“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Today we celebrate a very important feast in the Church, the solemnity of Peter and Paul. “The Apostles Peter and Paul are considered by the faithful, and rightly, as the first pillars, not only of the Holy Roman See, but also of the universal Church of the living God, spread to the utmost bounds of the earth. Founders of the Church of Rome, the Mother and teacher of the other Christian communities, it was they who gave impulse to its growth by the supreme testimony of their martyrdom suffered in Rom with fortitude: Peter, whom Our Lord Jesus Christ chose as the foundation of his Church and Bishop of this illustrious city, and Paul, the Doctor of the Gentiles, teacher and friend of the first community founded here.” [1]
This video gives a brief overview of the lives of Sts. Peter and Paul and the reason we celebrate this feast day.
Why do we celebrate this solemnity? “Sts. Peter and Paul are the principal Pillars of the Church founded by Christ. St. Peter was chosen by Christ to be his first Vicar on earth; he was endowed with the power of the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven and given the role of Shepherd of Christ’s flock. In St. Peter and his successors, the popes, there is a visible sign of unity and communion in faith and charity. Divine grace led St. Peter to profess Christ’s divinity. He suffered martyrdom under Nero about AD 64 and is buried at the hill of the Vatican.” [2] Both men helped establish the Church in Rome.
Why are Peter and Paul consider the “pillars of the church”? “The Feast of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul, Princes of the Church, awakens in our souls a greater love for the Church and for our Holy Father the Pope.” [3] We should remember that Peter is always first among the members of the Church. “Simon Peter holds the first place in the college of the Twelve.” [4] He is first among the apostles in scripture and first among the names of this holy day. “Because of the faith he confessed Peter will remain the unshakeable rock of the Church. His mission will be to keep this faith from every lapse and to strengthen his brothers in it.” [5] Saint Ambrose said, “Where Peter is, there is the Church.” “This means that wherever the Pope, Peter’s successor, is, there the Church is. Rightly, then, should we consider the Feast of St. Peter as the Feast of the Church, the Feast of our Holy Father the Pope, and one which should awaken in every Christian soul a profound sense of belonging to the Church and of devotion to the Sovereign Pontiff.” [6]
However, this does not negate the importance of Saint Paul. After Saint Peter, Paul is the second most important apostle. Without Paul, who knows what would have happened to the Church between the conversion of Jews and Gentiles at that time. Because of Paul who knows if Christianity would have spread as far and as fast as it did. “St. Paul was chosen to form part of the College of Apostles by Christ himself after his dramatic conversion on the road to Damascus. Selected to bring Christ’s name to all peoples, he was a great missionary, advocate of pagans, and ‘Apostle of the Gentiles.’” [7]
Why do we have the feast day with Peter and Paul together? These men are so important to the Church that they have their own individual feast days as well as today to celebrate them together. “The Liturgy unites in a single celebration Peter, the head of the Church, and Paul, the Apostle of the gentiles. Both are the living foundation of the Church, built up by their labors and their ceaseless preaching, and made fruitful in the end by their martyrdom.” [8] The other reason we celebrate them together is because both Peter and Paul were martyred on the same day.
The readings for the mass have them imprisoned and in chains. “The two Apostles in chains bear witness that only those who know how to face tribulations, persecutions, and even martyrdom for Christ are truly his disciples. At the same time their experience show that Christ does not abandon his apostles when they are persecuted: he intervenes on their behalf to save them from danger- for instance, as Peter was freed from prison-or to sustain them in their vicissitudes, as Paul declares: ‘The Lord stood by me and gave me strength…The Lord will rescue me from every evil and save me for his heavenly kingdom’.” [9]
How did Peter and Paul die? Peter was crucified upside down upon request because he did not feel worthy to be crucified right side up as his Lord. Paul was beheaded because he was a roman citizen and had that right to be executed in that manner. “At Rome, the birthday of the holy Apostles Peter and Paul, who suffered in the same year and on the same day, under the Emperor Nero. The former [Peter] was crucified in that city, with his head downward, and was buried in the Vatican near the Triumphal Way; and there he is honoured with the veneration of the whole world. The latter was slain with the sword, and buried with like honour on the Via Ostiensis.” [10]
What can we learn from Peter and Paul? Saints Peter and Paul are the perfect examples of what it means to be a Christian. Peter shows that despite weakness we can become great only in Christ. Paul shows us that in spite of our past sins Jesus can call us out of sin and we can make a full conversion. “ As we conclude our meditation we ask him for this same fidelity, in spite of the setbacks we suffer and all the obstacles we shall find placed in our way because we are Christians. We ask him to make us firm in the faith, fortes in fide, just as Saint Peter asked with the first Christians of his day to be.” [11]
[1] Pope Paul VI
[2] Daily Roman Missal 3rd Edition, pg. 1785
[3] Divine Intimacy pg. 1137
[4] CCC 552
[5] CCC 552
[6] Divine Intimacy pg. 1137
[7] Daily Roman Missal 3rd Edition, pg. 1785
[8] Divine Intimacy, vol. II, pg. 265
[9] Divine Intimacy, vol. II, pgs. 265-266
[10] The Roman Martyrology pg. 133
[11] Fernandez, In Conversation with God 6, 56.3 pg. 370