” life went in a different direction for him, for all the disciples, and for Jesus. They moved to the other side of their spiritual journeys.
The cross began to loom in the distance. The disciples heard strong words about the cost of discipleship: “take up YOUR cross and follow me.”
But the vision of the Resurrection was also on the horizon. Peter, James, and John, at least, saw Jesus in dazzling light and heard words from the sky that echoed Peter, “This is my Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” at the Transfiguration. (Though we celebrated the Transfiguration on August 6, chronologically it follows Peter’s profession of faith in today’s readings.)
Before Peter and the others heard those words from the sky, Peter had to speak the watershed words, “You are the Christ,” from his heart.
When We Say “I believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ”
Every Sunday we say at mass, “I believe in God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible. I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God…”
Every Sunday we are Peter.
Every time we say a rosary or a Divine Mercy chaplet we are Peter as we recite the Apostles Creed: “I believe in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord…”
The question I ask myself today is this: “When I say those words, are they watershed words that make a difference in how I live my life?”
Do I end up in a different place because I say AND BELIEVE those words?
On Sunday morning, when I say the Nicene Creed after the homily at mass, I feel the meaning when I say, “I BELIEVE….” For a number of years in the US, we said, “WE BELIEVE…” We do believe as worshippers together, but it was good a few years ago when the wording changed to “I BELIEVE…” It is good for me to claim the creed for myself, as my watershed.
But, oh my, I can say the Apostles Creed as part of a rosary or chaplet without giving thought to the words I am speaking. They just roll off my tongue without going through my head or my heart. They are part of the “preparation” for the meditation or intercession which follows.
But I daresay Mother Church puts the Apostles Creed or the Nicene Creed into our daily practices of faith so that they will ALWAYS BE WATERSHED WORDS for each of us.
There have been times in history when saying “I believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God” cost disciples their lives. Indeed, all over the world TODAY Christians are persecuted and lose their lives because they say and mean, “Jesus is the Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God.”
I forget. I take for granted.
Prayer:
Lord, help me today, as I pray, to claim Peter’s words, “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God” as my creed. Let it be a watershed for me that makes the difference in what I think, say, and do. All day long, help me to remember. And all day long, let it make a difference. Amen.
