Too often we can be tempted to view God as an oppressive slave master, or even a demanding father, who doesn't really care about us or our lives.
Yet, time and time again God uses terminology that puts us in a more intimate relationship with him, calling us his sons and daughters, but also his "friends."
This relationship is put into focus on the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul, where the text of the Mass reiterates this point in the opening antiphon:
These are the ones who, living in the flesh,
planted the Church with their blood;
they drank the chalice of the Lord
and became the friends of God.
Friends of God
St. John Paul II highlighted this aspect of Sts. Peter and Paul's lives in a homily he delivered in 2003. He explained the importance of this phrase:
Friends of God! The word "friends" is particularly eloquent when we think that it was spoken by Jesus at the Last Supper: "No longer do I call you servants...", he said, "but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you" (Jn 15: 15).
Jesus does not want slaves or servants, but friends, who will walk with him and imitate his life.
St. John Paul II further explained how much the two saints share with each other:
Peter and Paul were "friends of God" in a unique way, for they had drunk the cup of the Lord. Jesus changed the names of both when he called them to his service: to Simon he gave the name Cephas, that is, "rock", hence Peter; He gave Saul the name of "Paul", which means "little one."
Jesus invited both of them into a more intimate friendship with himself, not only encountering them, but even naming them.
It's a reminder that Jesus calls us all into a similar friendship. He wants each of us to not associate with him in a cold, disconnected way, but in a way where we are confident and peaceful in his presence.
Jesus wants to be at our side, and the lives of Sts. Peter and Paul show us that even when we are unfaithful to God, he remains faithful and forgives all of our sins.
