In our everyday life, we often look to God for answers. We bring Him our prayers, our confusion, and our requests, waiting for His voice to direct our path. If we closely examine the Gospels, we notice something interesting and profound about the pedagogy of Jesus: He was not a teacher who simply handed out answers. Instead, He was a Master who asked questions. Nowhere is this more evident than in His relationship with Saint Peter. Jesus asked questions not because He lacked information, but because He desired transformation. He used the question as a tool to prune Peter’s pride, stretch his vision, and ultimately, grow and mature his faith.
Think first of that stormy night on the Sea of Galilee. Peter steps out of the boat and walks on water. But the moment he focuses on the wind, he sinks. Jesus catches him and asks, “Why did you doubt?” That is a great question to ponder in our own lives? A mature Catholic faith isn’t one that never experiences a storm; it is one that learns where to look during the storm. Jesus asks us, “Why did you doubt?” to reveal the fragility of our self-reliance. Jesus invites us to step out of our comfort zones, to do amazing things in response to His calling. With God, all things are possible. We need to recognize that whenever we sink, His hand is already outstretched in His Word, the Sacraments, the community of the Baptized, and the Eucharist.
Later, after the storm, in the quiet of Caesarea Philippi, Jesus poses the ultimate question, that of identity: “Who do you say that I am?” It was easy for Peter to repeat what the crowds were saying—that Jesus was John the Baptist or Elijah. It is easy for us to say what society or the culture say about Jesus, or even what our parents or catechists taught us. It is easy to follow a false Christ, one that I’ve concocted myself, who doesn’t invite me out of the boat, who doesn’t invite me to be transformed by grace. But a faith that remains passive cannot survive and thrive. Jesus forces Peter to make a personal claim. When Peter responds, “You are the Christ,” Jesus names him the Rock. A mature faith requires us to look Jesus in the eye and answer that question for ourselves. He is not just a historical figure or a moral teacher or spiritual “guru;” He must be our personal Lord and Savior, anchoring us in the truth of His One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church.
Finally, after the heartbreak of Good Friday, where Peter denied the Lord three times, Jesus stands on the shore of the Resurrection. He doesn’t lecture Peter. He doesn’t demand an apology. He simply asks three times: “Do you love me?” With each question, Jesus heals a wound in Peter’s heart. He shows us that spiritual maturity is never about being perfect; it is about being restored by love. But notice what follows the question every single time: “Feed my lambs. Tend my sheep.” Jesus shows us that our love for Him cannot remain a private feeling. It must turn outward into service, into our family, parish life, into charity, and into building up the Mystical Body of Christ.
Note well, when Peter is featured in the Gospels, he is certainly “the Apostle” called by Christ, but he is also the Church. Where Peter is the Church is and where the Church is we are. Christ questions us, all of us, like Peter.
By now, many of you have looked at or even answered the questions put forward for the parish and diocesan assemblies. The questions -What do we do well? What can we improve? What should we start doing and what should we stop doing? What do I need from the Church? – presume that we’ve taken time over the years to wrestle with and answer the deeper and more pointed questions. The same questions Jesus asked of Peter he poses to us as individuals, families, and communities of Faith: Why do you doubt? Who do you say that I am? Do you love me?
Inaugurating the “pastoral evaluation” of the Diocese of Rome a few weeks ago, Pope Leo XIV convoked a diocesan assembly. Hundreds of the baptized gathered at the Lateran Basilica. The Holy Father had this to say about questions: “The heart of the method that I am proposing to you is, however, a very simple question: ‘why?’ It is a matter of pausing together and asking ourselves, for everything we do: why do we do it? What Gospel-inspired intention drives us? What real need are we seeking to meet? In what way does this choice correspond to the mission of the Church?” At the heart of his questions, the Holy Father asks, “Lord, where are you?” Where is Jesus in all that we do? Are we serving Him and His mission? Are we ready to step out of the comfort of our proverbial boats?
“Pastoral evaluation” is the shared method of discernment proposed by Pope Leo XIV to help dioceses and parishes examine their ministries. This is not a new initiative or pastoral program. It is rather a process of pausing to reflect on what has been done, recognizing what has been successful and what has borne fruit, identifying what has not gone well, and communally identifying the reasons why. More than a strategy for pastoral planning or a method of measuring efficiency and effectiveness, it is a time to take stock of our relationship with the Lord and our response to His call to discipleship and mission.
Do not be afraid when the Holy Spirit stirs questions in your heart. Do not fear the moments when your faith is challenged. Christ is asking you today: Why are you afraid? Who am I to you? Do you love me? Let us allow His questions to break open our hearts, so that like Saint Peter, we may grow from fragile fishermen into courageous disciples, witnesses of the Gospel.
Let Jesus question you, even interrogate you! Challenge you! So, to revive us! Refresh us! And make us new!
