My Faith My Life:A Place for Episcopal Teens and Their Mentors

Way to Live: Truth
by Melissa Wigington with Betsy Crowe (age 15)

Being part of a community that promotes truthful living

Simon Peter, Jesus' disciple, gives us a great example of living a truthful life, even though he did not always tell the truth. From the day Peter met Jesus, he had been Jesus’ most vocal and passionate defender. Peter always claimed, before anyone else, that he would whatever was necessary for the cause. Jesus even called Peter "the rock” on which he would build the church (Matthew 16:18). But during their last meal together, Jesus predicted, that Peter would deny that he knew Jesus at all.

Peter was aghast. "Not me,” he said. "I will never do such a thing." When Jesus was arrested later that evening, Peter secretly followed the soldiers and Jesus. Jesus was taken inside the high priest's office; Peter tried to blend into the group outside by the fire. The situation was tense; the outlook bad. These people were out to get Jesus, and Peter was afraid.    

Now the chief priests and the whole council were looking for testimony against Jesus to put him to death; but they found none....While Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servant-girls of the high priest came by. When she saw Peter warming himself, she stared at him and said, "You also were with Jesus, the man from Nazareth." But he denied it, saying, "I do not know or understand what you are talking about." And he went out into the forecourt. Then the cock crowed. And the servant-girl, on seeing him, began again to say to the bystanders, "This man is one of them!" But again he denied it. Then after a little while the bystanders again said to Peter, "Certainly you are one of them; for you are a Galilean." But he began to curse, and he swore an oath, "I do not know this man you are talking about." At that moment the cock crowed for the second time. Then Peter remembered that Jesus had said to him, "Before the cock crows twice, you will deny me three times." And he broke down and wept (Mark 14:55, 66-72).

    
Some rock. This was Peter's moment of truth. With the second crow, Peter knew the uncomfortable truth about himself: He was afraid, and out of that fear, he had lied about his best friend. His heart broke.

But that's not the end of the story. In John's Gospel, Jesus and Peter are reconciled when Jesus returns after his resurrection. Jesus asks Peter three times, "Do you love me?" Each time, Peter answers yes. Jesus gives him three instructions in response: "Feed my lambs. Tend my sheep. Feed my sheep." He is telling Peter that even though he lied about their friendship, Peter is still the one to care for Jesus’ followers. Peter’s painful moment of truth is the high priest’s courtyard initiated his doing what Jesus hoped for—starting the church. The church became the community where Peter would be reminded of is friendship with Jesus, receive encouragement when he was fearful, and be with people helping one another live truthfully.

Someday you may have a moment of truth like Peter’s—an experience when you will feel caught by fear and feel trapped by a dilemma. But the good news is that you don’t have to face it alone. You can be part of a community of people who are committed to living truthfully.

The church is a community of people who seek to live truthfully. For Christians, how we live is closely related to what we believe. Therefore, when Christians gather for worship, we speak out beliefs about what is true right out loud: God is real. God loves humanity. We are more than the sum of our fears and doubts and mistakes. We can mess up (like Peter) and still be loved. We have hope for goodness. In many churches, central Christian beliefs are summarized in the strong words of creeds and confessions of faith that have been handed down through the centuries. Congregations often recite these ancient creeds as part of their service of worship.

People in church may not always feel full of conviction when they say the words of the creeds or prayers. But participating in the rituals of the church is valuable. Here the community testifies about its deepest beliefs and affirms its desire to live in harmony with these beliefs. By joining in, you practice bringing your mind, body, heart, and soul together. And you may find in this community people with whom you can talk honestly about the details of your own effort to live truthfully.