St. Peter and Paul

My Brothers and sisters,
There was a wise man who said, if a finger points to the moon, look not at the finger but at the moon. That’s true. It is a stupid man who stops at the finger and who admires it, because the finger is only a medium, a tool. The moon is the importance. We have to make difference between the medium and the object; and we have to know which one is the most important of all.
Today as we celebrate the feast of St. Peter and Paul, we have to remember that they are all fingers who point to the moon. The moon is, of course, the Lord Jesus Christ. And as fingers, as medium, the two apostles had played a very, very important role in the history of the Church. That’s why we have to remember them, to honor them and to thank them for their services for the Church. They are the pillars of the Church faith. We know Jesus because of their testimony. So because of Jesus we thank them. Jesus is the most important for us.
In fact, we have many fingers and many kinds of fingers, who can point to the moon. You see, there is a short fat finger like Fr. Wasser, there is also a long thin finger like Fr. Eugene in Our Lady Parish, and also there is a good looking finger, handsome … like me. Each one has his own characteristic, each one has his plus and minus, but they have the same mission, namely: to point to the moon. We can see the same thing in the two Saints. St. Peter was not a perfect man. We know the story, once he was rebuked by Jesus, saying: Go behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle to me; and also the story of Peter’s denials. According to the History when the Emperor Nero was persecuting the Christian in Rome at the beginning of the Church history, Peter as the first Pope, run away from Rome, and then he met Jesus in apparition, taking up His cross, Jesus walked to Rome. Peter asked Him: quo vadis Domine? Where are you going Lord? Jesus answered: I am going to Rome to be crucified again because my successor runs away leaving my flock. Peter was so embarrassed that he returned to Rome and then we know how he was captured and was crucified up-side down. He felt not worthy to be crucified like Jesus his Lord.
We know also who St. Paul was before he became an apostle. He persecuted the followers of Jesus. So they were not perfect fingers and there is not a perfect finger. All the saints are ordinary human being. So you also can be a saint. Because you are also fingers at least for your family. Even though we are not perfect, Jesus used us; he is using us and he will use always. How can it be?
As a finger, we only can work well if we are connected to the Body and to the Head. As apostles the two Saints only can do their mission as far as they are connected to the Body, namely: to the Church and also connected to the Head, namely: to Jesus the Lord. Connecting to the Church means that we are in the Church or we are sent by the Church. We are part of the Church. Connecting to Jesus means that we not only know Him but we have a personal relation with Him. When Jesus asked the disciples who he was, and Peter answered: You are the Christ, the Son of the living God. Peter meant that not only he knew by heart the Name, but he experienced Jesus as Christ, as Messiah, as Son of God. I can compare my knowledge about George Bush the President and about my father in Indonesia. I know both of them, but I know Bush not in the same sense as I know my father. I have no relation with Bush. It is different with my father, I know him in the sense that I love him, I experience him.
Now when Jesus asks you: who do you say that Jesus is? You also have to answer according to your experience with Jesus, not according to anyone else, not also according to the Gospel? Gospel is the norm to justify that our experience with Jesus is right or wrong. If we say Jesus is my savior or my best friend, it’s okay. It is in accordance with the Gospel. But if we say that Jesus is only an ordinary teacher, only a man; so we are wrong. So who is Jesus in your experience? This is important because, we also will be sent as finger for others. We also have to point Jesus for our brothers and sisters. We only can do that if we have a personal experience with him, we know him in a sense that we have a special relation with Him; so our testimony about him not only according to what people said, nor according to what I’ve read or I’ve heard about Him. To be a witness for example in a court, we have to be there in the incident, we cannot be a witness because we know the case from news paper. Like St. Peter and Paul, we can experience Jesus in our life. We can have a special relation with Him in faith. When we do know Him, we can be a good finger. A good finger will not point to itself. A good finger will not point to something else but to the moon. A good finger also will not take advantage of its service. It only will feel happy if people can admire and enjoy the moon.
May the two Saints pray for us that we can continue their mission in this world for the glory of Jesus’ name and for more people can experience His salvation. Amen