Saint Peter

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Saint Peter d. AD 64?, most prominent of the Twelve Apostles, listed first in the Gospels, and traditionally the first bishop of Rome. His original name was Simon, but Jesus gave him the nickname Cephas [Aramaic, = rock], which was translated into Greek as Petros [Gr. petra  = rock]. Peter was a native of Bethsaida and the brother of St. Andrew; he was married. He and Andrew, both fishermen, were called by Jesus to be disciples at the same time as James and John, the sons of Zebedee (Mark 1.16-20, 29-31; 3.14-16; Luke 5.1-11; John 1.40-44). There are several feasts of St. Peter in the West: St. Peter and St. Paul, June 29; the Chair of St. Peter, Apostle, Feb. 22; and St. Peter in Chains, Aug. 1. A second feast commemorating the Chair of St. Peter (i.e., his episcopal throne) was celebrated on Jan. 18 until abolished in 1960.

In the Gospels

Peter appears throughout the Gospels as leader and spokesman of the disciples, and Jesus most often addressed him when speaking to them (Mat. 10.2; 14.28; 15.15; 17.24; 19.27; Luke 8.51; 12.41). His honored position comes out most clearly in two high points of Jesus' ministry—when Peter confessed Jesus to be the Christ and was told "Upon this rock I will build my church" ; and when he, together with James and John, was chosen to see the Transfiguration (Mat. 16.13-20; 17.1-13). After the Last Supper he, again with James and John, witnessed Jesus' agony in Gethsemane. When Jesus was betrayed, Peter drew his sword to defend him, but denied him later in the same night, as Jesus had predicted he would (John 13; Mat. 26.26-46, 57-75).

After the Resurrection

After the Resurrection, Jesus appeared by the Sea of Galilee and charged Peter to "feed my sheep" (John 20.1-10; 21). The first chapters of the Acts of the Apostles describe Peter's role as leader of the Twelve in the election of a replacement for Judas and in the public declaration at Pentecost (Acts 1.15-26; 2.14-40). Much attention is given to Peter's miracles and to his defense of Christianity; his deliverance from prison by an angel is a celebrated incident (Acts 3; 4; 5.1-11, 29-32; 8.14-25; 9.32-43; 10; 11.1-18; 12.1-19). He was a leader at the council of Jerusalem that was called to discuss the integration of non-Jews into the Christian organization; his hesitation to accept them freely was rebuked by St. Paul (Acts 15; Gal. 2).

A few facts of St. Peter's life are known from 2d-century sources. He apparently left Antioch for Rome c.AD 55; there he died, head of the local church, a martyr under Nero. According to traditional accounts he was crucified with his head downward. From earliest times the Vatican hill has been pointed out as the place of his martyrdom. Constantine erected a church over the supposed burial place of Peter; in the 15th cent. work was begun on a new, huge St. Peter's Church , built on the same location. It is the principal shrine of Roman Catholicism. Excavation has yielded remains of human bones at the site, but they cannot be identified as those of St. Peter. There is a very ancient tradition, accepted by many scholars, that the Gospel of Mark was written with St. Peter's help and that it consists essentially of his memoirs. The epistles of Peter (see Peter , epistles) are regarded by most critics as mistakenly attributed.

Peter and the Papacy

From earliest times Christians looked for leadership to the successors of Peter as the bishop of Rome. However, whether this primacy should be one of honor only (as held by the Orthodox Eastern Church) or of actual rulership of the whole church (as claimed by Roman Catholics; see papacy ) is one of the dividing questions of Christian history. The biblical passages cited to support Petrine supremacy are Mat. 16.13-20 and John 21.15-25. From the first passage comes the familiar image of the keys, which are seen to represent papal power, as well as that of St. Peter as the gatekeeper of heaven.

Bibliography

See D. W. O'Connor, Peter in Rome (2 vol., 1960); R. E. Brown et al., Peter in the New Testament (1973).

Peter, St, Prince of the Apostles. According to Jn. (1: 35–42) he was introduced to Christ by his brother Andrew and given the name ‘Cephas’, the Aramaic equivalent of the Greek ‘Peter’ (πέτρα, ‘rock’); according to Mt. (4: 18–20) and Mk. (1: 16–18) they were called together from their fishing. In all the lists of the Twelve [Apostles] Peter is named first. He is present on all three occasions when only a small ‘inner group’ is admitted, and he usually takes the lead as the mouthpiece of the Apostles. After his confession of faith at Caesarea Philippi that Jesus is the Christ (Mk. 8: 27–30; in Mt.16: 16, ‘the Christ, the Son of the living God’), Mt. adds the Lord's promise, ‘Thou art Peter, and on this rock I will build my Church’, together with the keys of heaven and the power of binding and loosing (16: 18f.). (The precise interpretation of this passage has been the subject of much controversy.) His pre–eminence is again affirmed by the Lord at the Last Supper (Lk. 22: 31 f.), but his boast that he will never leave Him is answered by Christ's prediction that before the end of the night he will deny Him thrice. When in the courtyard of the High Priest he is accused of being one of His followers, he three times denies that he knows Him, remembers His prediction, and repents bitterly (Mt. 26: 69–75). He goes to the Lord's tomb as soon as the women report that it is empty (Lk. 24: 12) and he is later favoured with a special appearance of the risen Christ (Lk. 24: 34). After the Ascension he immediately takes the lead of the Apostles and throughout the first half of Acts he appears as their head. He opens the Church to the Gentiles by admitting Cornelius (Acts 10: 1–11: 18) and his authority is evident at the so–called Council at Jerusalem (Acts 15: 7–11).

Little is known of his later years. The tradition connecting him with Rome is early and unrivalled. The later tradition attributing to him an episcopate of 25 years in Rome is less well supported. His death is placed in the reign of Nero (54–68) and was probably in the persecution of 64. There are historical grounds for believing that his tomb in St Peter's, Rome, is authentic. The statement of Papias that his memoirs lie behind Mk. is accepted by many scholars. Feast day (sometimes with St Paul), 29 June. For the NT Epistles, see PETER, EPISTLES OF ST.

Peter, St. In Christianity, foremost of the apostles. His name was Simon but according to the gospels Jesus called him from his work as fisherman and gave him the name ‘Cephas’, the Aramaic equivalent of Greek ‘Peter’ (petra, ‘rock’). According to early tradition Peter visited Rome where he was martyred (1 Clement 5, etc.); but the claim that he was its bishop is an anachronism. According to the 2nd-cent. Acts of Peter, the apostle, while fleeing from Nero's persecution, met Jesus on the road. Peter asked, ‘Domine, quo vadis?’ (‘Lord, where are you going?’). When Jesus answered ‘I am coming to be crucified again’, Peter turned back to the city to face his martyrdom. His tomb in St Peter's basilica may be authentic. Feast day, 29 June.

The two Letters of Peter are found among the Catholic Epistles of the New Testament. 2 Peter is a warning against false and corrupt teachers; 2. 1–3. 3 seems to be borrowed from Jude; features such as the treatment of Paul in 4. 15–16 suggest a date well after Peter's death.

Other 2nd-cent. books attributed to Peter include the Gospel of Peter (a docetic retelling of Jesus' death and resurrection based on the four New Testament gospels) and The Apocalypse of Peter (a description of heaven and hell put into the mouth of Christ after his resurrection).

Peter, Saint (d. c.64) Apostle of Jesus Christ. He was born Simon, son of Jonas. A fisherman on the Sea of Galilee, he and his brother Andrew were called by Jesus to be disciples. Jesus gave Simon the name Peter (John 1:42). Peter was one of Jesus' closest and most loyal associates. With James and John, he witnessed the Transfiguration. While Jesus was on trial before the Sanhedrin, Peter denied knowing him three times, just as Jesus had predicted. After Jesus' ascension, Peter was the first publicly to preach Christianity in Jerusalem. He took Christianity to Samaria. Imprisoned by King Herod, he was allegedly rescued by an angel and returned to Jerusalem. In his final years, he seems to have left Jerusalem and undertaken a missionary journey. Roman Catholic theology accepts him as the first head of the Church and the first bishop of Rome, from whom the popes claim succession. His feast day is June 29.