Readings:

1 Kgs. 19:9a, 11-13a; Ps. 85; Rom 9:1-5; Matt. 14:22-33

I sometimes wonder how many believers resemble St. Peter—how, despite the fact that his boat was being tossed about by the waves and the wind was against him, he saw the Lord and boldly asks if he too may be given the grace to walk in the Lord’s footsteps, even if those footsteps are on water. But, St. Peter, often impetuous, as the Gospels portray him, the minute his foot touched the water, became all the more aware of his own humanity, his own shortcomings. He knew that men do not walk on water, but that did not deter him from asking. It was the wind, however, the same wind that was tossing him and the disciples about on the waves, that made him realize that he was walking where no one has ever tread before. Interestingly, the Gospel does not focus so much on the phenomenon that Peter was able to walk on water, rather, the focus is on Peter’s fear and the way he cries out, “Lord, save me!” But, nevertheless, he still walked on water, just like Jesus. And this is where faith comes into play, because those who believe in Jesus are able to do things they never would have thought possible. All they need is faith. But, Peter’s fear shook his faith, and as soon as he lets fear overshadow his faith, he begins to sink. Jesus says, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”

It is amazing how the strength of faith in Peter enables him to walk on water, yet the one threat to destroy that faith causes him to sink. That threat is doubt. And we may ask ourselves, is it any different for us? Because the minute doubt enters the equation, we loose our footing, most especially when it comes to faith. The minute someone sews a seed of doubt—we might connect this to the parable of the weeds and the wheat, how Jesus describes the wheat as believers in his word, and the weeds those who deny him—the minute a seed of doubt is sewn, we loose sight of the Lord. At such a moment, we are completely consumed with overcoming our doubt, focused entirely on that which we struggle to understand or what must be disproven. Doubt is all-consuming.

If only faith were all-consuming. Could you imagine a world full of faithful believers in Jesus Christ and the power he has given each of us through faith? How many believers would be walking on water right now? How many believers would be setting the world on fire with their faith? St. Paul reminds us that while the People of Israel were the recipients of the covenants, the law, and the promises, Christ is over all. And St. Peter tells us that God shows no impartiality. In other words, the gift of faith is available for all people. But, just because someone challenges our faith, or attempts to make us question our faith; just because we sometimes cannot understand, does that make our faith untrue? If the sun shines during the day and someone closes the blinds, does the sun not shine?

The ultimate thrust of our Gospel today is overcoming the seeds of doubt. One of the ways we overcome our doubt is to do what St. Peter did and ask the Lord to give us the ability: “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” Not only that, but when we falter, when we are afraid, when we begin to sink, to call upon to Lord as Peter did, saying, “Lord, save me!” We might even use this passage as a powerful formula for prayer: First, to have faith in Jesus; second, to ask him for what we need; third, to trust that he will save us when we falter; most importantly, to recognize, as the disciples did, that Jesus Christ truly is the Son of God. Then we may say along with St. Paul, “I can do all things through him who strengthens me” (Phil. 4:13, NRSV). May we all continue to be blessed by the gift of faith in Jesus, and may our celebration of the Eucharist, the reception of the Most Blessed Sacrament, cast aside all doubt and continually unite us to the source of our faith.

Given during the COVID-19 pandemic.