Today we celebrate the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul. Peter was a close companion of Jesus, alongside James and John. He earned the name rock having professed Jesus as Christ, the Son of the living God. He denied Jesus out of fear and later became a fearless witness to Christ infused by the power of the Holy Spirit. He is said to be the first bishop of Antioch who was martyred in Rome under emperor Nero in 65 AD.
Paul of Tarsus, present day-Southern Turkey, was born of a Jewish parent, a pharisee, once a persecutor of the church, and was later converted on his way to Damascus. After his conversion, Barnabas helped to insert him into the company of the early believers. He was an apostle to the gentiles. He died a martyr in Rome in the year 67.
In both Peter and Paul, we see the testimony of divine transformation, how God qualifies those he has chosen to do his work. In Peter, we see how God can translate our fear into bold faith and in Paul we see how weakness can give way to witness.
However, when it was time to choose who would lead the Church, Jesus chose Peter from among his close friends, not John the beloved. He chose the one who would later deny him. Jesus already knew his plans for Peter and the journey he would take him through. Even though Peter denied Jesus at his arrest, Jesus forgave him and rebuilt his confidence after the Resurrection. He made Peter ready and strong enough to lead his people. This is an indication that God does not choose us because of what we can do for him, but because of what he has planned to do in us and through us. This calls for humility and surrender.
More so, the ministry of Paul to the Gentiles was massive. It is evident in the numbers of epistles he wrote, how God mightily worked in him and through him. When Christ wanted to appoint someone for such mission, he didn’t choose one of his twelve disciples, but someone outside the circle, who was once a persecutor of the church. He knows the treasures in Paul and bracketed his rough past with the church.
A take home lesson is the fact that God choose us not because we are qualified, but because of his loving mercy. All he wants is surrender. He does not accommodate nepotism. He does not support appointment based on popular opinion. We see for instance, the election of the present Pope Leo; his name never came out from the opinion pool before or during the conclave. His emergence shocked the world.
Let us pray that we are ever worthy of God’s promises. May our hearts be opened to his grace. And may we yield to his promptings when he calls. Amen
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