29 June 2025 - Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul
Acts 12:1-11; 2 Tim 4:6...18; Mat 16:13-19
Homily
Peter and Paul are the two pillars of the Church, and the Church has always celebrated them together in her worship. And that is why we celebrate them today, on this 29th day of June. It would be hard to find two men so different from each other. And yet the same love of Christ animated their lives, and both died as martyrs for their faith, in Rome, where two monumental statues commemorate them in St Peter's Square. Peter represents the Twelve whom Jesus chose for himself during his ministry here on earth, while Paul is the prototype of all those who were later called to be his witnesses.
The first reading we have heard, taken from the first part of the Acts of the Apostles, presents to us in an almost humorous way the beginnings of Peter's exercise of his authority over all the Apostles and Disciples, after Jesus' death. While the entire primitive community was gathered and praying behind locked doors, Peter first found himself in prison, then made a spectacular exit to find himself alone in the street. And we know he'll have trouble getting the door opened when he joins the others. Pierre is really the kind of person to whom these things happen. A person who is completely open to grace, with a simplicity that will always remain a little childlike.
In the second reading, we hear a Paul who has come to the end of his race, tired, a little disillusioned and even a little complexed, complaining that everyone has abandoned him. It must be said that it wasn't easy to live with him. Mark and Barnabas learned that the hard way. And yet his faith in Christ was unshakeable and he professed it to his death, just like Peter.
Peter was a fisherman from Galilee, with no culture other than that which could be acquired by listening to the teachings given during services in the local synagogue. Paul, although a Jew, was also a Roman citizen by birth. Born in Tarsus, he had received the best intellectual training available at the time. Peter had lived with Christ for the duration of the latter's public ministry; Paul had only met Christ on the road to Damascus, in a vision, when he was about to persecute the Christians. Paul had a fiery temper and was not easy to deal with; Peter, with his great spontaneity, which made him make many blunders, also had the simplicity that made him a leader who was not feared. Peter and Paul had their moments of friction and explanation, and were able to differ in their opinions, but they always remained united in their love for the same Christ, whom they both loved to the point of accepting martyrdom.
The Gospel passage we have read takes us back to the moment of Peter's first confession of faith and the mission Jesus gave him to guide the Church. This confession of faith was Peter's response to Jesus' question: "And who do you say that I am?" Sometimes we give an inti-mystic note to Jesus' question. If we translate his question literally, he is asking them: "And you, who do you say that I am?", just as he had asked a little earlier: "Who is the Son of Man according to what men say about him?” What is striking here is the importance given to saying who Jesus is, to expressing one's faith.
Faith is not simply an inner attitude of the heart, still less a simple acquiescence of the mind. It has to be said. And it must be expressed in words as well as deeds. In response to Jesus' question, Peter confessed His divinity with his mouth: "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God". Later, he confessed Jesus by his whole life and, finally, by his death.
The Church is the community of all those who have received Christ's message -- who have received from him the same question he asked his disciples: "And who do you say that I am?" Each and every one of us must answer this question in the same way as Peter, by affirming his faith in words, and then translating those words into a life of service.
We are all called to proclaim the Gospel by living it, to announce it through our actions. But that is not enough. We are also all called to proclaim it in words. We do this every day throughout our liturgical celebrations, and in particular in the doxology of each of our prayers, where we say "Through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord and our God...". Some of us are also called to proclaim our faith through preaching. Let's always strive to keep this link between our words and our lives clearly in mind, in the hope, based on the very words of Jesus, that He will also confess to us before His Father and our Father.
Armand VEILLEUX