Poor Peter. He has just, moments before, been made the Rock of the Church, the one to guide his brother Apostles and all the disciples in this new endeavor of God’s Kingdom on Earth. Yet, as we all so often do, he stumbles right out of the gate. It’s impossible to put ourselves in God’s shoes, to think as God thinks, but let’s put ourselves in Peter’s shoes.

The Shoes of the fisherman

Peter was a fisherman. He would’ve worn rugged, leather sandals with hard soles and leather bindings. They would’ve been made by hand, and would’ve been perpetually caked with dust, dirt, and mud. They probably looked the same way my hiking shoes look after a day on the trails! 

Furthermore, I probably would have reacted the same way Peter did!