The Life and Works of St. Peter the Apostle, Final Part.

The position and feast of Peter in the apostolic church

Given the information supplied by the gospels, it is not unexpected that Peter should emerge immediately after Jesus’ death as the leader of the earliest church. For approximately 15 years after the Resurrection, the figure of Peter dominated the community. He presided over the appointment of St. Matthias as an apostle (Acts 1:23–26) to take the place of Judas, who had betrayed Christ and later died. It was Peter who first “raised his voice” and preached at Pentecost, the day when the church began its mission to the world (Acts 1:14–39). It was Peter who served as an advocate for the Apostles before the Jewish religious court in Jerusalem (Acts 4:5–22). And it was he who exercised the role of judge in the disciplining of those who erred within the church (Acts 5:1–10).

Peter led the Twelve Apostles in extending the church “here and there among them all” (Acts 9:32). He went first to the Samaritans (Acts 8:4–17), “who received the Holy Spirit”; in Samaria he encountered the magician and faith healer Simon Magus. Then he went to Lydda, in the Plain of Sharon (Acts 9:32–35), where he healed the paralyzed Aeneas. Then, at the Mediterranean coastal town of Joppa (Acts 9:36–43), he effected the cure of Tabitha (Dorcas) in the name of Christ. He went farther north on the Mediterranean coast to Caesarea (Acts 10:1–11:18), where, through the conversion of Cornelius, “a centurion of what was known as the Italian Cohort” (Acts 10:1), Peter introduced gentiles into the church. According to Jewish requirements, a Gentile convert must first become a Jew through the rite of circumcision and be acceptable as a proselyte. In accepting Cornelius and the others who may have had some informal connection with the synagogue (Acts 10:1) and ordering “them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ” (Acts 10:48) without submission to the prior rite of circumcision, Peter introduced an innovation that ensured the opposition of the Jewish Christians and others.

 This independent course, set by Peter with the blessing of “the Spirit” (Acts 10:10–15), was possibly a factor in Herod’s beheading of St. James (the brother of John) and in the arrest of Peter (Acts 12:2, 3). In prison (c. 44 ce) Peter was visited by an “angel of the Lord.…And the chains fell off his hands,” and he made his escape (Acts 12:1–8). He went immediately to “the house of Mary, the mother of John whose other name was Mark” (Acts 12:12). After asking them to report his escape “to James and to the brethren,” he “went to another place” (Acts 12:17). It is not at all clear where Peter went, but it is not probable that the words “to another place” refer to a different home in the same general area that would provide temporary refuge.

 Five festivals in the calendar of the Roman Catholic Church involve honour paid to Peter. In each the name of Paul is also associated. First chronologically, on January 18 is celebrated the festival of the Cathedra Petri (Latin: “Chair of Peter”) at Rome and on February 22 at Antioch. June 29 marks the festival of Peter and Paul, ranking among the 12 most important celebrations of the Roman Catholic Church. The escape of Peter from his chains is noted in the feast of August 1. Last, the dedications of the basilicas of Peter and Paul, commemorating their construction by the emperor Constantine, are celebrated in the festival of November 18.

Source: Holy Scriptures, Encyclopedia...

Research and edited by self, please check my profile, leave a comment and like. thanks..