Feast of Saints Peter and Paul
Scripture:
Acts 12: 1-11
2 Timothy 4: 6-8, 17-18
Matthew 16: 13-19
Reflection:
Today we celebrate the feast day of two pillars of the Church, Sts. Peter and Paul. The lives of Peter and Paul were dominated by the answers to two simple but profound questions taken from our Scripture readings for today.
The first question was directed to Peter by Jesus. "Who do you say that I am?" Peter answered "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God." The second question also was directed to Peter. "Simon, son of John, do you love me?" Peter answered "Lord, you know everything, you know well that I love you." Jesus then responded, "Feed my sheep."
Both Peter and Paul recognized and accepted Jesus as the center of their lives. They confessed their faith in and love for Jesus. Jesus then sent them forth to preach this faith and love, to the ends of the earth and at the cost of both their lives, bearing witness to Him who sent them.
A simple way for us to reflect on today’s feast and the lives of Sts. Peter and Paul is to respond to the two questions Jesus posed.
Who do you say that I am? Do you love me?
A strong response to these two questions with both our faith and our hearts will lead us to follow the command of Jesus. We will be sent as disciples, like Sts. Peter and Paul, to "Feed my sheep."
Terry McDevitt, Ph.D. is a member of our Passionist Family who volunteers at the Passionist Assisted Living Community in Louisville, Kentucky.