The Petrine Privilege (Part II)

Recently, I posted on the case for John 21 being part of the original work. Given as it was the Gospel reading for Friday Masses, it seemed a good time to revisit this text, because it is one that has many implications for the papacy.

Other texts like Matthew 16 are often cited in this regard, but John 21 has one of the strongest proofs for the ongoing role of the office of Peter in the universal Church. Even non-Catholic scholars recognize this.

Fishing, of course, wasn't just the former trade of the apostles; it represents their evangelistic mission of being "fishers of men". The unbroken net conveys unity. Elsewhere, when Jesus provides a miraculous draught of fish, the nets begin to break from the strain; here, the nets are intact.

The fact that it was Peter dragging the net ashore is a metaphor for his leadership in bringing the Church safely home to Christ, even to the shores of heaven itself. Interestingly, although the catch was so big that the disciples struggled to bring the nets aboard and that it almost sank their boat, Peter now easily drags the net ashore all by himself. The verb used to describe Peter's dragging of the net is the same one used by Jesus in John 12:32 when he says that as he is lifted up from the earth he will draw all people to himself.

By far the most puzzling aspect of the passage is the reference to the 153 fish. First of all, this is an authentic eyewitness detail. On a secondary level, many commentators have proffered various theories to explain what this number means. Most of these interpretations suggest the idea of the universality or completeness of the catch.

So, we have Peter, alone, dragging the unbroken net of a universal catch to the shores of heaven. This is clearly a reference to his position as leader of the Church on earth.

When you add to all of this the threefold charge of Jesus to Peter, "Feed my Sheep", that immediately follows, the picture is complete. Peter is singularly (in the Greek) given this responsibility to shepherd the universal Church. Keep in mind also that this is recounted in the Gospel in which Jesus describes himself as the "Good Shepherd" (John 10). Before his Ascension, Jesus reaffirms Peter's unique leadership position, passing the earthly reins of the Church to him.