Strange Rainbow Coincidence Over Pope Francis’ Hospital 

Rainbow in the sky above Gemelli hospital where the pope is being treated for pneumonia and other ailments. 

The rainbow was considered a divine, covenantal sign given by God to Noah and to all who accept the bible as divinely revealed. The rainbow was set in the sky after the flood as a sign that God would never again use a flood to punish the wicked people of the earth.

As the Church prays for the ailing Holy Father, the universal readings are currently being taken from year C in the lectionary.

Yesterday the rainbow appeared and today, at daily mass, the first reading is taken from Genesis 9:1-13, we read in part,

“God said to Noah…I will establish my covenant with you,

that never again shall all bodily creatures be destroyed

by the waters of a flood; there shall not be another flood to devastate the earth.”

God added: “This is the sign that I am giving for all ages to come,

of the covenant between me and you

and every living creature with you:

I set my bow in the clouds to serve as a sign

of the covenant between me and the earth.”

That’s an interesting coincidence. But it gets even stranger when we get to the Gospel of the day. Today’s gospel is about Peter, the first pope, answering Jesus’ question, “Who do you say that I am?”. Peter got it right when he said, “you are the Christ”. 

Unlike Matthew’s gospel where Peter is then given accolades and praise by Jesus, as well as the keys of the kingdom, today’s gospel reading is quite different. 

Mark doesn’t mention the keys of the kingdom or the name change to ‘rock’. Instead, it mentions that Jesus rebuked Peter calling him ’satan’ for thinking not as God does but as men do. 

Jesus and his disciples set out

for the villages of Caesarea Philippi.

Along the way he asked his disciples,

“Who do people say that I am?”

They said in reply,

“John the Baptist, others Elijah,

still others one of the prophets.”

And he asked them,

“But who do you say that I am?”

Peter said to him in reply,

“You are the Christ.”

 

Then he warned them not to tell anyone about him.

He began to teach them

that the Son of Man must suffer greatly

and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes,

and be killed, and rise after three days.

He spoke this openly.

Then Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.

At this he turned around and, looking at his disciples,

rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan.

You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.” 

Let’s keep praying for Peter's 266th successor, Pope Francis.