JUNE 29

Day 29: Saints Peter and Paul, the Great Apostles.

Peter is Simon, son of Jonah, brother of Andrew. He was born in Bet-Saida in Galilee, and worked as a fisherman. When his brother Andrew introduced him to Jesus, the Lord told him that “from now on, you will be called Keefa, which means rock.” And in another occasion Jesus called Peter and Andrew to follow him, promising to make them into fishers of men, and immediately they left their nets and walked after him. From that second call on, Peter accompanied Jesus all the time, until the end.

The apostles will find hard time to believe in the Eucharist, when Jesus told them that his body is a real food and his blood is a real drink, and as many disciples deserted Jesus for saying this, He asked the twelve apostles whether they too wanted to abandon him, and it was Peter who answered back then: “Lord to whom shall we go, and You have the words of eternal life?”

It was also Peter who asked the Lord one day: “How many times am I supposed to forgive my brother per day? Seven times?’ Jesus answered: ‘not seven times, but seventy times seven times”. The discourse underscores the human weakness, and the importance to forgive always, as long as the repentant intends good. How exited Peter was to defend his Master, when Jesus revealed to his disciples about how He was going to die! Peter told Jesus: “I am ready to go with you to the prison, even till death”, and Jesus said back: “The spirit is ready, but the body is weak. You will betray me, the night of my passion, three times before the rooster sings out twice. And so it happened, but Peter repented later and cried his sin for the rest of his life.

It is evident throughout the New Testament books that Peter was among the very first who had confessed their faith in Jesus and followed him. He was faithful to Jesus’ teachings, and was present next to Jesus in all of the critical events in the life of Lord; who made him the leader of the community of twelve and the head of his Church. Therefore Peter used to preside the disciples’ meetings in the after resurrection period, and guide them as the one with authority among them. It was Peter who preached to the Jews on the Pentecost day, and performed in the Name of God many miracles. With great courage, he then went out to preach the Gospel in Samaria, the sea shore cities in Palestine and Lebanon, and he got Cornelius the commander baptized, after a miraculous vision given to him directly by God. Peter was the first among the Apostles to leave Jerusalem and carry out the Good News of Jesus.

After the ascension of the Lord, Peter preached in Palestine and Phoenicia and Asia for five years, and then he established his seat (cathedral) in Antioch for seven years, wherein Odisios succeeded him. From there he then went to Rome wherein he founded his eat in the year 44 AD. Then he turned back to Jerusalem in the same year, where Herod Agrippa arrested and jailed him, only to be released by the angle of the Lord later, and thus presume his evangelization mission, and work on the first Apostolic Council, and on his first epistle. After that he returned to Rome, where he brought down Simon the magician from the air and put him and his deceitful tricks to shame. Now this magician Simon, was a friend of the king Nero, whose hate for Peter grew up the more and he was looking to hunt the adequate occasion to kill Peter. Before he was arrested, Peter knew that his end was near by a divine revelation, and thus he wrote down his second epistle. Shortly after that Nero arrested him and thrown him in the prison, then ordered him to be crucified. Moved by humility Peter refused to be crucified but downwards, which was granted to him.

It had been proven by the several saints, like Dionysius, Irenaus, Eusebius, and Ironemos, as well by the recent Roman archeological discoveries that Peter had gone to Rome after an accord with Paul, and there he was martyred after he had established its Church during the reign of Nero in the year 67. May his prayer be with us. Amen.

As for Saint Paul, the great apostle who went crazy in loving Christ, and after he had persecuted the Church, he converted carrying high the flag of the Gospel, marching around the world, challenging the impossible in the sea or on land, fearing nothing, even death for the sake of the One who had redeemed us by His own death. Paul was the sign of his time and will always be so, because of his great achievements and his outstanding epistles, which stand as the best prove of what God grace can do in a repentant heart.

Saul was born in Tarsus City, around the year 10 AD, in a Jewish family from a Galilean descent. He studied philosophy and rhetoric under the famous master Gamaliel in Jerusalem, and was called later Paul.

He hated and persecuted all who dared trespassing the old law of his ancestors, and therefore he assisted in stoning Steven, his colleague and the first martyr. He also chased the Christians and drove them into prisons. And while he was going to Damascus in a similar mission, suddenly a light from the sky shined over him, and he fall down to the ground to hear the following voice: “He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?" He said, "Who are you, sir?" The reply came, "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. Now get up and go into the city and you will be told what you must do" (Acts 9:4-6). At that Saul stood up and walked into Damascus, his eyes were opened but he could see nothing and needed someone to lead him by hand. There he stayed for three days, a blind man, abstaining himself from any water or food (Cf. Acts 9:1-10).

The Lord sent him then to his disciple Ananias who led his hands over him, restored his sight to him and baptized him. Saul’s miraculous conversion took place in the year 35 AD. Soon after that Paul was preaching in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God, which moved the Jews to plot to kill him, but the Christians helped him and got him safe out of the city. Thus he returned to Jerusalem where he contacted the Apostles; and from there went audaciously preaching salvation in the name of Jesus in the temple. At this the Jews decided to kill him, but he traveled to Tarsus his hometown, traveling by Syria, and Cilicia, along with Barnaba and John Mark. In Cyprus he converted the governor Serjius Paul and got baptized along with his household.

Paul went on carrying out the God News, he healed a paralytic-born man in Listra; where the people raised up their hands crying out that: “the gods had camouflaged themselves into human forms and came down to us!” and they wanted to offer Paul and Barnaba sacrifices, but Paul stopped them, explaining that “we are but people like you”. Still, the Jews managed to arouse the crowds against him and got him driven outside the walls of the city, where they stoned him. In the next morning, God healed him and so he departed along with Barnaba to new lands, establishing new Christian communities and ordaining presbyters to serve them.

Paul then turned back to Antioch where he stayed for several days, then left there accompanied with Sila and Luke to spread out the Good News in Asia Minor, Cilicia, Liconia, Galatia, Traus, and other Greek cities and towns. At that time Timothy followed him, whom he ordained later the bishop of Ephesus. In Athena Paul delivered his famous speech before its philosophers in the Areopagus, where he brought many people to believe in Jesus, and among them was Dionysius the Areopagian.

After that Paul went back to Jerusalem to stay there for two years, then again he traveled throughout the cities of Asia Minor and ended to Corinth, where the Lord appeared to him and encouraged him, supporting his mission with awesome miracles. Paul traveled throughout Galatia and Ferigia, confirming the disciples in their faith, until he reached Ephesus, where he stayed for three years preaching and baptizing people in the name of Jesus Christ, hand working to earn his living.

From there he went on preaching in the islands in the Roman Sea, until he reached Tyre, Akka and Caesarea; where the brothers (Christians) attempted to stop him from going to Jerusalem, insisting with tears that he should not go there. “Then Paul replied, ‘What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? I am prepared not only to be bound but even to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus’ (Acts 21:13).

There the Jews attempted to kill him, but they got halted by the centurion. And when Paul addressed the crowd in Hebrew explaining his conversion to the Christian faith, the Jews shouted: “crucify him, hang him”. Thus to calm them down the governor wanted to hand him to be scourged, but Paul objected, explaining that he is a Roman citizen. Then the commander of 1000 (if centurion is an army commander of 100 people, what an army commander of 1000 solders is called? Millinum?)/ or the army commander sent him to the governor in Caesarea, the headquarter of the Roman Province, where he stayed in chains for two years. After listening to him King Agrippa could have released Saint Paul, but the later asked for a hearing before Caesar.

Thus Paul embarked to Rome along with other prisoners accompanied with two faithful friends, Luke, and Estrakhos of Macedonia. And after the Roman Judicial system had examined his case, they found him not guilty, and released him. So he stayed in Rome for two years preaching the Gospel. Then went back to Crete to continue the evangelization he had started, and thus he went on visiting the Churches of Asia Minor, Troy and Corinth. And it is said that he reached Spain, crossing through France, then came back to Rome where Nero arrested him and throw him into prison, the ordered him to be beheaded while he ordered Peter to crucified, in the year 67 AD.

Paul left some fabulous 14 epistles, that are considered a piece of art in the world of rhetoric and a biblical treasure in the Holy Church. May his prayer be with us. Amen.