Gospel (Lk 9,18-22) - One day Jesus was in a lonely place praying. The disciples were with him and he asked them this question: "Who do the crowds say that I am?" They replied: «John the Baptist; others say Elijah; others one of the ancient prophets who has risen." Then he asked them: "But who do you say that I am?". Peter replied: "The Christ of God." He strictly ordered them not to tell anyone about it. «The Son of man – he said – must suffer greatly, be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the scribes, be killed and be resurrected on the third day».

The commentary on the Gospel by Monsignor Vincenzo Paglia

Peter's profession of faith marks a turning point in the evangelical narratives: he prepares the beginning of Jesus' journey to Jerusalem. Luke does not specify the place where the scene takes place (Mark and Matthew place it in Caesarea Philippi), but places it in a horizon of prayer, a scene that is frequently repeated in the third Gospel. The evangelist seems to want to describe the moment in which the Christian community gathers for common prayer: it is an indispensable time to experience a personal encounter with Jesus. On that occasion Jesus asks the disciples what people think of him. Jesus feels that group as his family, as those who concretely carry out his preaching. This is why he wants to know what they also think of him. Obviously it is not a question of superficial knowledge, but of the knowledge that flows from faith. Peter, on behalf of everyone, responds: "The Christ of God". It is a solemn profession. Truly Peter is the first, the one who professes the true faith on behalf of all. He stands before us so that each of us can respond with the same words to the question that Jesus continues to ask us too: "But who do you say that I am?". It is not an abstract question, as if we were faced with a catechism text. It is Jesus himself who asks our minds and hearts to understand and love him as our Savior, as the one who frees us from sin and death. The secret about his person that Jesus imposes on his disciples is not to hide themselves, but so that there are no misunderstandings about his mission. For this reason it is good for knowledge to be gradual. The difficulty in understanding his mission in depth emerges immediately when he adds what fate awaits him in Jerusalem. We know from the parallel passages of the Synoptics that Peter reacts negatively to these statements of Jesus. Jesus' message was clear: the indispensability of the cross to reach the resurrection. It is the mystery of the life of Jesus, that of the Church and of the disciples of all times. The victory of good over evil always passes through the way of the cross.