At once, Jesus called out to them, saying: “Courage, it is I! Do not be afraid.” It was Peter who answered: “Lord, if it is you, tell me to come to you across the water.” “Come” said Jesus. Then Peter got out of the boat and started walking toward Jesus across the water, but as soon as he felt the force of the wind, he took fright and began to sink. “Lord! Save me!”, he cried. Jesus put out his hand at once and held him. “Man of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”
And as they got into the boat the wind dropped.” Matthew 14: 22-33
Over centuries, writers and artists have described the Catholic Church as the Barque of Peter. In fact, back in 1298 the artist Giotto was commissioned to create a mosaic of Jesus saving Peter from sinking in a very turbulent Sea of Galilee. It took about 15 years to complete and is now to be seen high on the ceiling of the portico at the entrance to St Peter’s Basilica in Rome. In his address during his final general audience, Pope Benedict XVI said that there were times in his Papacy when he had “felt like St Peter with the Apostles in the boat on the Sea of Galilee…there were days of sunshine and gentle breeze and moments when the seas were rough and the winds against us.” (Benedict XVI, 27/02/2013) While Mark and Luke also record the story of the storm on Lake Galilee, Matthew is the only one who tells of Jesus reaching out to save Peter from drowning. Several of the Psalms describe drowning as a disastrous plight that calls for assistance that only God can give. For instance, in Psalm 42 we hear a plea to God for help: “all your waves, your breakers have rolled over me” (Psalm 42: 7) and a similar plea in Psalm 69: 2 reads: “I have stepped into deep water and the waves are washing over me.”
Now let’s move to today’s gospel-reading. Matthew opened his account with: “Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead to the other side while he would send the crowds away.” It sounds like a bit more than: “You go on ahead and I’ll catch up with you later.” There’s no hint as to how he would travel the twelve or so kilometres to the other side. Neither is there a suggestion that he knew a storm was expected and that they might need his help. But he gave himself some needed space for prayer and solitude. When the storm broke, he guessed that these men, who were practised in negotiating their way through storms, might need some help. Bear in mind that these disciples were still in the process of coming to appreciate who he was. The disciples had not yet been challenged by Jesus with the question; “But you, who do you say I am?’ And Peter had not openly named Jesus as “the Christ, the Son of the living God.” (See Matthew 16: 16) So, it was only natural that, when Jesus appeared on top of the waves at the height of the storm. the disciples concluded that they had seen a ghost. When Jesus uttered a comforting word: “No need to be afraid! It is I. I’m here to give a helping hand”, Peter had a fleeting moment of enlightenment and set out to meet Jesus. But the wind and waves won out and he began to sink. His fear led him to call for help, and it was Jesus who came to his rescue. When the winds and waves dropped immediately after they were all safely in the boat, they were another step closer towards seeing who Jesus really was. We know that it was not until Jesus had risen that they all came to realise just who he was. We now have the advantage of starting with their witness to what they came to learn from their years of close contact with him.
We don’t have to be geniuses to see the aptness of the expression “Barque of Peter” as a symbol for the community we call Church. That community has experienced the buffeting of storms of different intensities throughout its entire history. It has known violent persecution triggered by fear and hatred directed at it by external forces. And it has been harmed from the inside by a variety of heresies, schisms and scandals resulting from human weakness and failure. It is vital that we not lose sight on the one who repeatedly assures us with the unfailing reminder: “Take courage! It is I. Do not be afraid.”
Once again, in order to get the full measure of this account from Matthew, we need to look at the context. Jesus was dealing with the full import of the news of the beheading of John the Baptist. He was intent on getting solitude to deal with his grief. Instead of finding a place of quiet, he was met with a crowd in need of physical and spiritual nourishment. He gave their needs preference. Having directed his disciples to head for the other side of the lake, he went in search of a quiet place to pray and grieve for his friend. And then a sudden, violent storm created another need for assistance.
Matthew has recorded several incidents in which Jesus urged people he had cured to have courage. Early in chapter 9 of his Gospel, Matthew records Jesus’ words when a paralytic was brought to him on a stretcher. Complimenting the man’s friends on their faith, Jesus said to the paralytic: “Courage, my child, your sins are forgiven.” That led some scribes who were present to accuse Jesus of blasphemy. In response Jesus made this assertion: “To prove to you that the Son of Man has power to forgive sins take note.” And turning to the paralytic, he said: “get up and pick up your bed and go home.” And the man got up and went home. (Matthew 9: 2-7) A little later, we read how a woman suffering from a haemorrhage reached out and touched Jesus’ cloak. He turned to her and said: “Courage, my daughter, your faith has restored you to health.” (Matthew 9:22) The Greek word Matthew used for “courage” literally means “Be full of heart and rejoice”. I want to suggest that Matthew was wanting to point out that faith is essentially a dynamic relationship that binds people close to Jesus. Those who come to Jesus in faith see in him something that attracts them to want to be in relationship with him. When that happens, there is cause to rejoice. For a fleeting moment when Peter stepped out of the boat, he somehow sensed that being a disciple of Jesus meant walking beside him, acting as he acted and doing for others the kind of thing he had just done for all in the boat. However, he was distracted by the wind and the waves and started to sink. He still had sufficient faith to call out to Jesus for help. This was a teaching experience for Peter. Humbled by Jesus for his wavering trust, he had still witnessed that God’s power is seen at its best in weakness. A good start for a disciple!