The Apostle Peter Research Paper

‘“And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church”’ (English Standard Version, Mt. 16.18). Jesus appointed Peter as the Church’s leader upon its founding. Perhaps this is due to Peter’s outspokenness, for his profession of faith in Jesus was more profound than that of the other apostles, and he was also the only apostle to openly reprimand Jesus. “And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, ‘Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you’” (Mt. 16.22). Moreover, Peter serves as an example of Christ’s forgiving nature because he openly doubted Christ three times, yet Jesus favored him above the other Apostles, nevertheless. Peter’s primacy—and that of his successors, the Popes—is rooted in Christ and is the continuation of Christ’s reign on Earth.

Saint Jerome asserts the Peter’s preeminence several times throughout his writings, the most notable of which was in De Viris Illustribus where he stated, “Simon Peter, the son of John, from the village of Bethsaida in the province of Galilee, brother of Andrew the apostle, and himself chief of the apostles” (1). Jerome also explains that Peter sets the best Christian example through his humility as it is made

apparent by his refusal to be crucified in the same manner as Jesus, instead electing to be crucified with his head facing down (Jerome 1).
‘“I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven”’ (Mt.

16.19). By giving Peter the ‘keys to the kingdom of heaven,’ Christ grants Peter absolute authority on matters of the Church’s teachings on faith and morality. This exemplifies Peter’s prevalence over the Apostles and the Church as whole, because Jesus grants this only to him. The infallibility which Jesus granted unto him is first seen during the Council of Jerusalem, when Peter suggests that the Apostolic Degree be created. Jesus’ promise to Peter also has a literal meaning in that Paul is given the keys to Heaven, leaving him to discern whether each person may or may not enter into

heaven.
Likewise, Pope Leo the Great reiterates the primacy of Peter during the fifth century: “Our Lord Jesus Christ . . . has placed the principal charge on the blessed Peter, chief of all the apostles, and from him as from the head wishes his gifts to flow to all the body, so that anyone who dares to secede from Peter’s solid rock may understand that he has no part or lot in the divine mystery” (Pope Leo I qtd. “Peter’s Primacy”). This statement establishes the permanent supremacy of Peter over the Church, stating that anyone who supersedes him loses his or her part in salvation. Leo also states that Jesus sends his love and guidance to the Church, through Peter.
Through the passages from Scripture and the analysis of Scripture by various Church Fathers and clergy, the primacy of Peter, over the Church, is apparent. He serves as the leader and a secondary role model for the faithful (behind Christ himself), exemplifying the forgiving nature of Christ and the necessity for humility in the Church.