I let the disciples rejoice in this revelation. I rejoiced, also. They had been faithful to me even before I revealed my identity. So, their great surprise was also my great joy. Quickly, however, I had to address the full reality. I would be a suffering Messiah who would gain his glory by a very cruel death after horrendous suffering.

So, I told them that I would have to suffer. Poor Peter, filled with the Father’s wisdom one moment and then filled with his own ignorance the next. Peter protested that this would never happen to me. I had to correct him on the spot. The rock of my Church had quickly become a stumbling block to the others. “Get behind me, Satan.” He was not longer speaking the revelation of God but his own foolish wisdom.

This episode ended an important moment in their formation. They knew that I was the Messiah and that I would suffer. The whole matter was set aside. We had to return to the crowds.