Who Do You Say I Am?

Shakespeare and Jesus. It was the 19th century British essayist, Charles Lamb, who snatched the 17th century playwright William Shakespeare from his undeserved obscurity, returning him to the limelight of fame. Charles Lamb was once involved in a discussion on the question, who is the greatest literary genius of all time? Two names finally emerged: William Shakespeare and Jesus of Nazareth.  Lamb put an end to the debate when he said: “I’ll tell you the difference between these two men.  If Shakespeare walked into this room right now, we would all rise to greet him, but if Christ came in, we would all fall down and worship.” There is the essential difference between the Man from Nazareth and all other great people you can think of. Jesus Christ is God, and all others, no matter what their deeds, are but fools strutting on the stage for a brief time and then exiting. Today’s gospel describes who Jesus really is and the unique conditions for Christian discipleship