2260629 THE INDEFATIGABLE CHURCH OF CHRIST
29 June 2026, Monday, Sts Peter and Paul, Apostles
First reading | Acts 12:1-11 |
'Now I know the Lord really did save me from Herod'
King Herod started persecuting certain members of the Church. He beheaded James the brother of John, and when he saw that this pleased the Jews he decided to arrest Peter as well. This was during the days of Unleavened Bread, and he put Peter in prison, assigning four squads of four soldiers each to guard him in turns. Herod meant to try Peter in public after the end of Passover week. All the time Peter was under guard the Church prayed to God for him unremittingly.
On the night before Herod was to try him, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, fastened with double chains, while guards kept watch at the main entrance to the prison. Then suddenly the angel of the Lord stood there, and the cell was filled with light. He tapped Peter on the side and woke him. ‘Get up!’ he said ‘Hurry!’ – and the chains fell from his hands. The angel then said, ‘Put on your belt and sandals.’ After he had done this, the angel next said, ‘Wrap your cloak round you and follow me.’ Peter followed him, but had no idea that what the angel did was all happening in reality; he thought he was seeing a vision. They passed through two guard posts one after the other, and reached the iron gate leading to the city. This opened of its own accord; they went through it and had walked the whole length of one street when suddenly the angel left him. It was only then that Peter came to himself. ‘Now I know it is all true’ he said. ‘The Lord really did send his angel and has saved me from Herod and from all that the Jewish people were so certain would happen to me.’
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 33(34):2-9 |
From all my terrors the Lord set me free.
or
The angel of the Lord rescues those who revere him.
I will bless the Lord at all times,
his praise always on my lips;
in the Lord my soul shall make its boast.
The humble shall hear and be glad.
From all my terrors the Lord set me free.
or
The angel of the Lord rescues those who revere him.
Glorify the Lord with me.
Together let us praise his name.
I sought the Lord and he answered me;
from all my terrors he set me free.
From all my terrors the Lord set me free.
or
The angel of the Lord rescues those who revere him.
Look towards him and be radiant;
let your faces not be abashed.
This poor man called, the Lord heard him
and rescued him from all his distress.
From all my terrors the Lord set me free.
or
The angel of the Lord rescues those who revere him.
The angel of the Lord is encamped
around those who revere him, to rescue them.
Taste and see that the Lord is good.
He is happy who seeks refuge in him.
From all my terrors the Lord set me free.
or
The angel of the Lord rescues those who revere him.
Second reading |
2 Timothy 4:6-8,17-18 |
All there is to come now is the crown of righteousness reserved for me
My life is already being poured away as a libation, and the time has come for me to be gone. I have fought the good fight to the end; I have run the race to the finish; I have kept the faith; all there is to come now is the crown of righteousness reserved for me, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will give to me on that Day; and not only to me but to all those who have longed for his Appearing.
The Lord stood by me and gave me power, so that through me the whole message might be proclaimed for all the pagans to hear; and so I was rescued from the lion’s mouth. The Lord will rescue me from all evil attempts on me, and bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Gospel Acclamation | Mt16:18 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church.
And the gates of the underworld can never hold out against it.
Alleluia!
Gospel |
Matthew 16:13-19 |
You are Peter and on this rock I will build my Church
When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi he put this question to his disciples, ‘Who do people say the Son of Man is?’ And they said, ‘Some say he is John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.’ ‘But you,’ he said ‘who do you say I am?’ Then Simon Peter spoke up, ‘You are the Christ,’ he said ‘the Son of the living God.’ Jesus replied, ‘Simon son of Jonah, you are a happy man! Because it was not flesh and blood that revealed this to you but my Father in heaven. So I now say to you: You are Peter and on this rock I will build my Church. And the gates of the underworld can never hold out against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven: whatever you bind on earth shall be considered bound in heaven; whatever you loose on earth shall be considered loosed in heaven.’
THE INDEFATIGABLE CHURCH OF CHRIST
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ACTS 12: 1-11; PS 34:2-9; 2 TIM 4, 6-8, 17-18; MT 16, 13-19]
The Church is undergoing tremendous challenges in recent times. The world has developed so quickly due to advancements in science and technology, causing cultures, lifestyles, and moral trends to change rapidly. With the rise of secularism and secularization, religion and morality are losing their presence in society. However, society is not the only thing affected; our own members are struggling as well. Regrettably, it seems the values of Catholics are formed more by society than by the Church and the Gospel. We are not immune to the degeneration of the world; this affects not just our laity, but even the clergy, the religious, and the hierarchy of the Church. Instead of growing in holiness, some of our priests and religious have been corrupted by worldly values, whether through materialism, riches, power, or sex. The scandals within the hierarchy have rocked the faith of many Catholics, and many have left the Church out of disillusionment.
Will the Church be able to withstand the onslaughts of the Evil One, seen in the negative and evil forces growing from strength to strength in the world? The encouraging assurance of today’s Scripture readings on the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul is that the Church will be protected from the gates of hell. Jesus declared, “You are Peter and on this rock, I will build my Church. And the gates of the underworld can never hold out against it.” This is the promise of our Lord given to St. Peter and his successors. Jesus will defend the Church from destruction and from falling into error because the Church is built on Rock.
What is this rock? This rock refers primarily to the faith of Peter, who confessed that Jesus is the Christ, “the Son of the living God.” By this confession, Peter declared that Jesus is the Anointed One of God, the Messiah foretold in the Old Testament, the son of David–and therefore as King, also the Son of God–and most importantly, the Eternal Son of the Father. Unless we share this faith with Peter, we will not be able to stand firm on the Gospel, nor stand with the Church, Peter, and his successors. This is why Peter’s confession of faith in Christ was not due to his own intelligence or reasoning, but by a divine revelation. Hence, the Lord said to Peter, “Simon son of Jonah, you are a happy man! Because it was not flesh and blood that revealed this to you but my Father in heaven.” It is not incidental that Jesus addressed Peter as “Simon, son of Jonah.” The word “Jonah” means “dove” in Hebrew, suggesting that Peter had a special link with the Holy Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit, given to the apostles at Pentecost, that empowered Peter as the head of the apostolic college to deliver his first homily with power, bringing about the conversion and baptism of three thousand people that day.
Arising from this faith in the Lord, we have faith in the authority of Peter and his successors to guide the Church of Christ. For the Lord did not just give Peter the authority to teach, decide, and govern; He also gave the guarantee of His divine assistance: “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven: whatever you bind on earth shall be considered bound in heaven; whatever you loose on earth shall be considered loosed in heaven.” It is our belief that the Church is more than just a human institution. Unlike secular institutions that have come and gone, the Church has withstood more than 2,000 years and is still standing strong, in spite of all the trials and scandals affecting it. If the Church has stood for so long, unlike other human institutions, empires, and kingdoms, it is because the Lord is watching over it through His successor, Peter and the apostles, and their successors. Only with this faith in Christ and His successors can we withstand the gates of hell.
Indeed, this divine assistance given to Peter is confirmed in the Scriptures and in the history of the Church. In the founding acts of the Church–beginning with the gathering of the Twelve Apostles and Jesus appointing Peter as the keyholder with the authority to safeguard the Church–our Lord also promised Peter that He would be with him in his weakness. Jesus clearly foresaw how the Church would be persecuted just as He was. Immediately after Peter’s confession of faith, Jesus foretold His passion and resurrection: “From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised” (Mt 16:21). Jesus warned His disciples, “If they persecuted me, they will persecute you; if they kept my word, they will keep yours also” (Jn 15:20).
In another founding act of the Church, our Lord instituted the Holy Eucharist. Indeed, the Eucharist makes us Church. Therefore, the Church can never exist without the Eucharist because the Church is the Body of Christ. The Eucharist is also intrinsically connected with the sacrifice of Christ on the Cross and His resurrection. What is instructive is that even after empowering the apostles to “do this in remembrance of me” (Lk 22:19), the apostles were still jostling for power (cf. Lk 22:24-27). The Lord assured Peter, “Simon, Simon, listen! Satan has demanded to sift all of you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your own faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned back, strengthen your brothers” (Lk 22:31-32). Jesus knew that Peter, by himself and without divine assistance, would fail Him. This authority of Peter to shepherd the Church of Christ was sealed after the Resurrection, when the Lord entrusted Peter with the task of feeding and looking after His sheep. Even after Peter renewed his profession of love–a love that was merely human friendship, with Peter realising how inadequate it was–Jesus still instructed him to feed and tend His sheep (cf. Jn 21:15-19).
In today’s first reading, we see a clear demonstration of how the Lord continued to stand by Peter when he was persecuted. This was the third time he had been arrested and the second time he was put in jail. Significantly, the account of Peter’s miraculous escape from jail is reminiscent of God delivering the Hebrews from Egypt. Like the Hebrews, Peter was in jail during Passover week. The Lord sent an angel to release him, just as He sent an angel to free the Hebrews from death by passing over their doors. Just as the chains fell from Peter’s hands and he put on his belt and sandals, the Hebrews were set free from the chains of Pharaoh, walking out of Egypt into the Promised Land in the middle of the night wearing their belts and sandals. When Peter came to himself, he said, “Now I know it is all true. The Lord really did send his angel and has saved me from Herod and from all that the Jewish people were so certain would happen to me.”
So today, we take hope that God will remain faithful to His Church. We should not fear or be shaken by what is happening in the Church and in the world. The Lord will ensure that His Church and His Vicar on earth will be protected from harm and destruction under persecution. Just as the Lord stood by Peter, the shepherd of the Church, and Paul, the symbol of the Church’s missionary dimension, we too must stand together with our chief shepherd, Peter and his successors. We will not only keep the “Church of the living God” strong as “the pillar and bulwark of the truth” (1 Tim 3:15), but we will also continue to look beyond ourselves, engaging in evangelisation and missionary activities to spread the Gospel and grow the Church.
This is why it is the duty of every Catholic to pray for the Holy Father and his bishops so that, guided by the Holy Spirit and protected from the temptations of the Evil One, they will continue to steer the Church through this difficult time of turmoil and bewildering change. This is exactly what the early Church did: “All the time Peter was under guard, the Church prayed to God for him unremittingly.” We must follow the early Church in supporting our leaders, most of all by praying for them as they pour out their lives as a libation for us.
Best Practices for Using the Daily Scripture Reflections
- Encounter God through the spirit of prayer and the scripture by reflecting and praying the Word of God daily. The purpose is to bring you to prayer and to a deeper union with the Lord on the level of the heart.
- Daily reflections when archived will lead many to accumulate all the reflections of the week and pray in one sitting. This will compromise your capacity to enter deeply into the Word of God, as the tendency is to read for knowledge rather than a prayerful reading of the Word for the purpose of developing a personal and affective relationship with the Lord.
- It is more important to pray deeply, not read widely. The current reflections of the day would be more than sufficient for anyone who wants to pray deeply and be led into an intimacy with the Lord.
Note: You may share this reflection with someone. However, please note that reflections are not archived online nor will they be available via email request.
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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