Why Popes hold keys of the kingdom

Fr. Vincent Hawkswell

This Sunday’s Readings present Christ as the King. In fact, He is “the Ruler of the kings of the earth,” for “to Him was given dominion and glory and kingship, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that shall not pass away, and His kingship is one that shall never be destroyed.” Jesus acknowledged to Pilate that He is a King, but explained that His kingdom is not of this world.

However, even on the human level, Jesus had a claim to be a king. According to the prophecies of the Old Testament, the Messiah, the Saviour, the One Who would restore the Kingdom of Israel, would be a descendant of David, Israel’s second king.

For example, two centuries before Christ, the prophet Isaiah had foretold that the House of David would be laid waste, but that “a shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse,” David’s father, “and from his roots a bud shall blossom,” and he had gone on to describe what the Messiah and His kingdom would be like.

Shortly afterward, the Lord had said to King Ahaz of Judah, “Listen, O house of David! The Lord Himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall be with child, and bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel,” which means “God-with-us.”

All the Jews of Jesus’s time knew that the Messiah would be of the House of David. That is why, when Jesus asked the Pharisees “What is your opinion about the Messiah? Whose son is He?” they answered, “David’s.” That is why Matthew started his Gospel with “a family record of Jesus Christ, son of David.” That is why those who believed that Jesus was the Messiah addressed Him as “Son of David,” while those who were not sure asked, “Might not this be David’s son?”

Upon this rock

When Jesus asked His disciples Who people were saying that He was, Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” In His reply, Jesus accepted this title.

“Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah,” He said, “for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My heavenly Father. And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.

“I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”

Now these words are strikingly similar to those of a passage in the Old Testament, in which God told the prophet Isaiah to go to Shebna, master of the palace, and tell Him, “I will thrust you from your office and pull you down from your station. On that day I will summon my servant Eliakim, son of Hilkiah: I will clothe him with your robe, and gird him with your sash, and give over to him your authority. He shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to the house of Judah.

“I will place the key of the House of David on his shoulder; when he opens, no one shall shut; when he shuts, no one shall open.”

The Hebrew word which is here translated as “master” is translated in other places as “regent” or “vizier.” For example, we read that because King Uzziah was a leper, “his son Jotham was regent of the palace and ruled the people of the land.”

This office of regent, or king’s representative, also existed in other countries of the ancient Near East. For example, the Egyptian Pharaoh put Joseph in charge of his palace and added, “Only in respect to the throne shall I outrank you.”

King’s authority

The holder of the keys, the master of the palace, was a ruler with authority: when “he opens, no one shall shut, when he shuts, no one shall open.” However, his authority had to be exercised in accordance with the king’s will; he was the king’s agent or mouthpiece.

Clearly, Isaiah took this for granted; otherwise he would have said, “When he shuts, no one shall open except for the king.”

Eliakim was officially made master of the palace by the transfer to him of the key of the House of David. Now when this particular transfer was made, King David had been dead many years. The keys must have been transferred many times in the interval.

However, through all the transfers, with all the numerous incumbents, the office of the key holder or master of the palace had continued to exist.

All this must have been in the minds of the apostles when Jesus gave Peter the keys of His kingdom. Not only did they recognize Jesus as King, but they also, from then on, must have recognized Peter as Jesus’s representative: His regent, vicar, or vizier.

When Jesus withdrew from them at His Ascension, they must have turned immediately to Peter as the one who would now exercise Jesus’s kingly authority, who would speak in His name.

Moreover, they would naturally choose a successor to fill Peter’s office when Peter died. That procedure has been followed ever since Christ: Pope Benedict XVI is Peter’s 264th successor.

In this Sunday’s Gospel Acclamation, we say, “Blessed is He Who inherits the kingdom of David, our father; blessed is He Who comes in the name of the Lord.” As we say it, let us remember that recognizing Jesus as King of heaven entails recognizing the Pope, His prime minister, as one who speaks with His authority.