Reflection delivered by retired Chief Justice Artemio V. Panganiban on June 28, 1994 [prior to his stint in the judiciary] during the Community Prayer Meeting of the Bukas Loob sa Diyos Covenant Community at the Santuario de San Antonio Parish Center, Makati City
“But you – Who do you say that I am? Luke 9:20
In the gospel reading last Sunday, June 25, 1995 (Lk. 9:18-24), Jesus asked His disciples, “Who do the crowds say that I am?” “John the Baptist, or Elijah or an ancient prophet who resurrected,” they replied. Jesus must have been amused, even if a bit disappointed, because He knew He was more than a prophet.
And then, in all seriousness, He addressed the question to them, “But you – who do you say that I am?” At the time He asked this question, Jesus was getting ready to go to Jerusalem. He also knew what fate awaited Him – to be ridiculed, to suffer and to die on the cross. Before He went, He wanted to be sure that His followers truly know who He was. If His disciples did not know, then all His work would have been fruitless.
Peter rose to the occasion and solemnly declared, “You are the Christ, the Messiah of God.” Although our Lord must have been elated at the reply, the disciples must have been bewildered and discomforted because Jesus immediately added that, “The Son of God must endure many sufferings, be rejected by the elders, the high priests and scribes, be put to death and then be raised up on the third day.” And then, He concluded, “Whoever wishes to be my follower must deny his very self, take up his cross each day and follow in my steps.”
Today, Jesus is asking us the same question. “Who do you say that I am?” Who is Jesus to each of us?
PRIEST, PROPHET AND KING
The Second Plenary Council of the Philippines (PCP II) gives us the traditional answer in these words:
“As we now look to the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, we can consider him as priest, prophet and king. He is a priest, though not of the Aaronic kind. “…we have a great high priest…., Jesus, the Son of God,” (Heb. 4:14) appointed by God himself (Heb 5:5-6). His whole life was an offering to God.
“He was a prophet. He spoke the word of God. He was in truth the word of God made flesh…
“As a prophet he announced the coming of God’s reign. He pointed to its presence in the midst of people. He called people to conversion and granted forgiveness of sins. He denounced evil and destroyed it manifestations with boldness and love.
“He was king. But He washed the feet of His own disciples. He came, not to be served, but to serve, to lay down His life as a ransom for all. The Father had given everything into His hands, but He used this power not to dominate and destroy but to give life and build up. His kingdom does not conform to the values of this world. It does not belong to this world.” -Acts and Decrees of PCP II, 57-61
Priest, prophet and king – the theological description of Jesus given by traditional catechesis. Tonight, however, we are not too interested in how our Church describes Him. In fact, we are not too concerned about how anyone else knows him. What we are interested in now is how each of us, who have had a personal encounter with Him, regard Him.
HEALER, TEACHER, SHEPHERD
To many of us who are afflicted with physical pains and incurable diseases, He is the Healer of last resort. Indeed, the Evangelist Luke, who was by profession a physician, relates that Jesus “healed all who were n need of healing.” (Lk 9:11). Matthew affirms that Jesus “cured every sickness and disease” (Mt. 9:35). He healed the incurable like the lepers (Mt. 8:1-4; Lk 17:11-19), revived the dead like Lazarus (Jn 11:1-43) and Jairus’ daughter (Mk 5:36-46). He helped even those whom He had not physically met, like the centurion’s servant (Mt. 8:5-13). He expelled demons (Mt. 8:28-34), unclean spirits (Lk 6:18) and maladies (Lk 8:2).
To some others, He is a great teacher. Jesus tirelessly expressed His ideas and visions whenever and wherever He met the crowds – in the synagogues, in houses, in boats, in the seashore, in the mountain slopes – indeed, everywhere. To His disciples, He spoke with unbending authority. And “He backed up what He said not only with deeds of power but with the incontestable testimony of His own life.” As Albert Nolan writes:
“Jesus wanted others to see what He saw and to believe what He believed. But He had no doubt about the truth of what He saw and believed…It was the unparalleled strength of His convictions which made Him say: ‘But I say to you…’ or ‘Amen, I say to you’. Jesus proclaimed the truth without hesitation… There was never any place for ‘maybe’ or ‘perhaps’; there were no ‘ifs’ and ‘buts’.”
-Albert Nolan, Christ Before Christianity, p. 123
Jesus was teacher for all men and for all time. To the weak of faith and the non-disciples, He spoke in parables. These are little stories using things that were familiar to His hearers, like the soil, vineyards, fig trees, seeds, leaven, sheep, and goats. These are stories of faith that awaken a person’s mind and help him find the compelling truth that is revealed in them.
Jesus is not only a healer or teacher. To many, He is a shepherd and protector who looks after and tends his flock. Here, Jesus assumes a paternalistic image who provides for all needs. He is a powerful warrior who defends us from our enemies. Jesus is the good shepherd who lays down His life for His sheep.
ULTIMATE JUDGE, BROTHER, FRIEND
Many of us look at Jesus in fear and awe, as our ultimate judge. In Matthew 25:31-46, Jesus describes Himself as the judge who will separate the sheep from the goats, the worthy from the unworthy – the worthy being those who gave good to the hungry, drink to the thirsty, clothing to the naked, comfort to the sick, and shelter to the homeless – out of love for God and for man. Indeed, in His glory and power and from His royal throne, He will send the goats to eternal fire and the sheep to the everlasting Kingdom.
And yet, Jesus is also pictured as a brother and bosom friend. A barkada. A comrade and chum. As He himself said to His disciples:
“I no longer speak of you as slaves, For a slave does not know what his master is about Instead, I call you friends, Since I have made known to you all That I heard from my Father.” -Jn 15:15
FAITH IS NOT AN IDEOLOGY OR EVEN A THEOLOGY
Our faith in Christ does not really consist of concepts, definitions and descriptions. It is not an ideology or even a theology. Our religion is not a set of man-made rules and commandments. Our faith is a Person, not a distant deity, but a personal God who made Himself known to us during our renewal. Our faith is Jesus who dwells in our hearts and spirits, who speaks to us, who guides us, who inspires us, who loves us more that we can ever love Him.
Yes, Jesus is a Priest, Prophet, King, Healer, Teacher, Shepherd, Judge, Brother, and Friend. This is how we regard Him from our human point of view – from our miseries, ignorance, and burdens. This is also how His disciples regarded Him. And when Peter said, “You are the Messiah of God,” he was probably thinking of their liberation from their enslavement and oppression, just as we now regard Him as a liberator from sin, afflictions, frustrations, and problems. But Jesus quickly controverted this impression as He stressed: “My disciple must deny his very self, take up his cross each and follow in my steps.” In other words, Jesus wants His followers – you, me each and all of us to imitate Him, His ways and His life. Instead of just liberating us from trials, pains, and lamentations, Jesus asks us to be like Him – to take up our cross each day and to follow His way of loving and caring.
Our prayer as mature Christians is not that God will liberate us from difficulties and burdens, but that He may give us the strength, the power, the courage, and the wisdom to understand, to fight and to overcome our difficulties, brokenness, fears, anxieties, afflictions, and torments. For it is only in conquering our sorrowful Friday that we will ever resurrect on our glorious Easter Sunday.
Our pains and afflictions as Christians are really brought about by our divine ambition to be another Christ to others. Thus, we never tire of preaching His kingdom, even if it means ridicule and embarrassment. We never tire of using our resources and possession to share the tidings of life and freedom with the marginalized and the weak. We never tire of raising our goals and our targets beyond what is achievable. We never tire of reaching for the unreachable star. We never tire of imitating the perfection of Christ – even if we can never be perfect like Him. For success in this life is not a destination but a journey of ever-increasing proportions. While yesterday, we brought the Kingdom to only one person, today we touch the lives of ten, tomorrow we will aspire to reach out to a hundred.
This is the essence of Christianity. In the beginning, we find joy in being beneficiaries of the love of God. Jesus heals us, teaches us, protects us, and loves us – in some kind of one-way paternal relationship. This is comfortable and cozy Christianity. But as we mature in Christ, we find that He really acts through us. He uses our hands, our lips, our time, our resources to reach out and to touch others. Hence, to them we become another Christ. Thru us, Jesus creates the miracle of love and healing, of mercy and protection. Indeed, Christ heals others, through the hands and intercession of spiritual healers like Father Ado. He teaches us through the tireless efforts of our community teachers. He protects us through the loving care and concern of our community.
Brothers and sisters, let me tell you a little story to show that point. Over a year ago, Leni and I received a call from a couple-friend who were our lambs in the LSS. “Pare,” pleaded the wife, “please bring Kumadre to our house this evening. We need her urgently. You see, our grandson is already one and a half years old but he is not walking yet. We have a strong leading from our Lord to ask her to pray over him. “But,” Leni protested, “I am not a healer.” Due to our Kumare’s persistence and after prayer, we went to their house that evening and dutifully prayed over and laid our hands on the child.”
Two days laer – at about 6:00 a.m. – our telephone rang. Our Kumare was ecstatic! “Pare, pare, naglalakad na si Jacko! Naglalakad na si Jacko! Hindi lang yun – tumatakbo pa!” All I could say was, ‘Praise be Jesus. Thank you for making Leni another Christ in the life of this couple and their grandson.”
As we joyfully reminisce this anecdote, we realize that it is really repeated in many ways everyday among the people of God. Truly, in His infinite wisdom and godly ways, Jesus uses His followers to create miracles in ways that continuously surprised us. And we, His disciples, marvel at His glory – but expecting daily to experience them and asking Him to reveal Himself all the more.
True indeed, there is so much to know of Him who knows everything. There is so much mystery that our limited minds cannot comprehend. Trying to know Him is like pouring the ocean on a small hole on the shore. That is what we do when our finite minds try to grasp the infinite God. And yet because we love Jesus, we want to know Him more and more. And the more He reveals Himself, the more we are attracted to Him.
In these moments of awesome encounters with Jesus, the Messiah of God, I bend my knees and say:
“Lord Jesus, I am a sinner who is thoroughly unworthy of Your compassion and attention. In my nothingness, You have given me value. Reveal Yourself more so I can love and imitate You even more. Lord, deep within my soul I want to know You, to feel Your heart and to know Your mind. This is my prayer. This is my song. Amen” Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ.
The Personal Website of Retired Chief Justice Panganiban 