On this feast day of the holy Apostles S. Peter and S. Paul, we could do well to meditate on the unity of the Church, and how important that is. Our Lord at the Last Supper, the day before His great Sacrifice on Good Friday, prayed that we would be one, and the Gospels tell us how He made the Apostles the centre of this unity; and among the Apostles one man was commissioned to strengthen the others. It was natural for the Twelve (less traitor Judas, plus S. Matthias) to hand on this crucial role of maintaining unity to other men, whom they called overseers (episcopoi in the Greek, bishops in the English) as hierarchical judges of the churches that had already been established and would continue to grow in number over the centuries.
“And when that time comes, I will summon one who is a true servant of mine, Eliacim the son of Helcias, clothe him with thy robe, gird him with thy girdle, entrust him with the power that once was thine; to rule all the citizens of Jerusalem, all Juda’s race, with a father’s care. I will give him the key of David’s house to bear upon his shoulders; none may shut when he opens, none open when he shuts. I will fix him securely in his place, like a peg that is to carry all the royal honour of his father’s house; all the honour of his father’s house will rest upon him, as a man’s goods rest on a peg, the smaller of them, here a cooking-pan, there an instrument of music.”
Prophecy of Isaias, 22: 20-24 [link]
The Old Testament (above, Isaias) tells us of the steward of the kings of Judah, who had the care of the king’s household, and the duty of government of that household in the absence of the king. This steward would be possessed of keys, which he wore upon his clothing, be they actual keys or ceremonial/symbolic ones. Many of these old traditions of the Jewish kings would have laid dormant over the centuries since the royal house of David had been demolished in the seventh century BC. But here was our Lord, manifested particularly on Palm Sunday as the Successor of David, the Messiah, the scion of the kings returned at last. And, as in the gospel story today, He had appointed his steward:
“Then Jesus came into the neighbourhood of Caesarea Philippi; and there He asked His disciples, ‘What do men say of the Son of Man? Who do they think He is?’ ‘Some say John the Baptist,’ they told Him, ‘others Elias, others again, Jeremy or one of the prophets.’ Jesus said to them, ‘And what of you? Who do you say that I am?’ Then Simon Peter answered, ‘Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.’ And Jesus answered him, ‘Blessed art thou, Simon son of Jona; it is not flesh and blood, it is My Father in heaven that has revealed this to thee. And I tell thee this in My turn, that thou art Peter, and it is upon this rock that I will build My church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it; and I will give to thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”
Gospel of S. Matthew, 16: 13-19 [link]
The parallel to the reading from Isaias is clear. Although the gospel reading is rather short, Christ immediately after that appointment of Peter as steward/vicar starts to talk about His own passion and death, His resurrection and His departure. Peter would have a very real job in His absence. The steward is a crucial administrative role in the household of the Jewish king, and as the number of Christians increased and grew, and seemed likely to challenge the political status quo relationship between the Romans, Herod Antipas and the Temple priests, what should Herod do but attack the Apostles and particularly Peter. We see this described in detail in the first reading this weekend.
“It was at this same time that Herod exerted his authority to persecute some of those who belonged to the Church. James, the brother of John, he beheaded, and then, finding that this was acceptable to the Jews, he went further, and laid hands on Peter too. It was the time of unleavened bread; and he imprisoned Peter, after arresting him, with a guard of four soldiers, relieved four times a day; when paschal-time was over, he would bring him out in the presence of the people. Peter, then, was well guarded in prison, but there was a continual stream of prayer going up to God from the Church on his behalf.”
Acts of the Apostles, 12: 1-5 [link]
So Herod has killed S. James, and now he had Peter in chains. His intelligence men would have made sure he went after S. John next. These three men were our Lord’s ‘cardinal’ Apostles – his nearest confidants and legal witnesses – and with them out of the way, the growing Church would possibly lose her centre of unity and break apart. This shrewdness of Herod’s we have seen throughout history, when kings and princes, governments and secret societies have placed in their cross-hairs the Successor of Peter and at other times the great patriarchs of the ancient churches. As the prophet Zechariah said, and as our Lord repeated, Strike the shepherd and the sheep will be scattered.
We must always remember this when we think of the Holy Father in Rome. When we see his smiling face on the television, or in the new media, we must remember his many enemies, both human and spirit. Pray (as the early Church did for S. Peter, above) that his faith may not falter, that he will continue to preach the gospel in the most evil of circumstances, and that he will strengthen his brother bishops in their own ministry.
We talk about S. Peter very much on this feast day, because the Holy Father is the Successor of Peter and so inherits the governance of and supreme authority within the Church (as given by the keys). But from the earliest times, every feast day of S. Peter (such the Chair of Peter in February) was accompanied by a commemoration of S. Paul, and every feast day of S. Paul (such as the Conversion in January) included a commemoration of S. Peter. They are the twin patron Saints of Rome and stand together in our memories and in our devotions.
Although the first reading and the gospel reading this weekend focus on S. Peter, we have an extract from the very touching second letter of S. Paul to Timothy as our second reading. This was the last letter Paul sent out and is addressed to his bishop in Ephesus; Paul is about to be executed, as he clearly states. We see in this short reading further qualities of the bishop of Rome, who could also perhaps be called the Successor of Paul. I shall read them out: (a) his perseverance until the end, (b) his keeping the Church in mind throughout his suffering, (c) his finding his strength both physical and spiritual in Christ, when everybody he trusted seemed to have abandoned him in his imprisonment, and (d) his supernatural hope in a reward beyond this world.
These great martyrs carry the Catholic Church upon their backs. May they pray for us always.
“As for me, my blood already flows in sacrifice; the time has nearly come when I can go free. I have fought the good fight; I have finished the race; I have redeemed my pledge; I look forward to the prize that is waiting for me, the prize I have earned. The Lord, the judge whose award never goes amiss, will grant it to me when that day comes; to me, yes, and all those who have learned to welcome his appearing. Make haste, and come quickly to me. Demas has fallen in love with this present world; he has deserted me, and gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia, and Luke is my only companion. Join company with Mark, and bring him here with thee; he can help me with the exercise of his ministry now that I have sent Tychicus away to Ephesus. When thou comest, bring with thee the cloak which I left in Carpus’ hands at Troas; the books, too, and above all the rolls of parchment. I have had much ill usage from Alexander, the coppersmith. As for what he has done, the Lord will judge him for it; only do thou, too, be on thy guard against him; he has been a great enemy to our preaching. At my first trial, no one stood by me; I was deserted by everybody; may it be forgiven them. But the Lord was at my side; He endowed me with strength, so that through me the preaching of the gospel might attain its full scope, and all the Gentiles might hear it; thus I was brought safely out of the jaws of the lion. Yes, the Lord has preserved me from every assault of evil; He will bring me safely into His heavenly kingdom; glory be to Him through endless ages, Amen.”
Second letter of S. Paul to S. Timothy, 4: 6-18 [link]
Catholic Louth and Mablethorpe 