Pope Francis: Jesus is more than a ‘teacher of wisdom’ or ‘model of justice’

August 25, 2014

During his August 24 Sunday Angelus, Pope Francis reflected upon St. Peter’s confession of faith, recounted in the Gospel of the day at Mass (Mt. 16:13-20).

“The Lord has in mind the image of building, the image of the community as an edifice,” the Pope said. “And so, when he hears Simon’s frank profession of faith, he calls him ‘rock’ and makes clear his intention of building his Church on this faith.”

“The foundation stone is Christ, the unique cornerstone,” he continued. “For his part, Peter is the rock, as the visible foundation of the unity of the Church; but every baptized person is called to offer to Jesus his or her own faith, poor but sincere, so that he can continue to build his Church, today, in every part of the world.”

Pope Francis concluded:

Even in our days, many people think that Jesus is a great prophet, a teacher of wisdom, a model of justice. And even today, Jesus asks His disciples – that is, us, all of us – “But you, who do you say that I am?” A prophet? A teacher of wisdom? A model of justice? How will we answer? Let us think about it.

But above all let us pray to God the Father, that he will give us the answer, and through the intercession of the Virgin Mary; let us pray that He will give us the gift to respond with sincere hearts: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” This is a confession of faith, this is one’s own ‘creed.’ But we can say it three times, together.

 

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Further information:

• Angelus, 24 August 2014 (Holy See Press Office)
• Pope Francis: Jesus builds the Church on faith (Vatican Radio)