Calvin Synod Herald, 2011 (112. évfolyam, 3-12. szám)
2011-03-01 / 3-4. szám
CALVIN SYNOD HERALD 7 Peter’s Retrospective When I look back on the days we walked with him there are so many events and various words that tumble around in my mind, all jumbled up. All keep what has been repeated, written down, and passed around among his followers is only a fraction of what he said and did. But certain moments stand out in my mind. I reflect on them every day. I meditate on them. I remember as if it were yesterday when he came walking by the lake shore. My brother, Andrew, and I were gathering up the nets to repair them after a night of fishing. The fish were safely to market. And he said those inviting, fateful words: “Andrew, Cephas, come. Follow me.” We said, “But sir, we’re tied up in the fishing enterprise.” He did not hesitate. He just looked at us with those gentle, piercing eyes, and replied, “Come follow me! I’ll cause you to fish for men and women, boys and girls.” And in due course we went. It’s not as if we chose. More as if we were chosen. More as if we were metal fragments drawn to a magnet. We laid aside everything and went with him. And that made all the difference. Life was never the same. And there was another day. It stands out brilliantly. We twelve had been with him (undergirded by the financial support of the women) for some time. Though he did some remarkable things, we had grown used to him. In appearance he didn’t seem much different than any of the rest of us. When we moved about most paid us small attention, if any. Then that day he asked me to come with him along with James and John. We climbed to a high place. And then it happened. Dazzling brightness! He in the midst. Then came the vision of Moses, our lawgiver, and Elijah, our prophet, standing with him in a brightness like 10,000 suns. It was overwhelming. When I opened my mouth I babbled. In that moment he did not look like just one of us. No. He looked... I can’t find any other word-heavenly. I wanted to stay there permanently. I told him so. He gave me a quizzical glance and said there were hurts to heal down below where people lived. On another occasion he asked, “Who do people say I am? What do you hear?” Andrew said, “Elijah, come to us again.” Philip said, “John, the Baptizer, revived.” Someone else replied, “One of the prophets.” Then I said, “You are Messiah. The expected One of God come to set the people free.” Again, he did not hesitate. He said, “This is a revelation, Cephas. Not your own insight. And on the foundation of this witness I will build my community of faith.” Then he said that in order to fulfill his prophetic destiny, he had to go to Jerusalem at Passover. I knew the authorities hated him and so I tried to dissuade him from going. To which he said, “Don’t be my tempter, Cephas. Just be one of my disciples.” I’ve been asked why I flaked out in Jerusalem when crunch time came. I’m never sure what to answer. When he was arrested, and that little maid in the courtyard asked if I were one of his friends, I lied like a tax collector. It’s not that I lack courage. You couldn’t be a fisherman on Lake Galilee and be a coward. We weeded out the men from the boys real early. But to follow one whose kingdom is not purely of this world requires something more than human courage. I just didn’t have it. That power came to me only later. First when from my own experience I believed that the grave no longer imprisoned him. And then when in prayer at the feast of Pentecost in Jerusalem the others and I received divine inspiration. Only then, when the authorities told me to cease and desist, did I have the courage that came from above. I told them, “We cannot but speak the things we have seen and heard.” I realize now that, though I was called to be his follower, I too often tried to tell him what to do. Always outspoken and a leader (He even began to call me Petros, with the firmness of a rock, but that was a faith I had not yet received.) I tried to shape him. I told him: Seek to be a popular leader. Stay on the mountain. Don’t go to Jerusalem. Don’t put yourself in mortal danger. But I didn’t understand that the cross was his destiny in a greater scheme than I could imagine. I hope that his followers who come after me down the centuries will not make my mistakes-not try to make him over in their own image, but allow themselves to be reshaped by him. That’s when it really works. That’s when the light dawns. That’s when courage and faith from above begin to work wonders in us and through us. We all have to learn that he is leader and we are followers. I just couldn’t imagine that the One I saw in dazzling light on that mountain top could be lifted up in darkness on a Roman cross. But now it’s gotten through my hard head. I just had to believe it before I could start to figure it out. If that little maid were to come to me again and say, “Have you been with him?” I would tell her, “All the time, daughter, all the time.” Rev. David B. Bowman Essential Easter Easter is what it’s ail about. No resurrection, no new hope. No new hope, no reflection on His sacrifice. No reflection, no first century church. No first century church, no new covenant. No new covenant, no mission in the world. No mission in the world, no good news. No good news and we are still at a loss, searching in pagan darkness. Rev. David B. Bowman
