Peter

3 Reasons Why Peter and Paul Share the Same Feast Day

/ chicoinematt / 1 Comment

Early on the history of the Catholic Church an admiration existed for Peter and Paul. Aside from Jesus Christ himself, these two men are the main characters in the New Testament. In his First Epistle to the Corinthians, church leader Clement of Rome tells of the leadership of Peter and Peter. He wrote,

There was Peter who by reason of unrighteous jealousy endured not one not one but many labors, and thus having borne his testimony went to his appointed place of glory. By reason of jealousy and strife Paul by his example pointed out the prize of patient endurance…Unto these men of holy lives was gathered a vast multitude of the elect, who through many indignities and tortures, being the victims of jealousy, set a brave example among ourselves (First Epistle of Clement of Rome to the Corinthians 5:4-6:1).

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Living in the 1st century A.D., Clement’s praise of the first leaders of the Church shows something special changed these men. God selected a simple fisherman and a reformed murderer to head the Catholic Church. I believe the Holy Spirit guided the Church to forever link these two saints lives through having the same feast day on June 29th.

Creativity of Truth [Saint Paul]

Having the ability to think outside the box and preach to vastly different audiences is a gift. St. Paul possessed both creativity and the flexibility to frame his thoughts to fit the needs and understanding of his particular audiences. Writer of almost 2/3 of the New Testament, St. Paul represents the creative aspect of the Catholic faith. He brings to the table dynamic, vibrant, creative theology to teach Christians in the early Church and today.

The Apostle of the Gentile used many tangible and relatable examples to teach the faith. One of my personal favorites comes from 1 Corinthians 12. Paul clearly and succinctly communicates the fact that unity is found within diversity. He provides the analogy of the Church consisting of one body with many parts and Jesus Christ as the ultimate head of the body.

Another clear and understandable example of the love and teaching of God is St. Paul’s frequent references to Christians as adopted children of God. In Romans 8:14-17 he writes,

For those who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.j15For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you received a spirit of adoption, through which we cry, “Abba,* Father!”k 16The Spirit itself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God,l 17and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if only we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him.

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Stability of Truth [Saint Peter]

Unlike Paul who represents the intellectual, creative, and theological side of truth, Peter is a model for the consistency and enduring nature of

Catholic teaching. Jesus instituted the papacy in Matthew 16:17-19. According to the evangelist the charge to the future pope went as follows,

Jesus said to him in reply, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood* has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father. 18k And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church,* and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. 19l I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven.* Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.

The lead up to this significant institutional passage is Peter’s realization of Jesus’ true identity as Christ. Through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, Peter led the Catholic Church after Jesus’ ascension to Heaven. He led the Council of Jerusalem in Acts 15 and displayed the ultimate mark of faith in his martyrdom. The Holy Spirit guides the papacy. This office acts as the supreme authority on matters related to faith and morality.

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Analogy of Tetherball

Truth is unchanging but our understanding of truth developed over the centuries. The genius of the Catholic Church is apparent in the consolidation of Peter and Paul’s feast on a single day. There is a schoolyard game that comes to mind to describe the relationship between the first pope and the great Apostle to the Gentiles—tetherball! Incidentally, it was not until my early twenties that I discovered the joy and fun this recess game provides despite its simplistic nature. I even purchased a tetherball at my local sporting goods store in hopes to eventually install a tetherball post in my background.

To get back from my tetherball tangent, the post in this game reminds me of the stability of the papacy of St. Peter provides. The ball and rope represent the creative theology of St. Paul. Both are essential aspects of the game [and the Catholic faith].

The Stable and Creative Church

Without the stability of the papacy, truth devolves into subjectivity and confusion ensues. Likewise, an absence of dynamic theological thought [represented by Paul] leads to staleness, rigidity, and irrelevancy of Catholic teaching. Remember kids recess is an important subject in school too—you never know when you can apply lessons from leisure to real life!

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Pope Francis on June 29th, 2017 stated, “The Fathers of the Church liked to compare the holy apostles Peter and Paul to two columns, on which the visible building of the Church rests. Both sealed with their own blood their testimony to Christ of preaching and service to the nascent Christian community.”

Saints Peter and Paul pray for us!!

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Celestial Travel and the Communion of Saints: Catherine and Athanasius

/ chicoinematt

Here’s an imaged conversation between two great saints.

St. Athanasius

A tall, bearded man sat under the shade of a tree to protect against the beaming noon sunlight. He had a quill and a parchment in hand. Uttering a few words while crossing himself he continued to formulate a message on half-written scroll:

“He became what we are that he might make us what he is.”

Thoughts such as this were the cause for the man’s exile (this being his third). The emperor deemed such words blasphemous and cause for discord as it ran counter to the majority of the religious leaders’ opinions at the time.

The man stopped writing because he heard a sudden whirling sound. Looking around he didn’t immediately see anything out of the ordinary.

Standing up now, he walked towards to east wall of the monastery. The ascetic monks took him in during a previous banishment, so the man got used to the normal weather patterns of this area. The whirling transformed into a whooshing sound. Like rushing of a river but with air instead of water. But still he saw nothing unusual. The sun remained high in the sky and only a few white clouds existed against the blue background.

Thinking he was dehydrated, the man went to the well, located several yards in front of the monastery’s front entrance. His lips felt parched, and beads of sweat dropped from his brow. “This probably affected my senses,” he thought. Lowering the bucket down took longer than normal because of limited rainfall recently. He heard the splash of the bucket on the water and felt it fill up. He started to pull it up when the man heard a woman’s voice.

Catherine: “Servant of the Lord make haste and come here.”

He continued to think dehydration was the culprit for these strange happenings, so the man ignored the woman’s words. Grabbing the bucket, he brought the water to his mouth when the woman exclaimed, this time louder, “Athanasius! Listen, for I bring a message of hope.”

Athanasius: Who’s there?

Catherine: I am a  humble servant of our Lord Jesus Christ. He sent me to give you a message of hope.

Athanasius: Do you believe He is fully divine? It’s popular opinion nowadays to think of our Lord as a creation of the Father.

Catherine: Yes. And He is also fully human. It’s the great Mystery of the Incarnation. “God became man so that…

Athanasius: …man might become god”. You must be from God because you know about the doctrine of theosis. Why haven’t I not heard of you before?

Catherine: I come from a time different, yet not so different from yours. False teaching abounds where I come from. But what remains is hope and help. The Furnace of Divine Love tests and forms those He loves most into great witnesses for the faith.

The Paraclete sent me console you in your time of exile. Don’t give up hope. Maintain the faith. The great heresy of your time will fall. Orthodoxy will prevail.

Athanasius: How can this happen? I’ve been exiled several times by the Emperor. I have continued to spread the Gospel and am gracious for the aid of these holy monks who harbored me.

Catherine: Continue your work. I simply was sent to give your reassurance and a spark to help you keep the faith. You are a profound witness for the faith and model of orthodoxy. ““Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire.”

[Catherine is suddenly taken up into the clouds on a fiery chariot. If Athanasius blinked he would have missed this wonderful moment.]

Catherine of Siena

This holy encounter gave Athanasius the resolve to continue with his work on defending the divinity of Jesus Christ. He went on to write an important theological treatise titled On the Incarnation and the Holy Spirit worked through him as a catalyst to defeat the Arian heresy.

Centuries later a young Catherine is seen reading a book under the shade of her favorite tree. She smiles and thanks God for His goodness.

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Jesus and Mary Talk about the Role of Peter Before Dinner

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Jesus and Mary

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here’s an imaged conversation between Our Lord Jesus and the Blessed Virgin Mary shortly after Peter’s Confession in Matthew 16:13-20.

Mary: Good Evening, Son. How did your preaching go today? Did those Pharisees change their attitude about you yet?

Who do you say that I am

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jesus: No. This still cling to their rigid judgment. Today, I asked them [the Apostles] who they thought I was. Elijah? John the Baptist? A new prophet?

Those were common answers given by the public. I told them I did not what others thought, but what they thought.

Can you guess who answered my question Mother?”

Mary: Was it that bold and ambitious fisherman? Simon is his name, right?

Jesus: You say so and it is true. Simon recognized me as the “Messiah, Son of the living God.” His name is now changed to Peter meaning “rock”.

I also entrusted to him authority to lead my disciples.

Mary: Do they know?

Jesus: That I must suffer, die, and be raised on the third day? Yes. Peter’s rashness surfaced again. His great passion and love for his teacher made him overprotective of me.

I directly called out his actions as that of the Adversary.

Mary: Though I know your suffering will be a great pain for me, I trust in the will of God.

Jesus: I know. Mother you are most holy.

The Advocate will guide Peter, John, James and the rest once I go back to The Father.

Help Peter in his mission. Be a consolation for him when he experiences distress.

Mary: Yes, my Son. Behold, I am the handmaiden of the Lord. May it be done according to your word.

Jesus: You are indeed most blessed among all women!

I am hungry from the day’s walk. I brought home fish for dinner. Do you want to start the grill fire or should I cook?

Mary: Let’s cook together. You work is mine and mine is yours.

Jesus: Amen!

Grilling fish

[Mary and Jesus end their day with a tasty meal followed by praying the Scriptures before they go to sleep to prepare for another day telling the Good News.]

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