Peter, the Apostle

From Nordan Symposia
Revision as of 03:37, 6 November 2009 by Rdavis (talk | contribs)
Jump to navigationJump to search

Lighterstill.jpg

Apostle Saint Peter 1610 14 Apostolados.jpg

Simon-Peter Greek: Πέτρος, Pétros “Rock”, [1] Kephas in Hellenized Aramaic) (c.1–AD 64) was a leader of the early Christian church, who features prominently in the New Testament Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. According to Biblical accounts, he was one of Twelve Apostles, chosen by Jesus from his first disciples. He was a Galilean fisherman assigned a leadership role by Jesus[Matt. 6:18] and was with Jesus during events witnessed by only a few apostles, such as the Transfiguration.[2] Early Christian writers provided more details about his life. Roman Catholic tradition states that he was the first Pope (from 30 AD to 64 AD), the author of two canonical epistles, and a martyr under Nero, crucified head down, and buried in Rome.[2] His memoirs are traditionally cited by scholars as the source of the Gospel of Mark.

Names and etymologies

Peter is also known as Ben-Yonah/Bar-Yonah, Simon Peter, Cephas (Greek: Κηφᾶς), and Kepha (Kepha and Cephas כיפא also mean rock)—original name Shimon or Simeon.

New Testament account

Peter's life story relies on the New Testament, since there are few other first-century accounts of his life and death. In the New Testament, he is the first of the disciples called during Jesus' ministry. It was during his first meeting with Jesus that Jesus named him Peter. Peter was to become the first apostle ordained by Jesus in the early church.[2]

For lessons attributed to the Apostle Peter, follow this link.

Background

Peter ran a fishing business in Bethsaida.[Jn. 1:44] He was named Simon, son of Jonah or John.[3] The synoptic gospels all recount how Peter's mother-in-law was healed by Jesus at their home in Capernaum[Matt. 8:14–17] [Mk. 1:29–31] [Lk. 4:38] which, coupled with ;&version=; 1 Cor. 9:5, clearly depict Peter as married or a widower. In the Synoptic Gospels, Peter (then Simon) was a fisherman along with his brother Andrew and the sons of Zebedee, James and John. The Gospel of John also depicts Peter fishing, even after the resurrection of Jesus, in the story of the Catch of 153 fish.

In Matthew and Mark, Jesus called Simon and his brother Andrew to be "fishers of men."[Matt. 4:18–19] [Mk. 1:16–17] In Luke, Simon Peter owns the boat that Jesus uses to preach to the multitudes who were pressing on him at the shore of Lake Gennesaret.[Lk. 5:3] Jesus then amazes Simon and his companions James and John (Andrew is not mentioned) by telling them to lower their nets, whereupon they catch a huge number of fish. Immediately after this, they follow him.[Lk. 5:4–11]

The Gospel of John gives a somewhat different account of "The First Disciples."[Jn. 1:35–42] In John, we are told that it was two disciples of John the Baptist (Andrew and an unnamed disciple) who heard John the Baptist announce Jesus as the "Lamb of God," and then followed Jesus. Andrew then went and fetched his brother Simon, saying, "We have found the Messiah," and then brought Simon to Jesus. Jesus then gave Simon the name "Cephas," meaning 'rock', in Aramaic. 'Petros', a masculine form of the feminine 'petra' (rock) is the Greek equivalent of this. It had not previously been used as a name, but in the Greek-speaking world it became a popular Christian name after the tradition of Peter's prominence in the early Christian church had been established.

Position among the apostles

Peter is always mentioned first in the lists of the Twelve given in the canonical gospels.[4] He is also frequently mentioned in the Gospels as forming with James the Elder and John a special group within the Twelve Apostles, present at incidents at which the others were not present, such as at the Transfiguration of Jesus. He often confesses his faith in Jesus as the Messiah.

Peter is often depicted in the Gospels as spokesman of all the apostles. Catholics refer to him as chief of the Apostles,[5][6] as do the Eastern Orthodox[7] and the Oriental Orthodox.[8][9] In contrast, Jewish Christians are said to have argued that James the Just was the leader of the group.[10] Some argue James was the Patriarch of Jerusalem and that this position at times gave him privilege in some (but not all) situations. The early Church historian Eusebius (c AD 325) records Clement of Alexandria (c AD 190) as saying, "For they say that Peter and James and John after the ascension of our Saviour, as if also preferred by our Lord, strove not after honor, but chose James the Just bishop of Jerusalem."[11] Paul affirms that Peter had the special charge of being apostle to the Jews, just as he, Paul, was apostle to the Gentiles.

Role in the early church

The author of the Acts of the Apostles portrays Peter as an extremely important figure within the early Christian community, with Peter delivering a significant open-air sermon during Pentecost. According to the same book, Peter took the lead in selecting a replacement for Judas Iscariot.[Acts 1:15] He was twice arraigned, with John, before the Sanhedrin and directly defied them.[Acts 4:7–22] [Acts 5:18–42] He undertook a missionary journey to Lydda, Joppa and Caesarea,[Acts 9:32–10:2] becoming instrumental in the decision to evangelise the Gentiles.[Acts 10]

About halfway through, the Acts of the Apostles turns its attention away from Peter and to the activities of Paul, and the Bible is fairly silent on what occurred to Peter afterwards.

Death

In the epilogue[1] of the Gospel of John, Jesus hints at the death by which Peter would glorify God,[Jn. 21:18–19] saying "'…when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and another will dress you and take you where you do not want to go.'" This is understood as a reference to Peter's crucifixion.[13] According to the 1911 Catholic Encyclopedia, St. Peter labored in Rome during the last portion of his life, and there ended his earthly course by martyrdom.[17][18] The death of St. Peter is attested to by Tertullian at the end of the second century, and by Origen in Eusebius, Church History II.1. Origen says: "Peter was crucified at Rome with his head downwards, as he himself had desired to suffer".[19] According to the noncanonical Acts of Peter, he was crucified upside down.

Status

St. Clement of Rome identifies Peter and Paul as the outstanding heroes of the faith.[2] Papias reported that the Gospel of Mark was based on Peter's memoirs, a tradition still accepted by some scholars today.[2]

Martyrdom

The Annuario Pontificio gives the year of Peter's death as A.D. 64 or A.D. 67. Early church tradition (as indicated below) says Peter probably died at the time of the Great Fire of Rome of the year 64. Margherita Guarducci, who led the research leading to the rediscovery of Peter’s tomb in its last stages (1963-1968), was of the opinion that Peter died on October 13 A.D. 64 during the festivities on the occasion of the “dies imperii” of Emperor Nero. This took place three months after the disastrous fire that destroyed Rome for which the emperor wished to blame the Christians. This “dies imperii” (regnal day anniversary) was an important one, exactly ten years after Nero acceded to the throne, and it was ‘as usual’ accompanied by much bloodshed. Traditionally, Roman authorities sentenced him to death by crucifixion. According to the apocryphal Acts of Peter, he was crucified head down. Tradition also locates his burial place where the Basilica of Saint Peter was later built, directly beneath the Basilica's high altar.

Clement of Rome, in his Letter to the Corinthians (Chapter 5), written c. 80-98, speaks of Peter's martyrdom in the following terms: "Let us take the noble examples of our own generation. Through jealousy and envy the greatest and most just pillars of the Church were persecuted, and came even unto death… Peter, through unjust envy, endured not one or two but many labours, and at last, having delivered his testimony, departed unto the place of glory due to him."

Writings

Traditionally, two canonical epistles (1 & 2 Peter) and several apocryphal works have been attributed to Peter.

New Testament

The New Testament includes two letters (epistles) ascribed to Peter. Both demonstrate a high quality of cultured and urban Greek, at odds with the linguistic skill that would ordinarily be expected of an Aramaic-speaking fisherman, who would have learned Greek as a second or third language. However, the author of the first epistle explicitly claims to be using a secretary (see below), and this explanation would allow for discrepancies in style without entailing a different source. The textual features of these two epistles are such that a majority of scholars doubt that they were written by the same hand. This means at the most that Peter could not have authored both, or at the least that he used a different secretary for each letter. Some scholars argue that theological differences imply different sources, and point to the lack of references to 2 Peter among the early Church Fathers.

Of the two epistles, the first epistle is considered the earlier. A number of scholars have argued that the textual discrepancies with what would be expected of the biblical Peter are due to it having been written with the help of a secretary or as an amanuensis. Indeed in the first epistle the use of a secretary is clearly described: "By Silvanus, a faithful brother unto you, as I suppose, I have written briefly, exhorting, and testifying that this is the true grace of God wherein ye stand".[;&version=; 1 Pet. 5:12] Thus, in regards to at least the first epistle, the claims that Peter would have written Greek poorly seem irrelevant. The references to persecution of Christians, which only began under Nero, cause most scholars to date the text to at least 80, which would require Peter to have survived to an age that was, at that time, extremely old, and almost never reached, particularly by common fishermen. However, the Roman historian Tacitus and the biographer Suetonius both record that Nero's persecution of Christians began immediately after the fire that burned Rome in 64. Such a date, which is in accord with Christian tradition, especially Eusebius (History book 2, 24.1), would not have Peter at an improbable age upon his death. On the other hand, many scholars consider this in reference to the persecution of Christians in Asia Minor during the reign of the emperor Domitian (81-96). In the salutation of the First Epistle of Peter the writer refers to the diaspora, which did not occur until 136: Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to God's elect, strangers in the world, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and sprinkling by his blood: Grace and peace be yours in abundance.

The Second Epistle of Peter, on the other hand, appears to have been copied, in part, from the Epistle of Jude, and some modern scholars date its composition as late as c. 150. Some scholars argue the opposite, that the Epistle of Jude copied 2 Peter, while others contend an early date for Jude and thus observe that an early date is not incompatible with the text. Many scholars have noted the similarities between the apocryphal second pseudo-Epistle of Clement (2nd century) and 2 Peter. Second Peter may be earlier than 150, there are a few possible references to it that date back to the first century or early second century, e.g., 1 Clement written in c. AD 96, and the later church historian Eusebius claimed that Origen had made reference to the epistle before 250. Even in early times there was controversy over its authorship, and 2 Peter was often not included in the Biblical Canon; it was only in the 4th century that it gained a firm foothold in the New Testament, in a series of synods. In the east the Syrian Orthodox Church still did not admit it into the canon until the 6th century. Traditionally, the Gospel of Mark was said to have been written by a person named John Mark, and that this person was an assistant to Peter, hence its content was traditionally seen as the closest to Peter's viewpoint. According to Eusebius's Ecclesiastical History, Papias recorded this belief from John the Presbyter:

Mark having become the interpreter of Peter, wrote down accurately whatsoever he remembered. It was not, however, in exact order that he related the sayings or deeds of Christ. For he neither heard the Lord nor accompanied Him. But afterwards, as I said, he accompanied Peter, who accommodated his instructions to the necessities [of his hearers], but with no intention of giving a normal or chronological narrative of the Lord's sayings. Wherefore Mark made no mistake in thus writing some things as he remembered them. For of one thing he took especial care, not to omit anything he had heard, and not to put anything fictional into the statements.—Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History, 3.39.14–16

Also Irenaeus wrote about this tradition:

After their (Peter and Paul's) passing, Mark also, the disciple and interpreter of Peter, transmitted to us in writing the things preached by Peter. (Irenaeus, Against Heresies, III. 1.2.; quoted by Eusebius in Ecclesiastical History, book 5, 7.6) Based on these quotes, and on the Christian tradition, the information in Mark's Gospel about St. Peter would be based on eyewitness material. It should be noted, however, that some scholars (for differing reasons) dispute the attribution of the Gospel of Mark to its traditional author. The gospel itself is anonymous, and the above passages are the oldest surviving written testimony to its authorship. [edit]Pseudepigrapha and apocrypha There are also a number of other apocryphal writings that have been either attributed to or written about St. Peter. They were from antiquity regarded as pseudepigrapha.[citation needed] These include: Gospel of Peter, a Docetic narrative that has survived in part Acts of Peter Acts of Peter and Andrew Acts of Peter and Paul Acts of Peter and the Twelve Gnostic Apocalypse of Peter A Letter of Peter to Philip, which was preserved in the Nag Hammadi library Apocalypse of Peter, which was considered as genuine by many Christians as late as the fourth century The Epistula Petri, the introductory letter ascribed to Apostle Peter that appears at the beginning of at least one version of the Clementine literature

Notes

  1. Harris, Stephen L., Understanding the Bible. Palo Alto: Mayfield. 1985.
  2. "Peter, St." Cross, F. L., ed. The Oxford dictionary of the Christian church. New York: Oxford University Press. 2005
  3. His father's name is given as 'Jonah',[Jn. 1:42] [Matt. 16:17] although some manuscripts of John give his father's name as John.
  4. Matt. 10:2-4, Mk. 3:16-19, Lk. 6:14-16
  5. http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/11744a.htm Catholic Encyclopedia: St. Peter, Prince of the Apostles
  6. Sermon by Leo the Great (440-461)
  7. Archbishop Stylianos of Australia
  8. Patriarch H.H.Ignatius Zakka I Iwas
  9. Identity of the Syriac Orthodox Church
  10. http://cbi.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/5/1/73.pdf
  11. http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/250102.htm [Church History Book II, Chapter I, quoting Clement of Alexandria's Sixth book of Hypotyposes]
  12. Matt. 26:51, Mk. 14:47, Lk. 22:50
  13. May, Herbert G. and Bruce M. Metzger. The New Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocrypha. 1977.
  14. Brodie, T. L. (1997). The Gospel according to John a literary and theological commentary. New York: Oxford University Press. pg. 574
  15. Louise Ropes Loomis, The Book of Popes (Liber Pontificalis). Merchantville, NJ: Evolution Publishing. ISBN 1-889758-86-8 (Reprint of the 1916 edition.
  16. This is provided in Downey, A History of Antioch, pp. 583–586. This evidence is accepted by M. Lapidge, among others, see Bischoff and Lapidge, Biblical Commentaries from the Canterbury School (Cambridge, 1994) p. 16. Lastly, see Finegan, The Archaeology of the New Testament, pp. 63–71.
  17. http://oce.catholic.com/index.php?title=Peter%2C_Apostle%2C_Saint
  18. Kirsch, J.P. (1911). St. Peter, Prince of the Apostles. In The Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. Retrieved February 20, 2009 from New Advent: http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/11744a.htm
  19. Kirsch, J.P. (1911). St. Peter, Prince of the Apostles. In The Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. Retrieved February 13, 2009 from New Advent: http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/11744a.htm
  20. Walsh, The Bones of St. Peter: A 1st Full Account of the Search for the Apostle's Body
  21. Finegan, The Archeology of the New Testament, pp. 368–370.
  22. http://www.saintpetersbasilica.org/Necropolis/JW/TheBonesofStPeter-1.htm The Bones of St. Peter
  23. Gospel of Thomas 13
  24. Gospel of Thomas 114
  25. Apocalypse of Peter
  26. Gospel of Mary 9:4
  27. http://www.gnosis.org/library/marygosp.htm Gospel of Mary 9:6
  28. Gospel of Peter 14:3
  29. Doctrine & Covenants 27:12-13
  30. Doctrine & Covenants 128:20-21
  31. http://www.catholic.com/library/Peter_the_Rock.asp
  32. http://www.peshitta.org/pdf/Mattich16.pdf
  33. Jesus, Peter & the Keys: A Scriptural Handbook on the Papacy
  34. Veselin Kesich (1992). "Peter's Primacy in the New Testament and the Early Tradition" in The Primacy of Peter. St. Vladimir's Seminary Press. pp. 61–66.
  35. Catechism of the Catholic Church, Articles 424 and 552
  36. WELS Topical Q&A
  37. Rykle Borger, "Remarks of an Outsider about Bauer's Worterbuch, BAGD, BDAG, and Their Textual Basis," Biblical Greek Language and Lexicography: Essays in Honor of Frederick W. Danker, Bernard A. Tayler (et al. eds.) pp. 32-47.
  38. WELS Topical Q&A
  39. Mathison, Keith A., The Shape of Sola Scriptura, pp184-185
  40. John Meyendorff, et al. (1963), The Primacy of Peter in the Orthodox Church (St. Vladimir's Seminary Press, Crestwood NY, ISBN 978-0-88141-125-6)
  41. Holy Apostles Convent (1999) The Orthodox New Testament, Vol. I: The Holy Gospels (Dormition Skete, Buena Vista CO, ISBN 0-944359-13-2) p. 105
  42. Primacy of St. Peter http://www.syrianchurch.org/Articles/PrimacyofStPeter.htm
  43. This phrase is found in Matt. 16:16 and Jn. 6:69.
  44. LDS Bible Dictionary—Peter
  45. Doctrine & Covenants 27: 12–13
  46. Wall, J. Charles. (1912), Porches and Fonts. Pub. London: Wells Gardner and Darton. P. 295.
  47. White, L. Michael (2004). From Jesus to Christianity. HarperSanFrancisco. pp. 170. ISBN 0–06–052655–6.
  48. http://www.egodeath.com/arthurdrewslegendstpeter.htm
  49. George Albert Wells, "St. Peter as Bishop of Rome"

External links

Retrieved from "http://nordan.daynal.org/w/index.php?title=Peter,_the_Apostle&oldid=40424"