Author's Note: (This was written in 2008 shortly after
Catherine came home from the hospital and so some references are
dated.)
How can the "rock" become "Satan" so quickly? In Matthew's version of this Gospel we heard Jesus praise St. Peter and call him the rock upon which Christ's Church would be built. Yet here, as in Matthew's Gospel, Jesus rebukes St. Peter even going so far as calling him "Satan". What happened to cause such a stern rebuke from Our Lord?
To understand why such a strong phrase was uttered by Jesus we must go back to the beginning of the story, all the way back.
In the garden of Eden, Adam had a decision to make. He could either a) give in to the temptation, b) call upon God for help, or c) fight like a man even offering his very life to protect Eve and the garden. Adam knew what option c would entail and Satan offered him the apparently easier way out with option a; the way, he thought, of less suffering.
Because he chose to give in rather than fight or trust God, he had to learn a tough lesson about love. Both Adam and Eve had to learn that true love involves self-sacrifice. Since Adam chose to not do what he was placed in the garden to do, till and protect, he would have to learn the lesson the hard way. Suffering entered the world. Adam tried to escape from it and so it entered into the world for all generations. From then on, all acts of love from providing food to giving birth involve suffering to remind the "sons of Adam" that true love makes sacrifices. It does not give in to what appears to be the easy way.
If we fast forward back to Jesus and Peter we see Jesus telling His disciples that He is going to make the ultimate sacrifice for all mankind. Being true God and true Man He alone is able to fulfill God's justice and reverse the choice of Adam, giving all those who follow Him the power to turn suffering into redemption, into joy, into life.
If we fast forward again to today we see a world that seeks to avoid suffering at all costs. I was reminded of this on Friday when Senator John McCain announced his Vice Presidential pick, Gov. Sarah Palin.
Gov.
Palin recently gave birth to child with
Down's Syndrome. In fact, it was probably close to the time Catherine was born, who also had a good chance of having
Down's Syndrome (we still don't know what her chromosomal condition may mean for the future). Both Gov.
Palin and Nicole and I faced the fact that a great deal of suffering was coming our way. We knew that our child would not be "perfect" in the eyes of the world. The medical community would advise us to really think of what sort of life these children might have. How would it affect our families? How would our children deal with a sibling with these problems? How would the community embrace or reject the child?
To the proposition of abortion, to a false promise of removing suffering, we have said, as Jesus said, "Get behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle to me. You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.” God has given us this wonderful opportunity to suffer, which we embrace. Is it easy? NO! Have we had hard times? Have we cried? YES!
Through it all - the possibility of the loss of Catherine, 4 months in the hospital, 3 surgeries, and probably close to three-quarters of a million dollars in medical bills (insurance has taken care of it all!) - we have continued to pray, "not as I will, but your will be done."
Our culture needs the lesson of today's Gospel. In a world where abortion is seen as the easiest way to remove suffering, real or perceived, we as a culture of love, must stand up and say, "Get behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle to me. You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.” We must continue to imitate Jesus by embracing our suffering and making it redemptive.
From the Saints: “
Sometimes the only way the good Lord can get into some hearts is to break them.” -
Venerable Fulton J. Sheen
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God bless you - Jim Hahn
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