For it seems that he showed them separately to these eleven, just as he had shown himself separately to Ammaon and Cleophas in the evening; and just as these two, so also those eleven seem to have been able to come together to confirm the others. In the end, they were also confused, as you have according to Luke; and therefore, he opened their minds so that they understood the things that were written. It is without a doubt that he wrote this more extensively, and that one more succinctly. For how could they say that only Cephas saw him, if he was seen by everyone? But just as from the women: first Mary and then the other Mary; so too from the men: Peter was seen in the early morning. And Paul says: For I delivered to you first of all, that Christ died according to the Scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he rose on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he was seen by Cephas (I Cor. XV, 3 et seq.). And therefore, Mark specifically mentions a young man instructing the women to tell Peter and the disciples that the Lord has risen (Mark XVI, 5 et 7).
So Peter, therefore, saw the Lord alone; for he always believed that devout and ready devotion, and therefore he strove to gather more frequent signs of faith. Sometimes with John, sometimes alone, yet he ran eagerly everywhere, either alone or first: not satisfied with seeing what he had seen, he repeated the things to be looked at, and inflamed by the love of seeking the Lord, he is not satisfied with seeing. He sees him alone, he sees him with the eleven, he sees him with the seventy, he sees him even when Thomas believed, he sees him while fishing: but not content with having seen, impatient of desire, neglectful of capture, unmindful of danger, but still not forgetful of reverence; where he saw the Lord on the shore, he covered himself with a garment, considering it late if he should arrive with the others by boat. Thus, as the Lord walked on the waves, forgetting the nature of the sea, he appeared (Matthew 14:28): thus, as the Lord was being held by the Jews, he alone wielded a sword against the crowds (Matthew 26:51): thus, even now, as the Lord stood on the perilous shore, he hastened the religious duty with prompt obedience (John 21:4).
175. There is therefore no doubt that Peter believed, and believed because he loved, and loved because he believed. Wherefore he is saddened also because he is questioned a third time: Lovest thou me? For he is questioned about whom there is doubt. But the Lord has no doubt, who asks, not that he may learn, but that he may teach, him whom he was raising up to heaven, leaving to us his love as it were a pledge. Thus thou hast it: Simon, son of John, lovest thou me? Surely thou knowest, Lord, that I love thee. Jesus said to him: Feed my lambs (Ibid., 16). Peter, being well aware of himself not being chosen for the moment but already known to God, testifies to this affection. For who else can easily profess this about himself? And therefore, because he alone professes it out of all, he is preferred before all; for charity is greater than all.
Furthermore, this is to be looked at more closely: why, when the Lord said, 'Do you love me?' did Peter respond, 'You know, Lord, that I love you.' In this, it seems to me that love has the affection of the soul, a certain ardor of the body and mind, and I believe that Peter's fervor not only marks the devotion of his soul, but also of his body in worshiping God. Finally, the third time, the Lord asked not, 'Do you love me?' but 'Do you love me?' (John 21:17). And now, he is not commanded to feed infants, as before, with a kind of milk, nor young sheep as before, but to feed mature sheep, so that he may govern the more perfect ones as he is more perfect.
177. And therefore, as if having been perfected in all things, which the flesh could no longer recall from the glory of the passion, a crown is awarded: 'When you were younger, you girded yourself and walked where you wished; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish to go' (John 21:18). A good old age is not weak for the use of long life, but prepared for martyrdom by the maturity of virtue: which restrains the lasciviousness of bodily pleasures, does not indulge in desires, avoids sweet things, does not seek what is attractive; for the flesh desires against the spirit, and finds for itself crooked paths to walk in the diversity of pleasures (Galatians 5:17). Truly, old age of the mind, which chooses not what is pleasant for the body, but what is useful for the mind: it is not carried away by the pleasurable appetite of the body, but is recalled by the restraint of resisting as if unwilling.
Therefore, even Peter, although he was prepared in his mind to undergo martyrdom (Luke 22:33), nevertheless when danger approached, he was swayed from his steadfastness; for the sweetness of Christ captivates us, the enjoyment of a heavenly gift. For who among us would not choose martyrdom if they could gladly die? Therefore, Peter also seems not to want it, but he is prepared to overcome. And what is surprising if Peter does not want it, when the Lord says: Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless not my will, but yours be done (Matthew 26:39)? Finally, after the temptation of his presumption, Peter no longer dares to promise constancy of will: but, as if for his own consolation, he seeks the company of another.
179. (Verse 37, 45.) Therefore, we believe that Peter could not have doubted, having been convinced by so many examples of virtue. It is also clear that John believed (John 20:8) when he saw the Savior, who believed at that moment, after he saw the empty tomb. So why does Luke mention that several were troubled? First of all, because the opinion of a few includes the sentiment of the majority; secondly, even though Peter believed in the resurrection, he could still be troubled when he saw the Lord suddenly appear with his body in a place that was locked and enclosed by walls. So Luke, in his historical account, pursued each particular event: he considered the end, while here he focused on the sequence. For, by saying: 'Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures,' he confesses that the disciples themselves came to believe what was written.
180. (Vers. 49.) However, he breathed the Holy Spirit on the eleven, who were considered more perfect, and promised that the rest would also receive it later (John 20:22): either he breathed on them there, or he promised it here. And it does not seem contradictory, since there are different gifts: To one is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues (1 Corinthians 12:8-10). Therefore, one bestowed another operation there, while here another promises; for there the grace of remitting sins is given, which seems more august: and therefore it is bestowed by Christ, so that you may believe in the Spirit of Christ, and believe in God's Spirit; for God alone forgives sins. However, Luke describes the grace of tongues poured out. Finally, there you have: Receive the Holy Spirit: whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven (John, cited place). But in the Acts of the Apostles you have this: And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak in different languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them utterance (Acts 2:4).
The diversity of visions signifies the multitude of angels serving, as it is written: 'And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven' (Matthew 28:2), and 'Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man' (John 1:51). And I hope that with the end of the Gospel, our discourse may also come to a close!
Why does he command the disciples according to Matthew and Mark: I will go before you into Galilee (Matt. XXVI, 32), there you will see me (Mark. XVI, 7); but according to Luke and John he also offered himself to be seen inside a room (Luke XXIV, 36)? And indeed we have proven by the testimony of more than five hundred brothers, and of Peter, and of James, even apostolic, that he frequently offered himself to be seen (John XX, 19) (I Cor. XV, 6). And Luke in the Acts of the Apostles taught that Jesus showed himself to his disciples after his passion, appearing to them in many ways and discussing the kingdom of God (Acts 1:3). Therefore, because he appeared more often and in different ways, though he was seen in Galilee, the Scripture did not designate a specified and definitive time: when he presented himself in Jerusalem, he specified both the day and the hour. The more timid ones returned to the inner rooms, while the stronger ones gathered on the mountain.
183. Finally, within the locked doors of the chamber, John brings in the disciples who had gathered because of fear of the Jews (John 20:19), whom Luke wrote were not just eleven, but more (Verse 33); however, Matthew did not remain silent about these eleven alone having gathered in Galilee. Finally, you have it like this: But the eleven disciples went into Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had appointed them, and seeing him, they worshipped him; but some doubted (Matthew 28:16-17). To whom he gives the power to teach and baptize. He also writes that he appeared to the eleven disciples and Mark at the end (Mark 16:7), when he likewise commanded them to preach this duty throughout the whole world.
184. Therefore, I think this is more fitting, that indeed the Lord commanded the disciples to see him in Galilee: but while they were staying in fear within the locked room, he first appeared to them, and later, with their hearts confirmed, the eleven went to Galilee. Or certainly (I also find that this pleased diligent writers) it is not objectionable if we say that fewer were in the locked room, and a number were on the mountain.