"When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Feed my lambs.'" (John 21:15)
This is a common text used by the Romanists to argue that Christ gave the Apostle Peter the power of universal jurisdiction and supreme authority over the universal church. In this article, I will present some material which refutes that claim.
#1 - Scriptural Meaning of "Feed"
The words used for "feed" in this verse are βόσκω and ποιμαίνω. The question is whether this verse signifies not only ministerial duties (preaching, etc.) but also ecclesiastical rule, which is the assertion of the Papists. I will give other examples of how this term is used which show that "feeding" is ascribed to others besides Peter:
"Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care (ποιμαίνειν) for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood." (Acts 20:28)
"But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready." (1 Corinthians 3:1-2)
"Who serves as a soldier at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard without eating any of its fruit? Or who tends (ποιμαίνει) a flock without getting some of the milk?" (1 Corinthians 9:7)
"Shepherd (ποιμάνατε) the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly;" (1 Peter 5:2)
Concerning the meaning and nuances of ποιμαίνω, BDAG (on pg. 683) cites 1 Peter 5:2 and John 21:16 as having the same meaning of "tend" or "feed".
#2 - The Testimony of the Church Fathers
The famous encyclical Satis Cognitum cites the Ambrose and John Chrysostom (among others) as being proof for the Roman interpretation of this verse in John 21:15. We will examine those 2 fathers first, and then look at some other material.
The following passage is cited from Chrysostom:
"‘Why has He shed His blood? To buy the sheep which He handed over to Peter and his successors" (On the Priesthood, Book 2)
In the context of this quotation, Chrysostom is speaking to none other than Basil the Great (whose opinions on this text will be made clear in a moment). We see elsewhere in this same section of Chrysostom, that Basil is viewed as a successor the Apostle Peter:
"Will you, then, still contend that you were not rightly deceived, when you are about to superintend the things which belong to God, and are doing that which when Peter did the Lord said he should be able to surpass the rest of the apostles, for His words were, Peter, do you love me more than these?
" (https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/19222.htm)
"That is, you, as Bishop, have the same office as that committed to St. Peter by the words, Feed My sheep, and so are one of his successors." (Edward Denny, Papalism, pg. 67)
And yet elsewhere, we see that Chrysostom did not interpret John 21 in the way that Satis Cognitum does. Note the following words:
Peter, do you love me,
says He; Feed my sheep:
John 21:15-17 and having asked him a third time, declared this to be an infallible proof of love. But not to priests only is this said, but to every one of us also, who are also entrusted with a little flock. For do not despise it, because it is a little flock: For my Father,
He says, has pleasure in them.
Luke 12:32 Each of us has a sheep, let him lead that to the proper pastures." (Homily 77 on the Gospel of Matthew)
We will now move on to Ambrose, the bishop of Milan. Here is the passage cited in Satis Cognitum:
"The Lord does not hesitate. He interrogates, not to learn but to teach. When He was about to ascend into heaven, He left us, as it were, a vicegerent of His love...and so because Peter alone of all others professes his love, he is preferred to all—that being the most perfect he should govern the more perfect’ (Ambrose, Exposit. in Evang. secundum Lucam, Book 10)
However, when we look at Ambrose's comments on this text elsewhere in his writings, a very different picture emerges than what is given by the Romanists:
"The honour and sublimity of the Episcopate can be equalled by no comparisons; certainly it was said by the Lord to blessed Peter, ‘Peter, lovest thou Me?’ and he said, ‘Lord, Thou knowest that I love Thee’; and when he had been asked three times and had replied with a triple answer, it was repeated three times by our Lord, ‘Feed My sheep,’ etc., which sheep and which flock not only then did blessed Peter receive but also with him all we received" (Ambrose, De Dignitate Sacerdotali, c. I, in PL 17:569)
Here are further testimonies from the ancient fathers that this text was not viewed in the same way as Roman Catholicism views it today:
‘What was commended to Peter, what was enjoined to Peter, not Peter alone, but also all the other Apostles heard and held preserved, and most of all the partner of his death and of his day, the Apostle Paul. They heard that and transmitted it for our hearing; we feed you, we are fed together with you...Therefore hath the Lord commended His sheep to us because He commended them to Peter.’ (Augustine, Sermon 216, in PL 38:1354)
"And, we are taught this by Christ Himself constituting Peter pastor after Himself of the Church, for “Peter,” saith He, “dost thou love Me more than these? Feed My sheep.” And conferring on all pastors and teachers thenceforward the same equal authority, it is a sign that all in like manner bind and loose." (Basil the Great, Constitutiones Monasticae, 22.5; in PG 31:1410)
No comments:
Post a Comment