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The Life of St. Peter the Apostle

What we know of the life of the leader of the Apostles comes to us through the New Testament and Traditions of the Orthodox Church. St. Peter, originally named Simon, is recognized as one of the two leaders of the apostles, along with St. Paul. Before he was called by the Lord, he worked as a fisherman by trade and most likely was a disciple of St. John the Baptist along with his brother, St. Andrew, who also worked as a fisherman on the sea of Galilee. Peter, along with James and John, was witness to some of the most important events in the life of Christ.

We know that St. Peter was the first of the Apostles to explicitly state and recognize Christ’s role not just as the Messiah, but as the Son of God. For this proclamation of faith, he was renamed from Simon to Cephas, which means rock. The name Peter comes from the Greek translation of Cephas (Petros). In his earthly life, Peter faced many challenges, but overcame them and also performed many great deeds and miracles. Beginning in Acts, we see him begin to take an active role of healing and teaching the multitudes. After Pentecost, Peter preached the first Christian sermon and received 3,000 converts by baptism the very same day. St. Peter would go on to baptize the first Gentile Converts, he would write two epistles that would become part of the New Testament, and he would raise Tabitha from the dead. According to Tradition, St. Peter was crucified upside down, under the reign of Nero, refusing to be crucified in the same manner as Christ.

Peter, through his life and actions, showed us that Christ is the true Sun of Righteousness. Continuing the saving work of his Master, Peter boldly proclaimed the gospel and raised the dead. Not by his own power, but rather through God’s power. For when Peter relied on his own power, he fell and denied Christ three times. However, by being a luminary, he reflected Christ’s light and power, raising tabitha in a very similar fashion as the Lord raised the daughter of Jairus. Similar to how the moon reflects light from the sun, so St. Peter the apostle reflected the Sun of righteousness, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

How can St. Peter intercede for us?

St. Peter, despite all of his zeal and fervent love for the Master, denied Christ three times. Likewise, however much we seem to recommit to our lives as Orthodox Christians, we find ourselves stumbling again and again. Oftentimes we also fall prey to temptations to deny Christ, either by things like excessive worrying (faithlessness), or putting our ultimate faith in financial security, political leaders, or family but most often; ourselves. Peter, like us, tried to rely on his own power and not on Christs’ power, because of this, he fell. Later on however, we see that Christ, despite being betrayed by the leader of his disciples, sought out Peter and not only forgave him, but re-established him as a leader of His Church. Through his struggles, we see a proper example of repentance and faith from Peter, because although he also betrayed his

Master like Judas Iscariot, he repented and ultimately died for Christ, rather than deny Him again. When we feel as if we’re denying and running from Christ, or maybe lost and separated from Him, St. Peter can offer his guidance and reassurance of Gods’ eager forgiveness, as he witnessed in his earthly life. His intercessions and example of repentance should give us boldness when praying in contrition of heart before the Lord.

We can pray to St. Peter during periods of doubt, faithlessness, bitterness, failure, and times of trouble.

Discussion Questions

  1. What can you learn from St. Peter’s mistakes? How does he remind you of yourself? What can you admire about his personality in the Gospels? How does he change after Pentecost?
  2. Peter is often closely associated with St. Paul, why is that? What implications does this have on our understanding of leadership within the Church? How does this differ from other Christian denominations like the Catholics?
  3. Consider this quote from Peter, “Man’s salvation and perfection consists of doing the will of God which he must have in view in all things, and at every moment of his life.” What do you think this quote means? What concrete steps can we take to apply this quote to our lives?
  4. We can see clearly in the gospels that Peter was a man of action, never shying away from throwing himself into the fray. How can we learn from his example and begin to be more actionable in our Christian life? Discuss with your group three ways you can be more active in your Christian life.

Learn his troparion.

Tone 4

 “Today Christ the Rock glorifies the rock of Faith / and leader of the Apostles with highest honor.

/ Together with Paul and the company of the Twelve, / whose memory we celebrate with eagerness of faith, / giving glory to Him Who glorified them.”

Pray to him.

O foremost of the Apostles and teachers of the inhabited earth, intercede with the Master of all to grant peace to the world and great mercy to our souls. Through your intercessions and the prayers of all the saints, may Christ our God have mercy upon us and save us, Amen.

The post There’s a Saint for That: St. Peter the Apostle appeared first on Orthodox Christian Fellowship – OCF.