Peter as the Rock

In Matthew's gospel, Jesus tells Peter that Peter is the rock upon which the Church will be built.

There has been much commentary about the significance of this statement. For the Roman Catholic community, this statement speaks of Peter as the first bishop of Rome, and the foundation of the papacy. For Protestants, the rock is perceived as Peter's faith and belief.

There is another way to interpret the passage, which begins by reading the entire verse in Matthew where this statement is found, Matthew 16.18: "And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it."

In ancient Israel, "Peter" was not a common name. You did not name a child "Peter". Peter's name was Simon Son of John (or Jonah). "Peter" was, instead, a nickname. The word Peter comes from the Greek Cephas, which means "Rock." Now that Peter is a common name, we miss the wordplay that would have been obvious to Jesus' original listeners. Jesus' original listeners would have heard the verse like this: "You are Rock, and upon this Rock I will build my Church."

When we read the verse in this context, the identity of the "Rock" to which Jesus refers becomes evident. The rock is not an institution that Peter founded or a quality attributed to Peter. The rock is, rather, Peter himself.

We can assume that comparing someone to a rock implies that the person is reliable, steady, and steadfast. On the surface, Peter's track record as a disciple appears to be anything like a "rock". Jesus told Peter at one point to "get behind me Satan" when Peter questioned Jesus' talk about having to be crucified in Jerusalem. Peter denounced Jesus three times when Jesus was facing crucifixion. In Paul's letter to the Galatians, we are told that Peter refused table fellowship to the Gentile converts to Christianity.

Peter was flawed. Yet despite Peter's track record, he was, literally, a rock upon which the Church was built. Despite his failures. Despite the fact that he may have sometimes not understood who Jesus was and what the mission was. Peter proclaimed the gospel and lived according to the example of Christ.

Like Peter, we are flawed. But like Peter, we can also be a rock upon which God will continue what was begun in Jesus. We can continue the mission of proclaiming Christ crucified and risen, and the inauguration of God's Kingdom.