The Solemnity of Saints of Peter and Paul

Acts 12:1-11, 2 Tim. 4:6-8.17-18, Mt. 16:13-19. We are a community that relies on living and life-giving memory. We remember our ancestors in the faith to thank God for them and imitate their virtues. Today, we reflect on the lives of two of the saints who became the foundation of the living Church – St Peter and St Paul. The personal lives of Peter and Paul were completely changed by their following Jesus. The twists and turns of their lives and especially their conversions, made them active parts of the edification - building up of the Church, so that God may reveal His power to transform and redirect our lives. They needed to be formed into the shape which God could use to edify the rest of the Church. We are also called to be part of this living edifice. What singled Peter out from the other disciples was his God-given insight into the identity of Jesus, which earned him the unique role of the Vicar of Christ. He is to be the rock, the firm foundation, on which Jesus will build His Church. Peter’s role is further spelt out by Jesus giving him the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven that suggests authority. The nature of that authority is expressed in terms of binding and loosing. This is a reference to the teaching authority conferred on Peter. Peter is being entrusted with the task of authoritatively interpreting the teaching of Jesus for other members of the Church.

If today's Gospel associates the teaching authority with Peter, today's first reading associates preaching with Paul. Here, Paul refers to the Lord as one who gave him power, so that through him the whole message might be preached for all the pagans to hear. Today's second reading may well have been written from his Roman imprisonment, where, like Peter, he was martyred for his faith in Christ. It is a very stirring text that expresses his success in his struggle: “I have fought the good fight to the end; I have run the race to the finish; I have kept the faith.” The image of the fight and the race suggest that “keeping the faith” was a struggle for Paul; it did not come easy to him, just as keeping the faith did not come easy to Peter either. Paul’s letters show that he was very aware that keeping the faith was not due primarily to his own efforts; it was the Lord who enabled him to keep the faith: “the Lord stood by me and gave me power.” It is the Lord who empowers all of us to keep the faith; His faithfulness enables us to be faithful to Him; His faithful love encourages us to keep returning to Him even after failure. Celebrating these two leading Apostles in a single Solemnity is a vibrant reminder that the Church needs both the formal, enduring, Peter, canonical leadership and the more charismatic, personal and inspirational leadership provided by characters like Paul, ever ready to question old ways and seek newer forms of bringing Christ into people’s lives

May the Lord who drew Peter back after he denied Jesus, draws us to His love and may our past keep us close to His merciful love! Amen!! Good morning and have a glorious day!!!