Saints Peter & Paul, Apostles
Ss. Petri et Pauli Apostolorum
On this great feast the Church honours together the two chief Apostles, Saint Peter the Rock and Saint Paul the Doctor of the Gentiles, who consecrated the Church of Rome by their preaching and crowned their labours with martyrdom in that city.
The feast of Saints Peter and Paul is among the most ancient and venerable in the Roman calendar, kept with the highest solemnity as a First Class feast. On this day the Church of Rome remembers the two great Apostles who, by their preaching and by the shedding of their blood, made that city the chief see of the Christian world. Tradition holds that both suffered martyrdom at Rome on the same day, and the Church has from early times honoured them together as the twin pillars of the faith.
Saint Peter, the Rock
Saint Peter, called Simon, was a fisherman of Galilee whom the Lord named Cephas, that is, the Rock. To him Christ said, “Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it; and I will give to thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven.” First among the Apostles, Peter confessed Jesus as the Christ, the Son of the living God; after the Resurrection the Lord entrusted to him the charge to feed his lambs and his sheep. He preached the Gospel and governed the infant Church, and at last came to Rome, where, in the persecution under Nero, he was crucified for the name of Christ — and, as the ancient tradition relates, asked to be crucified head downward, holding himself unworthy to die as his Master had died.
Saint Paul, the Doctor of the Gentiles
Saint Paul, once Saul of Tarsus, was a learned Pharisee who at first persecuted the Church, until the Lord called him in a heavenly vision on the road to Damascus and made of him a chosen vessel to bear his name before the nations. Tireless in his apostolic journeys, he founded churches throughout the world of his day and instructed them by his Epistles, which remain a treasure of the Church’s teaching. Brought at last to Rome, he too gave his life for Christ in the persecution under Nero, and, being a Roman citizen, was beheaded by the sword.
The collect of the feast recalls that God hallowed this day by the martyrdom of his Apostles Peter and Paul, and prays that the Church may in all things follow the teaching of those through whom she received the beginning of the faith. In honouring them together, the Church gives thanks for the Rock on which she is built and for the Apostle who carried the Gospel to the ends of the earth, and rejoices that Rome was sanctified by the blood of both.
The Collect
O God, who hast hallowed this day by the martyrdom of thine Apostles Peter and Paul: grant unto thy Church in all things to follow their precept, through whom she received the beginning of true religion.
Deus, qui hodíernam diem Apostolórum tuórum Petri et Pauli martýrio consecrásti: da Ecclésiæ tuæ, eórum in ómnibus sequi præcéptum; per quos relígionis sumpsit exórdium.
Patronage
Saint Peter is venerated as the first Pope and prince of the Apostles, and Saint Paul as the Apostle and teacher of the Gentiles; together they are the principal patrons of the city of Rome.
In the Modern Calendar
In the modern calendar the feast of Saints Peter and Paul is observed on the same day, 29 June, as a solemnity.
Common Questions
When is the feast of Saints Peter and Paul?
It is celebrated on 29 June in the calendar of the 1962 Roman Missal, as a First Class feast. It is kept on the same day in the modern calendar, where it ranks as a solemnity.
Why are Saints Peter and Paul honoured on the same day?
Ancient tradition holds that both Apostles were martyred at Rome on the same day, consecrating the Church of that city by their blood. The Church has from early times venerated them together as the two pillars on which the Roman Church was founded.
How did each Apostle die?
According to the constant tradition of the Church, Saint Peter was crucified at Rome under the emperor Nero — and, holding himself unworthy to die as the Lord had, asked to be crucified head downward. Saint Paul, as a Roman citizen, was put to death by beheading in the same persecution.
See where this feast falls in the Church’s year on the liturgical calendar, or find a Traditional Latin Mass near you.
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