Sermon 

September, 13, 2009 

One thing Jesus was not - he was not an answer man. It often appears that when he was pressed by others for advice on what to do, Jesus would (a) ask them another question; (b) tell a story or a parable; or (c) say that only the Father knows. Jesus was not an answer man because he was the answer.

In today's Gospel, Jesus is with his disciples at the region of Caesarea Philippi. Here streams come from Mount Hermon to form the beginning of the Jordan River. The area had been a place of worship of the idol Baal back in the hazy days of the beginning of the Old Testament period.

Centuries later when Alexander the Great conquered the area; he built an imposing Greek temple dedicated to the god Pan. The area continued to be a place of idol worship of one form or another through the centuries. People would come here to be given answers from signs that were read. Pagan priests tossed goats into the stream. Depending on how the goats died, an answer was given. People would come to Caesarea Philippi to read the signs of goats filled with narcotics. Priests would interpret the stumbling of the intoxicated goats and give answers to those who came with questions. The signs of the goats would tell a person answers about business, war, marriage, or any host of questions that might be asked.

It is no accident that Jesus chose Caesarea Philippi to ask his disciples, "Who do people say that I am?" The disciples give the answers of the day saying, "John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets." Then, Peter declares Jesus to be the Messiah.

This is the place of the gods, but Jesus is announced to be the one who is the revelation of God. He is the Savior and the Messiah. All of the idols worshiped in this place have been declared dust. None of them holds the answers. Jesus who is the Messiah is the answer.

Then, Jesus goes on to explain what it means to be the Messiah. Jesus tells them that Son of Man must undergo great suffering, be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, be killed, and after three days rise again.

Peter hears this talk about rejection, suffering, and dying, and he will not stand for it. Peter rebukes Jesus by essentially saying, "Wise up and stop this foolish talk of suffering and dying. Be a man, and be the Messiah you are supposed to be."

Peter has fallen into the trap of Caesarea Philippi. The gods are to be powerful. The gods are to provoke fear. The gods are to be appeased. They do not suffer. They do not display weakness. They give the answers. Jesus is saying that the Messiah is the answer.

The word Messiah meant much more than a religious leader. Devout Jews believed that their occupation by the Romans would end by God's direct intervention. The God of Israel would save his people by sending one chosen from birth. To the Jews that meant the Romans would be thrown out and a religious and political Israel would emerge restored and renewed.

However, as a Messiah, Jesus offered no easy religion to his disciples and he offers no easy religion to us. Too often, we are like Peter. We think of Christianity as something nice and comfortable. However, often it will pull us into places where we do not want to be. Often our faith does not give the answers we want. We list our wants and expect the response we assume should happen.

However, sometimes, there seems to be no answer. God appears to be silent. The truth is that the answer is already with us. It is at work within and among us. The answer we are given usually is not something we can check off a list. The answer is living with us. It is in every breath we take. It is part of the of the life we live. This is because unlike the idol Pan, Christ is not half man and half goat playing tricks on us. Christ is one of us. He is living. He knows what it is to be a flesh and blood human being. He knows what it is to suffer. He has experienced the injustice of this world. Christ hears the voice of our prayers, and the answer he gives is a living answer. The answer watches over us day and night and becomes part of us. He is with us so that even at the gate of death we cry Alleluia. Our faith is not an escape from hurt, nor is it a faith about a Messiah who comes to slap pat answers upon us. Instead, it is a faith that brings us mystery of walking the way of the cross through death into life.

A school of thought attributes much of Mark's gospel to the words and memories of St. Peter. Perhaps in this account, we are hearing Peter's confession. If Mark repeats Peter's own testimony in this passage, he demonstrates an honesty we would wish to emulate. We believe. We seek to avoid suffering, and we want answers. Those are human things people want, and reasonably so. However, perhaps Peter is telling us that the answer is not in the idols of our own desires, but in Christ the Messiah, the Son of the Living God. Furthermore, just as Jesus used the fallible St. Peter as one through which he worked the Father's will, so he uses us and our uncertain faith to spread the gospel to a needy world. Amen.