– Feast of Portosalvo 2023 –

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XXII DOMENICA DEL TEMPO Ordinario (YEAR A) With. Liturgical: Green

Commentary on the Sunday Gospel 3 September 2023

"I do not think according to God, but of men ". Peter discovers the true identity of Jesus. He makes the startling discovery that this carpenter from Nazareth is none other than the Christ, the anointed of Israel, the realization of waiting, two thousand years long, of his people. But Peter interprets Jesus' mission in political terms. Jesus well aware of it and explains what kind of Messiah will be: go to Jerusalem to suffer, be put to death and resurrected on the third day. This is too much for Peter: in his spirit, the idea of ​​suffering and the idea of ​​the Messiah are simply incompatible with each other.
"I do not think according to God, but of men ". If Peter could only realize, would be filled with the joy! The Messiah, that you would be surrounded by the suffering, that would meet the hostility of men, and would have suffered the consequences of the ingratitude of secular Israel to the God of the Covenant, was right there! Before him was finally the one who would defeat Satan in a decisive battle and that he would, in this way, brought to completion the divine plan of salvation for humanity.
Since Peter "began to rebuke him, saying: God forbid, Sir, this never happen to you ", Jesus said to him,: "Lungi da me, Satan! Thou art an offense, because they are thinking not as God, but of men!”. Voltaire wrote wittily: "God made man in his image and likeness, and the man made it to him just fine!”.
In our innate tendency to resist God, we Deform its image, we refuse to let God be as he wants to be. Our God is too small, too fragile and too limited, while the God of Jesus Christ is literally too good to be true. Jesus is quick to follow the path that leads to Jerusalem to svelarcelo on the cross.
On the cross, in fact, Jesus will reveal the last picture in the drama of God's mercy triumphs over sin, love that overcomes death and the faithfulness of God that erases the betrayal.
Who would have imagined, albeit in a dream, that God would intervene in our history in this way?
Unfortunately, for many, Jesus is really too good to be true. "If you knew the gift of God and who it is that saith to thee: Dammi da bere!” (Gv 4,10).