This week's readings are James 3.1–12 and Mark 8.27–38. 

Moving on from general observations about the need to put our faith into action, this week James focuses on a very specific example: watching what we say. I'm sure I don’t need to provide examples to demonstrate how right he is— all of us have experienced moments when others' words have either built us up or torn us down. Similarly, we’ve all had moments where we’ve done the same to others, whether deliberately or accidentally— "Oh, no, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it like that!"

What’s interesting to me is that James doesn’t just focus on the external effects of our language—he highlights its internal effect as well. His image of the tongue as the rudder of a ship, or his reflection that the tongue has the power to "stain the whole body," reminds us that what we say about the world and those who inhabit it doesn’t only affect them—it affects us too. The words we use to describe the world and the people around us shape how we think and feel about them, and even how we interact with them. Facetiously, if I look out the window and say, "Oh no, it’s raining," I’m likely to stay inside. But if I declare, "Awesome! Liquid sunshine!" then I’m far more likely to grab my raincoat and wellies and go jump in some puddles.

So, how much difference would it make if, instead of complaining about what’s wrong around me, I took the time to praise what’s right? Or if I changed the narrative I speak or repeat about people—from one of alienation to kinship, from enemy to friend?

There is, of course, one person about whom what we say makes the greatest difference—and in the Gospel reading, we find the moment where Peter is asked to decide. "Who do people say I am?" Jesus asks, and several competing narratives come back: John the Baptist, Elijah, a prophet... "But who do you say I am?" Jesus challenges Peter directly. Peter then voices, speaks out, and owns with his tongue so that he may own with his heart, a truth that changes him forever: "You are the Messiah."

In that moment, his tongue became the rudder not just for his body, but for his whole being. It reoriented him away from the crowd and from his past life into a new and living encounter with God. It turned him towards the one with the power to save and transform him—and, through him, to transform the world.

So yes, please do consider how you describe the world around you to others and to yourself, and recognise that you’re wielding something incredibly powerful. But even more importantly, take time to answer Jesus’ question for yourself: who do you say he is? And are you brave enough to say the answer out loud—in public?