Bishop Enrique Díaz Díaz shares with Exaudi readers his reflection on the Gospel of this Sunday, June 22, 2025, entitled:  “They will look on him whom they have pierced.”

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Zechariah 12:10-11; 13:1:  “They will look on him whom they have pierced.”

Psalm 62:  “Lord, my soul thirsts for you”

Galatians 3:26-29:  “As many as were baptized into Christ have clothed themselves with Christ.”

Luke 9, 18-24:  “But you, who do you say that I am?”

We all have important moments in our lives that transform them, fill them with meaning, and change our minds and hearts. In the life of Jesus’ disciples, there is a crucial moment. After contemplating the miracles He performed, when they have heard His words and are walking with Him on the road to Jerusalem, Jesus creates a very special atmosphere, “a moment of company, in a solitary place, while praying,” and asks them two fundamental questions: “Who do people say I am?” and “Who do you say I am?” These are questions that cannot be answered lightly, but rather involve life itself. Two questions are asked of the people we love and who love us.

That’s why Jesus doesn’t ask them at any moment: Jesus has prepared for his disciples an atmosphere of intimacy in the presence of his Father God, because all questions about the kingdom are important, but there are questions that are essential and demand serious and committed answers. They are contemplating him in his “being face to face with the Father,” as a Son in intimacy. They have been granted to see what “the people” don’t see. From this vision comes knowledge that goes beyond “the opinion” of “the people,” it inspires a faith and a confession that will encourage them in their following. This passage from the Gospel has always sounded to me like a review, a moment to stop and see how things are going. It’s practically halfway through the Gospel of Luke, and Jesus asks these two questions that are like a survey, like a poll, not about superficial things, but about what is most important in our hearts. And it’s clear that Jesus’ answer didn’t leave him entirely convinced, although in the end he heard what he expected.

It’s always easier to respond to what others say than to open one’s heart to reveal what lies within. Common opinions, those that are not binding, those sustained by tradition and constitute public opinion, are instantly answered. It’s evident that “the people” have a favorable opinion of Jesus, but a very distant and impersonal one. They perceive Him with the same Old Testament signs and don’t dare to establish a close, personal relationship with Him. Jesus doesn’t allow Himself to be pigeonholed into these concepts. For Him, what matters is a personal encounter, a determined commitment, unconditional friendship, and unwavering love. It’s a question to the heart that cannot be evaded, and to which Peter, on behalf of the disciples, answers: “The Messiah of God.” A real answer? An answer spoken from the heart? Technically and theologically, any scholar would endorse it, but that answer still has a lot of impersonality, and Christ wants true friends who are willing to follow Him. He never tells Peter he’s wrong; He doesn’t reproach him, but He broadens his myopic vision. He is certainly “the Messiah,” “the anointed one,” of God, but not in the sense the people longed for, of a salvation that comes almost miraculously from heaven. Jesus shows Peter and his other disciples the way to achieve that salvation and complete liberation. First, he reveals to them the path he will follow, one of rejection and suffering, but also of resurrection, and then he invites them to be his faithful followers.

Today, Jesus asks us about our faith and our lives, not about appearances. It is easier to follow precepts, which ultimately do not alter our lives, than to truly fall in love and allow the Gospel to permeate our lives and even question our certainties. It is easier to respond by rote, like a parrot, that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, than to seriously consider our Christian faith. We are rarely capable of giving up our money or our time to build a more just and equitable world. We have created a religion in our own way, for fear of truly committing ourselves. Many people are scandalized and turn away from God when they contemplate us. Will we be capable of truly being witnesses, martyrs, of Jesus Christ, as Peter later was? To follow Jesus Christ, we must deny ourselves and take up our cross. Each of us has our own…

A great thinker, contemplating Christians, once said: “You don’t need to tell us who Jesus is for you; others will notice it by your way of being and living.” Settling for facile answers—”Jesus is my friend,” “Jesus was born in Bethlehem,” or “Jesus died on the cross”—is not enough. We need an experience of encountering Jesus; we need to assimilate and live his love. The day our desires, attitudes, work, and ideals are pierced by the figure and word of Jesus, we will be able to discover that Christ is, above all, the one who shapes and gives essence to our lives. We will understand the words of Saint Paul, who assures us that we “have put on Christ.” And that is not something we say; it is first lived. Let it remain in our hearts today to respond with all seriousness, with all commitment, to the question that Jesus asks us today as well: “And you, who do you say that I am?”

Today, Lord Jesus, I want you to be for me the hope that drives me to work for your Kingdom, the faith that helps me always feel you present, the hope that encourages me in my discouragement, the love that teaches me to deny myself in order to give the best of myself. Amen.