ST. PETER, PRINCE OF THE APOSTLES, BISHOP OF ROME AND VICAR OF CHRIST.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXVIII, Issue 25, 21 June 1900, Page 7

ST. PETER, PRINCE OF THE APOSTLES, BISHOP OF ROME AND VI CAR OF CHRIST.

St. Petbk, whose original name was Simon Barjona, that is ' Simon, son of John,' was, like his brother Andrew, a fisherman by trade and dwelt in the little town of Capharnaum on the shores of the sea of Galileo. Andrew was one of the two disciples of St. John to whom the Baptist pointed out the Redeemer of the world on the banks of the river Jordon, ' Behold,' said he ' the Lamb of God ; behold Him who taketh away the sins of the world !' Whereupon Andrewr left John and followed Jesus. The same evening be brought to our Lord his brother Simon, whose name was then changed by Jesna into Peter, that is rock, to signify that he was to be the firm foundation of the future Church. After the miraculous draught of fishes and his second call to the Apoetleship, St. Peter remained in the company of hia Divine Master, who distinguished him with special marks of love and confidence. On the occasion, of St. Peter's glorious profession of Faith in our Lord's Divinity. ' Thou art Christ, the Son of the living God.' Jesus addressed to him these ever memorable words, ' I say to thee that thou art Peter, and upon thia rock I will build My Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give to thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever thou ehalt bind upon earth, it shall be bound also in heaven, and whatever thou shalt loose upon earth it Bhall be loosed also in heaven.' This solemn promise to make St. Peter not only the foundation but alno the head and ruler of His Church was fulfilled by Jesus after His resurrection, when He said to him on the shores of the sea of Galilee, ' Feed My lambs, feed My sheep.' But St. Peter had first to be tried in the crucible of temptation, and unhappily, through a want of humble vigilance and a presumptuous reliance on his own strength, he fell into the grievous crime of thrice denying his Master. His repentance, however, was prompt and sincere, and it in recorded that his cheeks were furrowed with the streams of tears which he continually poured forth at the remembrance of his former weakness. No sooner had St. Peter reoeived the Holy Ghont along with the other Apostles on the day of Pentecost, than, burning with a holy zeal to communicate to others the knowledge and lo c of his Divine Matter, he went forth into the streets of Jerusalem and announced the good tidingb of the Gospel to the assembled multitude. Being brought with St. John before the High Priest and the Supreme Council of the Jews, he was asked by what power and in whose name he had worked the cure. He replied that it was by the name of Jesus of Nazareth, Whom they had crucified, but Whom God had raised from the dead, that the lame man stood before them whole and sound . Thereupon the two Apostles were dismissed from the assembly with btrict injunction that they should speak no more nor teach in the name of Jesus. Not long afterwards the two Apostles were again apprehended and cast into the public prison from which they were delivered during the night by an angel, who opened the gates of the prison and set them free. Being found the next morning preaching in the temple, they were brought once more before the Sanhedrim. On this occasion they were ordered to be scourged and again commanded to speak no more in the name of Jesus. After the scourging of St. Peter and the conversion of St Paul, St. Peter, leaving Jerusalem, preached the Go&pel in Judea and the neighboring districts. Soon afterwards he established his episcopal see at Antioch, where by his preaching and miracles the faithful became exceedingly multiplied and were known by the distinctive name of Christians. A few years later, going up to Jerusalem at the time of the Paschal solemnity, St. Peter was apprehended and cast into prison by order of King Herod Agrippa, who had recently put to the gword the Apostle St. James the Great, the brother of St. John the Evangelist. He was, however, delivered a second time by the angel of the Lord, who visited him during the night and conducted him through the midst of the guards into the streets of the city. His miraculous deliverance is commemorated by the Church on August 1 . After governing the Church of Antioch for about seven years, St. Peter proceeded to Rome, where he finally established his episcopal see, After he had occupied the see of Rome for 23 years, St. Peter was arrested by order of the Emperor Nero and cast into the Mamertine prison in company with St. Paul. During the eight months that they remained in confinement the two Apostles had the consolation of converting to the Faith the captains of their guards, Proceesusand Martinian, with 47 others whom they baptised with the water of a miraculous spring which issued, and still continues to flow, from the rocky bed of their dungeon. Being at length condemned to die, St. Paul was beheaded and St. Peter crucified like his Divine Master. At his own request he was fastened to the cross with hia head downwards, for he deemed himself unworthy to die in the same position as the Saviour Whom he had denied, St. Peter Buffered under the Emperor Nero on June 29, A.D. 63. His relics are still preserved with profound veneration iv the great basilica dedicated to him at Rome.