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Have we ever been tested by actions, people, and circumstances? What kind of Christians are we? Did we know the correct answer?

Jesus asks us, like Peter: “And who do you think I am” (Mt 16:15). The surroundings of Caesarea Philippi gave Jesus space to withdraw into silence. Jesus performs miracles, signs, and wonders before the eyes of the apostles. He teaches and explains what they need help understanding. The apostles grow in faith. Their relationship and view of Jesus mature. It is here that Jesus asks them fundamental questions. People also asked themselves many questions about Jesus: “Who do people think the Son of Man is” (Mt 16:13)? They answer: “Some for John the Baptist, others for Elijah, and others for Jeremiah or one of the prophets” (Mt 16:14). The disciples do not agree with people’s opinions. They cooperate more with the Spirit. Jesus devotes himself more to them. And that is why he asks the second question: “And who do you think I am” (Mt 16:15? Peter answers. Peter identifies Jesus as the Messiah: ” You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God” (Mt 16:16). The answer goes beyond the previous view of the apostles and people on Jesus. They realize that the words of the prophets apply to Jesus.

In Aramaic, Messiah means that Jesus is the One, the Unique. An eloquent and conscious contrast can be seen in the whole answer of Jesus. In the naming “Son of the living God,” one can see something extraordinary and unheard of until then. Peter receives an assurance from Jesus that Peter will mean strength and steadfastness for Jesus’ Church, where Jesus himself will be the cornerstone. Jesus himself places Peter as a rock, the Church’s foundation stone. Although even today, some theologians and churches do not accept the teaching of Rome that Jesus entrusted the whole Church to Peter, Peter is the first among the apostles. He receives the promise of power: “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven” (Mt 16:19). These words indicate that Peter is the true representative of Christ on earth. Peter’s primacy passes to Roman bishops, popes.

Who do I think Jesus is? Words are not enough. Our life, actions, attitudes, and opinions, daily without realizing Jesus’ question, say who Jesus is for me. A high school professor was on a week-long trip with his class. The students were next to him. They knew him from school as a moral, well-rounded, brilliant teacher who knew how to explain and evaluate correctly. They did not know his life outside of school. Now they knew him as a person and a Christian. It took their breath away when, after dinner, before the program they had for the evening, he asked them if they would like to pray the rosary. Many did not even know the secrets of the rosary. Then, during the evening program, he entertained them, made them laugh, and at the same time, did not utter a single vulgar, ambiguous word or insult to anyone. That Sunday, many of them were happy to be in the church for mass after a while. And when they saw him go to communion, several boys from the class said to themselves that they had to be like him, and several girls said they wanted to have a man like him. The teacher did nothing extraordinary, just what he did every day.

Indeed, I must be holy or separated from the world – and especially from the world in myself, from pride and the desire for something of my own, different from God and not of God. This world within me then desires a world outside of me, where it seeks its own – possessions, recognition, power, or at least entertainment and pleasure of the flesh.
As long as I am even partially a part of the world in this way, I am also a part of its struggle and the struggle of men for these worldly things. And while I am a part of all this, I cannot at the same time desire these things and compete with other men for them, and at the same time be merciful and forgiving like God and therefore love like God.
One contradicts the other. As long as we live in lust for worldly and
earthly things and are concerned about them, we cannot live God’s Life of love manifested in the perfect, unconditional, unconditional and never-ending receiving and sharing of forgiveness and mercy.
Only when we have indeed left the world behind in our hearts are we free from everything – from things, from the judgments and opinions of the world, from the demands and expectations of people, from their approval; we are even free from our earthly health, life, comfort, everything. Not in some Stoic indifference but in the freedom of God’s children, which Christ has won for us by the Father in Him “delivering us from the power of darkness and into the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins” (Col 1:13-14). In this freedom, standing firm on the rock of Christ and nothing else but Him, we can finally accept and live the Life of God.
For this is the mystery of God: he has nothing in common with us, the people of the world overlapping interests that He has to fight over with us. He does not desire anything that we have, nor anything that the world offers, as he says at one point flatly: “Do I eat beef or drink the blood of goats” (Ps. 50, 13)? And we humans, in turn, do not have the power to take away nor harm nor diminish nor in any way affect anything of what He is, that He should have to worry about it and to fight with us about it, as the Scriptures also say: “Exalted is the Lord above all nations, and his glory above the heavens” (PS 113:4). This is the holiness of God, the first, perfect separation from the world. In it, then, He can be – and He chose to be indeed He will be – merciful and forsaking, unchangeable, permanently, to everyone equally and indiscriminately, for to Him there is no in-between in this respect. “For God despises no one” (Rom 2:11).
Therefore, the words to which I return again and again are valid: “Do not drag the yoke with unbelievers! For what part has righteousness in iniquity? Or what has light to do with darkness? … Wherefore come out from among them, separate yourselves, saith and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you and will be your Father, and you shall be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty” (2Cor 6:14, 17- 18), “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If anyone loves the world, he is not in its Father’s love. For nothing in the world, neither the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, nor the boasting of riches, is not of the Father, but the world.” (1Jn 2:15-16). How deeply and all this is true! What does it need to hear? Do we need help understanding? Do we need to see?

The Christian is a man with his whole heart removed from the world and moved into Heaven, to the Kingdom, to God. That’s what baptism is all about. “By baptism, then, we are buried with him in death, that we, as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, shall live a new life. If we have been made new with him and become like him in death, so shall we be like him in the resurrection. For we know that our old man was crucified with him, that sinful flesh was destroyed so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. He who has died is justified from sin” (Rom 6:4-7).
This is the starting point and presupposition of the entire Christian life. Without it, it is impossible to be a Christian and live the Life of God. This is the first thing: to move and leave the world behind. Jesus also says: “Fear not, little flock, for it has pleased your Father to give you the kingdom. Sell what you have and give it away as alms! Make for yourselves purses that shall not be worn out, an inexhaustible treasure in heaven, where the thief cannot enter, and the moth does not destroy. For where your treasure is, there where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Lk 12:32-34)! Therefore, it is infallibly true: “Whoever loves his [present worldly] life will lose it, and whoever hates his life in this world will save it for eternal life” (Jn 12:25).
At the moment when our heart is entirely in God, when we do not desire anything of this world, and thus our desires and interests are no longer in any way anything with the people of the world overlap, there is no longer anything for which we have to compete with them, nor anything for which that we have to fear them for and that we have to fight for in the world to worry about; therefore, if by this first holiness, we are holy like Him, we are after the pattern of God, we are also prepared to be merciful like Him and to forgive like Him, and thus proving that we have genuinely become His sons and daughters – and this is the second holiness, perfection in love, “without which no one will see the Lord” (Heb. 12, 14). “And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Phil 4:7) – because that is precisely how the Life of God
is lived: not in inner tension and agitation.

We can sit in a sought-after restaurant and stay full. And home cooking is enough, and we are happy. Today’s Gospel tells about one such event – about the multiplication of five loaves and two fish in a desolate place, where a large crowd was fed, and where they collected twelve full baskets of crumbs; the Gospel says: “They all ate and were filled” (Mt 14:20).

The Eucharist is the most significant manifestation of Love and the living presence of the Lord Jesus under visible signs. It is a fundamental truth about the Eucharist bearing the divine seal of authenticity. After all, Jesus said: “As the living Father sent me, and I live from the Father, so he who is mine will live from me” (Jn 6:57). Jesus teaches clearly and comprehensibly that whoever wants to obtain eternal life that without communion (that is, by rejecting this bread), he cannot gain this life. Once, Jesus said he would not retract anything. We see that this is something significant because the Lord Jesus does not use alternatives. Indeed, the mystery of Jesus’ body under the form of bread is connected to difficulties, but Jesus insists that we accept this mystery and live from it.

On another occasion, he said: “Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed” (Jn 20:29). Yes, we can be happy when we receive Jesus in this mystery of love, with which he miraculously feeds us in our souls, as he fed the hungry crowd on the desert with loaves and fishes. God himself, Jesus Christ, prepared food for us, his own body when, for the first time, parting with the apostles, he took bread and wine and said: “Take and eat: this is my body…this is my blood” (Mt 26,26-27). This event was preceded by other events during which Jesus prepared the disciples for a fundamental matter.

The crowd, where there are only about five thousand men and women and children, forgets the need for the body and food while listening to Jesus. Jesus does not ignore this fact, either. The apostles see only the lonely place where they are. There is no such thing as a hopeless situation for Jesus. Jesus’ wish is for the event to remain deeply in the memory of the apostles so that they will forever remember that there is no such situation in which Christ cannot help. Faith is needed. How does a priest need to have confidence when the bread becomes the Body of Christ in his hands? The incident from the desert teaches about the inexhaustible treasure of the Lord Jesus. He always has, even if he gives away a lot; Jesus will never be missed. If priestly activity were based only on human wisdom, it would be exhausted quickly, but it is based on God’s word. Whoever cooperates with God, who thinks more of God than of himself, can never recognize a lack, a bottom, a bottom. Just like the Body of the Lord Jesus, thanks to God’s grace, it can never be exhausted, but the further it goes, the more it can be convinced of the love of the Lord Jesus. A priest who faithfully represents his Master will never find himself in a situation where his hands are empty. His hands will always have something to offer, gift, and enrich. Whoever believes in the miracle of the multiplication of loaves and fishes will never experience a state of need and crisis. 

In the realm of faith, we encounter food that has no parallels, to which nothing on earth can be compared. John the Baptist died in prison because he told the King and Herodias the truth. The description of the event first turns our attention to Herod and Herodias. The Gospel scene also tells about hope.

Francis Bogdan in the book “To Spread the word of the Lord” (Kraków 1995, p. 227) tells this event: A woman possessed by the devil was brought to the bishop. The bishop saw that this was an unusual case and called many people. He approached this woman with the Eucharistic Christ. The evil spirit began to shake its victim, smashing it like some kind of object. Someone from the crowd called out: “Why are you trembling before a piece of bread?” And a harsh voice came out of the woman: “I tremble not before bread but before Christ himself.” During the blessing, the devil left the suffering woman. The crowd heard from the mouth of the devil himself about the strength, power, and love of Christ for us humans.

Another event speaks of the greatness of God’s love in the Eucharist. She is told by St. Ján Eymard (+1886). One day he received a container with little guests. It turns out that a group of thieves stole it ten years ago. Some of them were thrown into the landfill. One of them felt remorse and began to fear God’s punishment for his act. He finally found the courage, confessed to the priest, and the container came into the hands of the priest.

We realize that dishonoring this love of God causes a lot of damage to a person’s soul. The sacrilegious acceptance of Christ does not bring grace, but real punishments already here on earth. One stops enjoying friendship with Jesus. He has no joy in the faith. He is subject to the other effects of spiritual emptiness. The Church teaches and reminds us that receiving this gift is a means for us to receive many new graces. It is not easy today to receive Christ in the Eucharist. It is necessary to overcome shyness, lack of interest, and, of course, personal sin. However, we believers can convince ourselves of the greatness of the graces that we receive through the gift of Jesus, which he gives himself to us. It is necessary to appreciate this gift.

Along with the well-known “Stradivarka” violin, there is also a tradition of this event, which was reported by Paris radio on March 25, 1957. An elderly woman asked a tax official to borrow 10 francs for bread. She wanted to give a violin in return. The official looked at the dusty violin and rejected it, saying that business is not allowed in the office. The old woman left. When they were closing the office in the evening, they found her dead in a corner. When they examined the violin, they found that it was a well-known violin, the value of which reached one hundred thousand francs. The old woman died of hunger. Neither she nor the official knew their value.

We will use the price of life for our victory.

Thou art a priest forever” Heb 5:6.

The writer Antonio Sicari writes in his book Portraits of the Saints that the life of a holy parish priest is so full of innocence and miracles that one is tempted to tell it as a fairy tale. And a fairy tale would sound like this: “There once lived in France a Christian village boy, John, who from his earliest childhood loved solitude and the Lord God. And as the lords in Paris provoked a revolution and prevented the people from praying, the child and his parents went to mass in the corner of a granary. The priests were hiding in those days, and when they were caught, they beheaded them. That is why John dreamed of becoming a priest. Although he knew how to pray, he lacked education. He guarded sheep and worked in the fields.

He entered the seminary very late and failed all the exams. But professions were very rare at that time, so they finally let him graduate. He was appointed parish priest in Ars and remained there until his death. He was a parish priest in the most remote village in France. But he was a pastor through and through, and that doesn’t happen often. He was so great that the most remote village in France could boast the most distinguished French parish priest. All of France took to the road to see him.

He took over all who came after him, and if he had not died, he would have converted all of France. He healed souls and bodies. He read in their hearts as from a book. The devil tempted him, but still, he could not prevent him from becoming a holy man. He became a canon, then a knight of the Legion of Honor, then a saint. But while he lived, he never understood why. And that was the finest proof that he truly deserved the glory. In Paradise, where the true worth of men is revealed, the events of the 19th century are called the century of the Parson of Ars, but France has no idea of it.”

In this story, we feel the hand of an artist who, in a few short strokes, has succeeded in sketching almost the entire profile of a saint, the patron saint of priests. But suddenly the author stops and realizes that behind this innocence lies the deep, authentic drama of a man who faithfully served God and his fellow man. His consummate devotion to his vocation is an encouragement and invitation to us, for the Church is not made up of people who are better than others, but of people who want to become better than they are.