Today we celebrate the feast of the Chair of Saint Peter.

This celebration honors the fact that Christ appointed Peter to take his place as the servant-authority of the entire Church. Peter learns the Good News after the “lost weekend” of suffering, uncertainty, and self-punishment. The Christ has risen!” proclaim angels to Magdalene at the tomb. John recalls that as he and Peter raced to His grave, the younger man outran the older man before waiting for him. When Peter arrived, he observed the headpiece rolled up and the wrappings on the floor. John saw and restored his faith; the impossible thought became a reality as Jesus appeared before them inside their locked homes and said, Peace be with you.

The Pentecostal occurrence marked the conclusion of Peter’s contact with the risen Christ. The apostles made a bold declaration as instructed by the Holy Spirit Himself when they began to communicate in tongues they had never encountered after receiving the Holy Spirit.

Jesus gave Peter a task to support his brothers; he immediately assumed the Twelve’s spokesperson role regarding their encounter with the Holy Spirit in front of the civil authorities who sought to suppress their preaching, the Jerusalem Council, and the locals in the Ananias and Sapphira controversy. He is the first to share the Gospel with non-Christians.

Peter did honor his Lord by dying as a martyr on Vatican Hill in Rome during Nero’s rule, most likely surrounded by other Christians.

Christians constructed a small monument above his grave in the second century. The basilica Emperor Constantine had made in the fourth century was replaced in the 16th century.

Source: franciscanmedia.org