Feast of the Chair of Saint Peter, Apostle
Lectionary: 535
Reading I
Beloved:
I exhort the presbyters among you,
as a fellow presbyter and witness to the sufferings of Christ
and one who has a share in the glory to be revealed.
Tend the flock of God in your midst,
overseeing not by constraint but willingly,
as God would have it, not for shameful profit but eagerly.
Do not lord it over those assigned to you,
but be examples to the flock.
And when the chief Shepherd is revealed,
you will receive the unfading crown of glory.
Gospel
When Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi
he asked his disciples,
“Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”
They replied, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah,
still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”
Simon Peter said in reply,
“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus said to him in reply, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah.
For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father.
And so I say to you, you are Peter,
and upon this rock I will build my Church,
and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.
I will give you the keys to the Kingdom of heaven.
Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven;
and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”
Today, we celebrate the birthday of the Church. I won’t waste your time telling you my thoughts on this because there is a homily out there that far surpasses anything I could express when it comes to the Chair of St. Peter. I would strongly suggest you take 30 minutes or so to listen to this man speak on the very feast we celebrate today. After listening, I doubt you’ll utter the words “Well, I wish I could get that 30 minutes back.”
Venerable Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen ~ Peter, Vicar of Christ
Do something great for our Lord today – stay on your Lenten path to righteousness. It is a great path to be on.
I firmly resolve with the help of Thy Grace to sin no more and to avoid the near occasion of sin.
God’s will, not mine, be done.
Be not afraid; just have faith.
Jesus, I trust in You.
He must increase; I must decrease.
Lord, if You wish, You can make me clean.
But you man of God chose righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience and gentleness. Compete well for the faith.
St. Mary Magdalen Men of God 