St. Peter: Important And Important Figure In Christianity

Being not only one of Jesus’s twelve apostles, but the head of the Apostles, St. Peter is a very prominent and important figure in Christianity. Peter was born in Bethsaida and given the birth name Simon around the same time Jesus was born in the late first century BC. He worked as a fisherman and lived in Capharnum with his mother in law once he was married, but his humble life as a simple fisherman changed once his brother Andrew heard Jesus teaching and told Simon Peter about the Lord. Upon their very first meeting, Jesus gave Simon the new name of Peter, meaning rock, already understanding and foreseeing the level of importance that Peter would have part in the starting of the Church of Christianity. The significance of this name change
However, even though he does waiver occasionally, he always redeems himself and balances the hesitation out. He does this again right before he is about to become a martyr. Scared of the fate that awaits him, St. Peter ran away from Rome in hopes of escaping the execution he knew was coming, but he did not get far. He is stopped on the way by a vision of Jesus and when he asks Jesus where he is going the vision replies he is off to be crucified again. Reminded of what he must do, Peter accepts his destiny and heads back to Rome where he is crucified upside. We are taught by this story that the Lord will guide us where we must go even though we might stray from the right path. Peter’s life and hesitation towards his persecution, reaffirms the idea that even though we might turn away from Him every now and then the Lord is there to guide us in the direction we are supposed to go and forgive us for any mistakes we may have made along the way. Along with these core values of the Church, Peter also reinforced and made decisions that solidified the structure and tenants of the Church. For instance, he appointed the first bishop of Antioch after he had to leave to go to Rome, so in this way he created another type of authority and hierarchy in the order of the church. Peter was also the one to declare Rome as the worldwide home of Christianity which it still is considered today. In this way, it’s very easy to see the lasting impact and necessity of Peter’s decisions and actions regarding the Church in today’s