The Great Commentary of Cornelius a Lapide: S. John
Secondly — this is plain from the word feed , i.e. rule, as I have shown, and from the terms lambs and sheep, for by these words Christ signifies all the members of the Church as it were subject to Himself, the chief Shepherd, for He excepts no one. They therefore who are the sheep of Christ, are likewise the sheep of Peter, for Christ here commits them to him, to be fed and ruled. They therefore who are not Peter’s sheep — namely, heretics — neither are they the sheep of Christ. So all the other Apostles, forasmuch as they were Christ’s sheep, so likewise are they also Peter’s sheep.
From whence it was Peter’s right to direct them, to compose their differences, and to govern them in all things. For Christ instituted the most excellent government in His Church, that is the monarchic, both that there might be one Church, and that occasions of schism might be cut off, as S. Cyprian teaches in his book on the unity of the Church. “ The primacy,” he says, “ is given to Peter, to show that there is one Church of Christ and one chief See;” and S. Jerome says, “ Among twelve, one is chosen, that unity might be preserved.” Hear also S. Leontius (Ser. 3, de Assum.) : “ From the whole world, one Peter is chosen, who is set over the Church, called out of all nations, and over all the Apostles, and all the Fathers of the Church, that although there be in the people of God many priests and many pastors, still Peter may rightly rule all whom Christ also rules in the chief place. A great and wonderful association in His own power, beloved brethren, the Divine condescension gave to this man, and if He wished that anything should be common with him to the other princes of the church, He only gave through him that which He denied not to the rest.”
Hear likewise S. Bernard (L. 3, de Consid. to Pope Eugen : towards the end) : “ They,” i.e. bishops, “ have each their own flocks assigned to them, to thee all have been entrusted, — one shepherd for one flock ; nor art thou only the one shepherd of all the sheep, but of all the shepherds. Do you ask how I prove this ? — from the word of the Lord : for to whom were absolutely and without distinction all the sheep — I say not merely of Bishops, but of Apostles, committed? ‘If thou lovest Me, O Peter, feed My sheep ; ’ which ? — the people of this or that city or region or kingdom ? ‘ My sheep,’ He saith : to what man is it not plain that He did not indicate some only, but assigned all? Nothing is excepted where no distinction is made ; ” and ( III Cap . Solit. De Major . et Obed .) he says, “ Now to us the sheep of Christ were committed through Blessed Peter, as the Lord saith, ‘ Feed my sheep,’ making no distinction between these sheep and others, that He might show that that sheep-fold which did not recognise Peter and his successors as pastors and masters, did not belong to Him.” See what has been said on S. Matt. xvi. ; see also Bellarmine, who teaches that Christ, by this precept which He gave to Peter, saying, “ Feed My sheep,” at the same time founded the Popedom as the Ecclesiastical Head, and gave it to S. Peter and his successors the Bishops of Rome. In chap. xiv. de Pont., he proves that these words were spoken by Christ to Peter only. In chap. xv. he proves that the word —feed — signifies government and power of ruling . In chap. xvi. that sheep signify all the faithful, even the Apostles, and the whole Church : all which things Calvin, Luther, and the heretics deny.
From this passage theologians generally, and especially Suarez on Indulgences , show that the power of granting Indulgences was given to Peter and the Pontiffs who succeed him. For under that word— feed — is included every act of jurisdiction which may pertain to shutting or opening the kingdom of heaven, that so the gift may be equal to the promise ; but the remission of penalties by means of Indulgences is one of the acts by which the kingdom of heaven is opened; it therefore is also comprehended under the general charge of feeding the sheep of Christ.
Ver. 16. — He saith to him the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou Me? He saith unto Him, Yea, Lord, Thou knowest that I love Thee. Hear S. Chrysostom : “ Again he dreads the former things, lest perchance, thinking himself to love, he should be corrected if he did not love, like as before he was corrected for thinking himself strong, and therefore he takes refuge in Christ Himself.”
He saith unto him the second time, Feed My lambs . Thus the Arabic has it. But the Greek and Syriac instead of lambs have sheep , but it is very probable that the Vulgate, together with the Arabic, read the Greek προβάτια inserting iota, i.e. little sheep, or lambs: because the shepherd’s chief care must be for them; and therefore Christ repeats and doubles His injunction concerning them.
As S. Augustine says, “ Let it be love’s office to feed the Lord’s flock, like as it was the mark of fear to deny the Shepherd.” Hence S. Gregory (i Part . Pastor, c . v.) says, “He who is strong in virtue and refuses to feed the flock of God is proved not to love his Pastor.”
Ver. 17. — He saith unto him the third time , Simon , son of Jonas, lovest Thou Me? Peter was grieved because He said unto him the third time lovest thou Me, and he said unto Him, Lord , Thou knowest all things ; Thou knowest that I love Thee , He saith unto him. Feed My sheep (Syriac, My lambs). Why does Christ thrice ask Peter if he loved Him, and thrice repeat, Feed My sheep? I answer, the first reason is, that Peter, by a triple and constant profession of his singular love, might expiate and change his three-fold denial of Christ. So Cyril, Leontius, Theophylact, Bede, and S. Augustine, which last thus writes (Tract. 123): “For a threefold denial a threefold confession is rendered, that the tongue might not seem to serve love less than fear, and that impending death might not seem to elicit more speech than Present Life. Let it be the office of love to feed the Lord’s flock, if it was the mark of fear to deny the Shepherd. If any feed Christ’s sheep with this disposition, that they wish them to be their own sheep rather than His, they are proved to love not Christ but themselves, either from the desire of boasting, or ruling, or acquiring, not from the love of obeying, and helping, and pleasing God. Against such, therefore, the Word of Christ, many times enjoined, gives warning, and of them the Apostle complains that they seek their own, not the things which be of Jesus Christ. For to say, ‘If thou lovest Me, feed My sheep,’ what else is it but to say, If thou lovest Me, do not study to feed thyself, but My sheep ; feed them as Mine, not as thine : seek My glory in them, not thine : My dominion, not thine own ? ” From hence let bishops learn to examine suspended priests and others a second and third time, concerning their amendment, that they may be safe in restoring them to their office.
The second cause is that Christ might show what a value He set upon His sheep, and how in the day of judgment He will examine bishops and pastors as to their care for, but especially as to their love for, the sheep. Wherefore S. Bernard (Ser. 18 in Cant.) inveighs against those who, though having little love, are ambitious of being set over others, and so lose themselves and others ; or if they save those under them, lose themselves. “ Thou, brother,” he says, “ whose salvation is not yet strong, who as yet hast not love, or hast it so weak and like a reed as to yield to every blast, believe every spirit, be carried about with every wind of doctrine, thou, I say, who hast such an opinion of thine own self in what pertains to thine own self, by what madness, I ask, art thou ambitious to have the care of others, or even acquiesce in having it ? ”
Thirdly — that He may show that pastors ought to feed their sheep, as it were, in a threefold manner — viz., by the word of truth, of life, and by temporal assistance (see S. Greg.) And S. Bernard (Ser. 2 on the Resurr.) says, that feed was repeated by Christ thrice, in order that a pastor may feed his sheep by mind, by mouth, and by hand. “ Feed,” he says, “ by mind, feed by mouth, feed by works. Feed by mental prayer, by verbal exhortation , by showing example.” The same (Ep. 201) says, " Feed by word, feed by example, feed by the fruit of holy prayers.” Hence that wonderful love and zeal for souls in S. Peter, as well as in S. John, who in his Gospel, and his Epistles, everywhere breathes love and Divine fire. A memorable instance of this was that young man who had been converted by S. John and committed to a certain bishop by whom he had been neglected, and so had become a chief of robbers, whom S. John, when an old man, brought back to repentance and a holy life. Eusebius (L. 3, Hist. c. 23) gives a full account of this matter from Clemens Alexandrinus. Also S. Chrysostom (Ep. 5, to Theodorus , a lapsed person).