22 Feb, 2017. The Chair of St Peter, Apostle

Today we celebrate Saint Peter’s leadership of the church in Rome. The magnificent marble cathedra,  fashioned (c.1650) by Gian Lorenzo Bernini for St. Peter’s basilica  surrounds a small wooden chair that may have been used by Peter himself, as his throne of office.

1st Reading: 1 Pet 5:1-4

Peter’s advice to his fellow Church leaders: feed God’s flock with loving respect

Now as an elder myself and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as one who shares in the glory to be revealed, I exhort the elders among you to tend the flock of God that is in your charge, exercising the oversight, not under compulsion but willingly, as God would have you do it – not for sordid gain but eagerly. Do not lord it over those in your charge, but be examples to the flock. And when the chief shepherd appears, you will win the crown of glory that never fades away.

Gospel: Matthew 16:13-19

Jesus appoints Peter as the Rock on which the Church will be built

When Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, but others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”

St. Peter’s Chair: The Holy See

The early Christians in Rome celebrated the memory of the day when the Apostle held his first service with the faithful of the Eternal City, under the title “Cathedra Petri” (the Chair of Peter). The earlier tradition was to celebrate this on 18 January. By the ninth century the feast of the Chair of St Peter had been moved to 22 February, and its celebration was held in two places, in the Vatican Basilica and in a cemetery on the Via Salaria. In both places a chair (cathedra) was venerated symbolising that which the Apostle had used as presiding officer of the assembly of the faithful.

This year, on the 5th centenary of Martin Luther’s call for the church to return to its Gospel roots, it is important that we reflect carefully on how the role of Saint Peter and his successors should be seen. New Testament scholars note how the report in Matthew 16 can be, and has often been, over-used to buttress inflated papal claims to worldwide jurisdiction and absolute monarchy. Such concepts were far removed from the mind of Christ and indeed from that of Peter himself, as is well seen in the first reading, where Peter calls himself a “sym-presbyteros” a fellow-elder, and clearly prefers the role of subsidiary shepherd under Christ the chief shepherd, to that of lawgiver, oracle or pontiff. The Matthean texts about Peter must be read in light of other texts in the Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles, to get a rounded picture of the kind of ministry which Peter exercised and passed on.

The significance of the feast today is to link the origins of the papal ministry with the apostolic task of the successor of St Peter as visible head of our worldwide Catholic Church. We pray today for divine guidance to our present pope and for the Church of God, that we may be led in an inspirational spirit of hopefulness, mirroring the beautiful ideal expressed by St Peter in today’s reading.

It’s not about furniture, it’s about unity

(excerpts from a sermon by Fr Randy Sly, Washington D.C.)

Later in the year we have the Feast of St. John Lateran, a feast focused upon a building. Today’s feast of the Chair of St. Peter, is not merely about a piece of furniture. We are celebrating the unity we have together as we are in communion with our Holy Father, the Vicar of Christ.

In the Protestant/Catholic divide, there has been a lot written and spoken about the words, “You are Peter and upon this Rock I will build my Church.” To the confessional churches, this rock cannot be a man but the message only. Yet, God has always built on a person not simply a principle. In the Office of Readings for this feast, St. Leo the Great expounds on this declaration: “You are Peter”: though I am the inviolable rock, the cornerstone that makes both one, the foundation apart from which no one can lay any other, yet you also are a rock, for you are given solidity by my strength, so that which is my very own because of my power is common between us through your participation. “And upon this rock I will build my Church”: On this strong foundation, he says, I will build an everlasting temple. The great height of my Church, which is to penetrate the heavens, shall rise on the firm foundation of this faith.

Peter’s presence, and that of his successors, stand as a testimony and representative of the Rock of Ages, Jesus Christ Himself. In communion with the Chair of St. Peter puts us in communion with the One who established the man seated as his vicar on earth. The Chair, or “Cathedra” takes on a special meaning beyond just being a fancy piece of furniture. In fact, the issue of its design and substance is not the focus of the feast.

The Chair of St Peter is represented in the apse of the Vatican Basilica by a monumental sculpture by Bernini. It is a symbol of the special mission of Peter and his Successors to tend Christ’s flock, keeping it united in faith and in charity. In the Bernini piece, there is a stained glass window above the chair with rays of light and the image of a dove at the center, symbolizing the Holy Spirit. The rays are divided into twelve sections, one for each of the apostles.

Today’s Feast sheds light on the special ministry of strengthening and guiding the Church in the unity of the faith which the Lord entrusted to the Head of the Apostles. It consists in this ministerium petrinum (Petrine ministry), the particular service that the Bishop of Rome gives to the entire Christian people. It is an indispensable mission that is built on the will of Christ himself, the cornerstone of the Ecclesial Community. We pray that the Church in all its different cultures, languages and traditions will be united in believing and professing the Gospel, as passed down by the Apostles.