Peter and Paul, Apostles
Solemnity
As St. Augustine taught, this day was made holy by the passion of the blessed apostles Peter and Paul. Based on Saint Peter’s profession of faith, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God” (Mt 16:16), Jesus pronounced him: Peter, the rock on which He would build His church (cf Mt 16:18). St. Peter did not come to this conclusion on his own. But, rather, it was revealed to him, as Christ said, “by [Christ’s] heavenly Father” (Mt 16:17). It was the same for Saint Paul. The Gospel he preached is not of human origin, but came through a revelation of Christ (cf 2 Galatians 1:12).
Both men loved Jesus. Certainly a wonderful thing. But, what is perhaps even more important, is that they enfleshed that love, putting it in into action by preaching the Gospel, by their prayers, and by living and dying as witnesses to the truth of who Jesus is, His way and His life.
We are called to do the same: to love Him and “do” that love, preaching, by our words and actions, denying ourselves, taking up our crosses daily, and putting the Gospel into practice, even to the point of sacrificial death.
Christ has already done so for us. And, we know that no one has greater love than to lay down their life for their friends. It is the least we can do in return, making our lives a total gift in love, offered to God, through Christ, for Him, for His Church and for those we have been called to serve. May Saints Peter and Paul pray for us and, through their prayers, help us be completely conformed to Christ. May we be faithful to Jesus through the Church’s authority, which Christ himself established.
Art: Szalax / Wikimedia Commons
About Liz Estler
Editor, Roman Catholic Spiritual Direction. Liz holds a Master of Arts in Ministry Degree (St. John’s Seminary, Brighton, Massachusetts), Liturgy Certificate (Boston Archdiocese), and a BS degree in Biology and Spanish (Nebraska Wesleyan University – Lincoln). She has served as hospital chaplain associate, sacristan, translator and in other parish ministries. She was a regular columnist for a military newspaper in Europe and has been published in a professional journal. She once waded in the Trevi Fountain!
