An impulsive with a big heart
He was a fisherman on Lake Tiberias and Jesus made him a fisher of men, and even though he denied the one he loved most in the world three times, Jesus entrusted him with the keys to Heaven. Peter, the impulsive one who drew his sword in the Garden of Olives to defend Jesus from the soldiers, was also afraid when a servant recognized him as one of his followers, however, he was aware of his weakness, and he felt very sad. when he denied the Master. Heartbroken, all he had left was his immense love and the revelation of Mercy, which would turn him into a rock of humility, whose fidelity led him to shed his blood for the Lord. For the above, God blessed him and built his Church on this Rock.
(Discover other saints on the Guide to the saints of sickle)
The life of the apostle Peter
From Simon to Peter
Simon Peter He is one of the most important and emblematic figures in the history of Christianity: he was the first name that appeared in the list of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus. However, little is known about his life before following Jesus, or even about the exact context of his death. The general consensus seems to indicate that Simon Bar-Jona (meaning: “son of Jona”) was a Jew born in Bethsaida, who lived in the house of his in-laws in Capernaum, near Lake Tiberias, where he was a fisherman with his brother Andrew . The Gospel of Saint Luke indicates that he was also associated with John and James.
The meeting of Saint Peter with Jesus it happened shortly after the episode of the temptation in the desert, but it is narrated somewhat differently according to the Gospels: for example, in the Gospels of Mark and Matthew, Jesus was walking along the Sea of Galilee when he saw Simon and his brother Andrés in a boat (or throwing the nets into the water), and said to them: “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men”. (Matthew 4:19; Mark 1:17). So the two brothers left their things and followed him. But, in the Gospel according to Saint Luke, Jesus had entered the city of Capernaum and had begun to heal the sick, even curing Simon’s mother-in-law. Later, while preaching the Word on the shore of the lake where Simon was, he got into his boat and performed a great miracle: he made the fishermen catch an impressive number of fish, as had never happened before. Seeing this, Simon knelt down and said: “Get away from me, Lord, because I am a sinner”a which Jesus answered: “Do not fear, from now on you will be fishers of men“. (Luke 5:10).
Finally, in the Gospel of Saint John it is narrated that Andrew had joined Jesus, shortly before his brother. In fact, he himself brought Simon to Jesus, who upon seeing him said: “You are Simon, the son of John: you will be called Cephas”, which translated means Peter”. (John 1:42). The word “Cephas” comes from Aramaic, means “rock”. It should be noted that this episode in the Bible in which Jesus changed Simon’s name is much more popular in the Gospel of Saint Matthew. This is how Simon became Peter, and left everything to follow Christwithout hesitation and without any remorse. In fact, later Peter would become one of the most ardent disciples of Christ.
Peter’s faith
“Even if everyone is scandalized because of you, I will never be scandalized.” (Matthew 26:33)
In chapter 16 of the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus asks his disciples who they think the son of man is. Pedro answered first and said without hesitation: “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God!”. To tell the truth, his faith was so immense that Christ honored him with the following word:
“And I tell you: You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my churchand the power of Death shall not prevail against her.” (Matthew 16:18).
Peter’s faith and trust are the pillar of the Church of Christ. However, this faith powerful is not immune to doubt: in fact, although Jesus appointed him as the stone of his church, and gave him the keys to paradise, the Bible also relates that Peter was involved in many conflicts. For example, a few moments after uttering the words quoted above, the impulse of his character carried him very far: it happened that while Jesus was explaining to the apostles the nearness of his death, Peter refused to listen to him, and even contradicted the statements of Jesus. Christ and was severely rebuked by Jesus, who told him: “Retreat, go behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle to me, because your thoughts are not those of God, but those of men.
On the other hand, Peter made many mistakes on other occasions: although Jesus gave him the strength to walk on the water and follow him, he got scared and began to sink, so Jesus called him “man of little faith” (Matthew 14:31). Let us bear in mind that, although he assured him of his infallible fidelity to the Lord many times, he also denied three times that he was a disciple of Christ in a short time (before the rooster crowed).
Regarding Peter, the Bible describes him in detail in the Gospels as a man, in the literal sense of the word: a human being, with his strengths and weaknesses, capable of getting angry, losing patience, making mistakes, etc. In fact, it was precisely Simon Peter who lost his cool and cut off the ear of a soldier who was coming to arrest Jesus (John 18:12).
In truth, it could be said that Peter was too zealous when he fervently proclaimed his faith, to the point of closing his ears to the word of Christ, and that he was too prone to giving in to emotions and doubt. Perhaps all this is true, but it is the same for all of us, and there is no denying that although his emotions upset his judgment, Pedro had been constituted as a rock for the Church. In fact, Jesus did not challenge him as a person, but rather his spirit of doubt and fear that prevented him from fulfilling God’s purpose.
In this order of ideas, it can be said that heThe stone of the church is a totally human stone: Although the teachings of Jesus moved Peter, to the point of leaving everything to follow him, during his journey as a Christian, he fell many times, he had doubts, he got angry, but he also did the will of God, which shows us that a man with the best intentions, you can always learn from your mistakes.
Peter, the pillar of the Church of Christ
Peter, first bishop
“Jesus said to him: “Feed my sheep.
I assure you that when you were young you dressed yourself and went where you wanted. But when you’re old
you will stretch out your arms, and another will tie you up and take you where you don’t want to.” (John 21:17-18).
There is no doubt: the place of Peter, the “prince of the Apostles”, is paramount in the Christian tradition. After the ascension of Jesus, during Pentecost, the disciples received the Holy Spirit so that they could proclaim the word of God throughout the world and they were given the gift of speaking in other tongues. Seeing this, a crowd was stunned and found it difficult to believe that the Apostles were sober, however, Peter took the floor, thus giving the first evangelical speech after the departure of Christ. From that moment, Peter became the spokesman for the entire Christian community, performing many miracles, among which we can mention the healing of a paralytic (Acts 3) and the resurrection of Tabitá (Acts 9). During the execution of his ministry, Peter and the apostles shared apostolic authority, since all had received the Holy Spirit equally, and had the same power to forgive sins. However, the Bible often shows us Peter making decisions or speaking with authority, for example when he proposed to replace Judas with a new apostle (Acts 1), or when he officially declared the legitimacy of “Gentiles” within the Church of Christ (although he himself had expressed some reluctance on the matter in the past). On the other hand, in the last years of his life Peter was arrested by Herod, sent to prison, and then released from his cell by an angel (Acts 10). Peter’s death is not counted in the Bible. In the book of Acts, Peter simply went “to another place”, without elaborating on it. However, Christian tradition tells us that Peter was martyred in Rome and crucified upside down (for this reason the Cross of Saint Peter it is represented as the inverted cross of Christ). Furthermore, it is said that his tomb is located under the Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican.
It is noteworthy that the Christian tradition often represents Peter as the “first pope” and the Vatican considers that the line of succession of the popes goes back directly to him. In fact, he was an important figure in the first apostolic see in Antioch. Furthermore, in the area of art, Peter is also depicted as a papal figure, for example, in the 17th century the painter Rubens illustrated the apostle Peter dressed in ecclesiastical attire, holding the keys to heaven in his hands.
Parallel between Paul and Peter
It is difficult not to establish strong ties between the lives of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, since both had their names symbolically changed (Simon became Peter and Saul became Paul) and were named apostles of a specific group of people (Peter was the apostle of the Jews and Paul the apostle of the Jews). gentiles). Similarly, it is known that, just as Paul was accompanied by a disciple (Luke), who is credited with having written a book of the New Testament, Peter was also accompanied by Mark, recognized for being Peter’s companion and translator. Indeed, his gospel is sometimes said to constitute the “memoirs of Peter.” Indeed, the church itself has proclaimed the close bond between these two men, who are called “the two pillars of the church of Christ.” Ultimately, both martyrdoms are believed to have taken place in Rome, and his feast is celebrated on the same day, on June 29, considering that the two Apostles are inseparable. In addition, on November 18, the dedication of the Roman basilicas that are consecrated to Peter and Paul respectively is celebrated.