Homily Jer 20: 10-13 Ps 69: 8-10, 14, 17, 33-35 Solemnity of Ss. Peter & Paul – A Rom 5: 12-15 Rev. Peter G. Jankowski Mt 10: 26-33 June 28-29, 2014

You like “potāto” and I like “potăto”; You like “tomāto” and I like “tomăto”; “Potāto,” “potăto”; “tomāto,” “tomăto”; Let’s call the whole thing off.

In 1937, George & Ira Gershwin introduced this particular song in the old Fred Astaire/Ginger Rogers movie called “Shall We Dance.” The premise to the movie and the song is a standard one – two people with very different lifestyles come together and share a common thing, in this case, the world of dance. This theme of opposites uniting has been cited in so many different venues within the world and within life itself.

Take, for instance, the world of dating. Ever since the movie “Jerry

Maguire,” couples have embraced the idea of “opposite attraction” to the point of saying to their loved one, “you complete me.” In the world of music, artists like Frank Sinatra, Aretha Franklin, Eric Clapton and

Tony Bennett have paired up with singers of other musical forms to create albums that seem to become very popular to the album-buying world. In the world of politics, Sean Hannity (the conservative

Republican) hosts a talk show with Alan Colms (a liberal Democrat) while James Carville (a democratic advisor) is married to Mary Matalin

(a republican consultant). These pairings of opposite harken to the television days of “The Odd Couple,” with one holding to one end of the political spectrum, the other purporting the other end, but both seeming to get along very well with the other.

In the world of psychology, Alfred Adler talks about the first two born in a family being generally opposites; where the first born might tend towards lifestyle “A,” the second born might consciously choose to live a lifestyle “B” just to be set apart. And in the world of sports, one priest from St. Ray’s lives the darkened life as a White Sox fan, while the much holier priests at St. Ray’s lean towards the way of your own pastor and seek the way, the truth and the light of the North Side (this

Rev. Peter G. Jankowski Page 2 Solemnity of Ss. Peter & Paul – A June 28-29, 2014 weekend, darkness has seemingly prevailed, but we all know that good will conquer evil in the end). It’s up to you to figure out which priests at

St. Ray’s are going to heaven and which one is stuck with the White Sox.

If there is a feast in the Catholic Church that highlights the life of two opposites, it would be that of St. Peter and St. Paul. Both come from very diverse lifestyles and approaches to ministry and yet worked together in a very common cause. As we know, Peter was a witness of Christ and the leader among the twelve given precedence in the scriptures. Though two books of the New Testament are attributed to his names, it was unlikely that he wrote those books. Peter’s claim to fame was in the world of administration. We know that Peter was an outspoken man, someone who was noted for putting his foot in his mouth often in the scriptures but was a fierce and loyal follower of our Lord. We know that a great deal of his ministry took place in Rome. In subsequent years the

Church accepted his position as the primary leader, or pope of the faith, the person who is seen as the most prominent vessel for Christ in the life

Rev. Peter G. Jankowski Page 3 Solemnity of Ss. Peter & Paul – A June 28-29, 2014 of the Church. And when Peter died, he chose not to be crucified in the normal way; he chose to be crucified upside down. Peter did not feel that his death was worthy enough to parallel that of the Lord.

On the other hand, we recognize St. Paul as more of an evangelist and a scribe than as an administrator. Scholars tell us that of the 13 letters attributed to his name in the scriptures, seven of them can be proven to be written by him or someone to whom he dictated. Paul was of both Jewish and Greek origin, which played a significant role in his ministry to the Gentiles, who were, at the time, considered outcasts of the true faith. In the first Council of the Church in the city of Jerusalem,

Paul successfully defended the rights of the Gentiles in their faith practices. It is from Paul’s defense of the faith that we all understand the entry way to the life of God – it is through faith that we are introduced to this gift of God. It is because of St. Paul’s defense of the Gentile faith that most all of us in the Church were welcomed into the life of salvation.

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We also learn from St. Paul that he and St. Peter did not see eye to eye on various issues. In his Book to the Galatians, St. Paul berates Peter

(and pretty much everyone else) because of their lack of faith. Paul berates Peter for not standing up for the Gentile population in public, though Peter was very supportive of them in more private settings. Paul challenged Peter’s leadership abilities and often put himself in the forefront of the world of Church administration. And when Paul died, because he was considered a member of the Gentile community, he chose not to be crucified at all, preferring to be beheaded, considered a more lenient form of execution at the time.

So why in her infinite wisdom did the Church choose to put these two opposites together on the same feast day, this great solemnity of St.

Peter & Paul? I suppose the answer lies in the same realm of why two opposites live in the same house or two very different people share in the same dance. The answer falls into the realm of love. In the world of love, it is our differences that complement and challenge the others who

Rev. Peter G. Jankowski Page 5 Solemnity of Ss. Peter & Paul – A June 28-29, 2014 associate with us so that we might learn and grow together. As Paul writes in 1 Corinthians, the body is made of many parts and we are all called to learn and appreciate the parts of the body. Peter & Paul may have been different in their talents and approaches to the faith, but they shared in the same faith and were willing to sacrifice their lives for the sake of it. Because of their unique devotions to the faith, they both became the two most prominent apostles of the first century.

And on this particular day throughout the world, Pope Benedict XVI has promulgated a special year of grace in honor of St. Paul the Apostle in honor of the 2000th anniversary of his entry into the world. At the

Vatican, the Holy Father inaugurated the year with a special Mass in the saint’s honor, while bestowing a special garment called a pallium to all the new Archbishops that have been named this past year throughout the world. Here in the Diocese of Joliet, Bishop Peter Sartain inaugurates this special year with a Mass at St. Paul’s Church in Joliet, installing Fr.

Greg Rothfuchs as the church’s new pastor on this special day. And

Rev. Peter G. Jankowski Page 6 Solemnity of Ss. Peter & Paul – A June 28-29, 2014 throughout the world, special celebrations and days of prayer are being offered in honor of this Jewish-Gentile man who brought the grace of

God into a foreign territory and made it possible for us in the pews to find salvation.

I would like to conclude today’s homily with a special prayer offered by the Vatican in St. Paul’s honor in this inaugural year. These words very easily could apply to St. Peter and every saint who models their life after the life of Christ. May we learn, through the talents we have been given, to live the charism offered in this most holy prayer:

Most zealous Apostle, Martyr for the love of Christ, Give us a deep faith, a steadfast hope, A burning love for our Lord so that we can proclaim with you ‘It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.’ Help us to become apostles serving the Church with a pure heart; Witnesses to her truth and beauty amidst the darkness of our days. With you we praise God our Father ‘To Him be the Glory in the Church and in Christ Now and for ever.’ Amen.

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¡Oh glorioso San Pablo!, Apóstol lleno de celo, Mártir por amor a Cristo, intercede para que obtengamos una fe profunda, una esperanza firme, un amor ardiente al Señor para que podamos decir contigo: “No soy yo el que vive, sino es Cristo quien vive en mí”. Ayúdanos a convertirnos en apóstoles que sirvan a la Iglesia con una consciencia pura testigos de su verdad y de su belleza en medio a la obscuridad de nuestro tiempo. Alabamos junto contigo a Dios nuestro Padre, « A Él la gloria, en la Iglesia y en Cristo por los siglos de los siglos.» Amén.

This is our prayer.

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