Yesterday’s Reading was Matthew 16:1-28.
To me it raises two interesting issues:
First, who is Peter?
Jesus calling Simon the rock still leaves him an unlikely symbol of stability. While he was one of the first disciples called and served as the spokesman for the group, Peter is also the exemplar of “little faith” in Matthew 14, will soon have Jesus say to him, “Get behind me, Satan,” and will eventually deny Jesus three times. In light of the Easter event, then, Peter became an exemplar of the forgiven sinner.
Second, how about binding and loosing?
The saying is not a new one, but a paraphrase of Matthew 18:18 where it is applied to all of Jesus’ disciples. Basically he gives them the same authority that rabbis have, in virtue of their ordination, the power of deciding disputes relating to the Law.
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