Podcast Summary: Petersboat – The Monday After | Knowledge of Jesus

Host: R. Ketcham
Date: December 15, 2025

Overview

This episode of Petersboat is the third Advent reflection, focusing on the “Knowledge of Jesus.” Fr. Ketcham invites listeners to contemplate who Jesus truly is—asking the timeless Advent question: "Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?" Drawing from scriptural examples, personal stories, and Catholic theology, he explores what it means to know Jesus, why it matters, and how to let Christ transform life’s hardest realities with his presence.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Opening Story: Meaningful Christmas Dinner

• Fr. Ketcham shares an emotionally charged experience from a parishioner’s Christmas dinner.
• He describes a father and son invited to the gathering: the father, recently divorced and disabled by a stroke, now socially isolated, and the loyal son who cares for him (03:25).
• Quote:

  "My son gets me. He doesn't leave me. He knows me. He loves me." (08:10, the father)

• Fr. Ketcham draws a parallel to the relationship between God the Father and Jesus, and the longing to be truly known and accompanied.

2. The Advent Question: Confirming Our Faith

• The theme centers on John the Baptist’s question to Jesus: “Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?” (04:50).
• The Gospel moment resonates with our desire for certainty in faith, likening doubt to that of Thomas wanting to touch Christ’s wounds.
• Quote:

  “We’re like John the Baptist today. We’re like Thomas. We want to see if we can touch Christ a little bit, so we can confirm our faith…” (06:30)

3. Encountering Christ—A Personal, Relational Knowledge

• The story of the dinner frames the homily: the son’s faithful love for his father reveals the heart of Christianity—being known, never abandoned (10:00).
• Fr. Ketcham reiterates the privilege of being among “those to whom the Son wishes to reveal the Father.”
• Quote:

  “That’s what’s going on here, in the person of Jesus… the one sent from the Father to reveal to us this eternal mystery that is the Father.” (11:40)

4. Who is Jesus?—Scriptural and Doctrinal Foundations

• Fr. Ketcham explores Jesus’ radical claims—“Before Abraham was, I am,” “I am the good shepherd,” “I am the bread of life,” (17:00–18:30).
• He introduces the concept of the hypostatic union: Jesus as fully God and fully human.
• C.S. Lewis’ analogy (“begotten, not made”) is referenced to clarify Jesus’ relationship to the Father (20:35).

5. Why It Matters: Relationship, Not Just Theology

• Fr. Ketcham raises a question: “So what if Jesus is God? How does that help me?”
• He reframes Christian life as a lived relationship—letting Christ into one’s actual circumstances, drawing on John the Baptist’s struggle in prison (24:00).
• Jesus’ miracles (the blind seeing, the lame walking, etc.) are interpreted as ongoing works in believers’ lives, e.g., healing old wounds, restoring community, learning forgiveness (28:20).

6. Blessed Is the One Who Takes No Offense

• Jesus’ challenge: “Blessed is the one who takes no offense at me” is explained as the call to open our lives (even hard parts) to Christ’s transforming presence (31:00).
• Living Advent means letting Christ be present in suffering, doubt, and imperfection.

7. Witnesses in Suffering: Examples from Prison

• Fr. Ketcham shares stories of Cardinal Van Thuan and Fr. Walter Ciszek, who survived harsh imprisonment yet radiated Christ’s presence, even celebrating Mass in secret (36:00).
• Personal freedom is found not in escaping circumstances, but letting Christ be with us within them.

8. True Courage vs. the World’s “Escape”

• The courage of Christian life is not about escaping reality, but accepting it fully through Christ.
• Story of an ex-prisoner:

  “If I needed to get out of prison in order to be happy, then I would still be imprisoned by my circumstances.” (44:45)

9. Return to the Dinner Table—A Living Parable

• The Christmas dinner becomes a symbol: the father, though “imprisoned” by his condition, is joyful because his son is with him—and a new sense of family and acceptance is born (49:15).
• The simple gesture of a hug cements the point: presence and accompaniment can make circumstances lighter, even if they don’t disappear (51:10).

10. Encouragement to Listeners

• Fr. Ketcham addresses a litany of hardships faced by his listeners—illness, loneliness, workplace struggles, identity and mental health issues, family strife—and says their courage to let Christ into their stories inspires him (53:00).
• Quote:

  “I hope that you hear today that we can indeed confirm that Jesus is the one who is to come. And we need not look for another. We just need to let him into our hearts.” (54:25)

• The episode closes with the conviction: our stories, with Christ, can lead to glory—the fullness of divine life.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “We’re like John the Baptist today. We’re like Thomas. We want to see if we can touch Christ a little bit, so we can confirm our faith…” (06:30)
• “That’s what’s going on here, in the person of Jesus… the one sent from the Father to reveal to us this eternal mystery that is the Father.” (11:40)
• “If I needed to get out of prison in order to be happy, then I would still be imprisoned by my circumstances.” (44:45)
• “He does give sight to the blind, and we’re seeing that in our own lives. …Our story can lead to our glory.” (56:20)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 00:00 – Introduction and purpose of episode
• 03:25 – Story of Christmas dinner and the father and son
• 04:50 – The Advent question: “Are you the one who is to come?”
• 10:00 – Parallels between the dinner and the Father-Son relationship
• 17:00–20:35 – Jesus' claims about himself and theological explanation
• 24:00 – Application of Jesus’ identity to our lives and struggles
• 28:20 – Interpreting miracles as present-day spiritual transformation
• 31:00 – “Blessed is the one who takes no offense at me”
• 36:00 – Stories of Cardinal Van Thuan and Fr. Walter Ciszek
• 44:45 – Testimony of life-changing freedom during imprisonment
• 49:15–51:10 – The hug at dinner: the human experience of accompaniment
• 53:00 – Encouragement for listeners’ various struggles
• 56:20 – Closing affirmation: Christ fulfills our desire; “our story can lead to our glory”

Tone and Language

Fr. Ketcham speaks with heartfelt sincerity, intimacy, and vulnerability. He weaves scripture, personal narrative, and theology into encouragement, using gentle humor and real-life analogies to make doctrine concrete. His message is ultimately pastoral and uplifting, inviting listeners to find hope, not in escape, but in faithful presence—just as Christ is present to us.

Takeaway

The episode’s heart is this: As we seek answers and struggle through life’s burdens, the deepest knowledge of Jesus is not abstract or distant. Instead, it is his loving and real presence transforming our actual lives and circumstances—right where we are, just as we are. With Christ, our stories—however broken—can become stories of glory.