Wednesday 4 July 2012

St. Peter and St. Paul,

Two great Apostles, Saint Peter and Saint Paul, are commemorated together on June 29th. One, a simple fisherman, who became the rock on which Christ built His church. The other, educated, dedicated, and claimed personally by Jesus as an apostle. Two contrasts in style. At times, a clash in personalities and direction. Peter, who anchored the church through its early years. Paul, who stretched the limits of understanding to include his mission to the gentiles. Two men, whose lives were not always saintly, become saints of God through their unalterable faith, their determination to do God's will, and their willingness to sacrifice all in obedience to God the Father.


O Almighty God, who by thy Son Jesus Christ didst give to thy Apostle Saint Peter many excellent gifts, and commandedst him earnestly to feed thy flock; Make, we beseech thee, all Bishops and Pastors diligently to preach thy Holy Wors, and the people obediently to follow the same, that they may receive the crown of everlasting glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

O God, who through the preaching of the blessed Apostle Saint Paul, hast caused the light of the Gospel to shine throughout the world; Grant, we beseech thee, that we, having his manifold labours in remembrance, may show forth our thankfulness unto thee for the same, by following the holy doctrine which he taught; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.


ALL SAINTS

O God, we give Thee most high praise and hearty thanks for the wonderful grace and virtue declared in all Thy saints, who have been the choice vessels of Thy grace, and lights of the world in their several generations; most humbly beseeching Thee to give us grace so to follow the example of their steadfastness,
that we, with all those who are of the mystical body of Thy Son, may be set on His right hand, Who reigneth with Thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end.
Amen.






About the Icon
Saint Peter, on the left, is portrayed as an elderly man with white hair and beard, his inner garment is traditionally green and his outer garment is yellow or gold. Saint Paul, on the right; is portrayed with brown hair and beard; his inner garment is blue and his outer garment is purple. The saints embrace each other to denote their concord of love and faith in Jesus Christ.



Epistle: 2 Corinthians 11:21-12:9
Gospel: Matthew 10:13-19
 
"St. Peter traditionally is regarded as the leader of the Twelve Disciples of Jesus. He was intimately connected with the earthly life and ministry of our Lord, and after His death tried to preserve the spiritual legacy left by Jesus to him followers. In the course of his missionary journeys, Peter founded the Church in Antioch, where the followers of Jesus were first called Christians. St. Peter is regarded by the Church as the first Bishop of Antioch, and the present-day Patriarch of Antioch is his successor in that Apostolic See.
St. Paul is the greatest of missionaries. The marvelous story of conversion on the Damascus Road (Acts 9:1-12) is hardly more striking than the rest of his life, one of the greatest adventure stories of history.
The account of Paul's missionary journeys and the letters he wrote to the Churches he founded form an important part of the New Testament. He traveled over vast areas of the Roman world, preaching Christ, and fashioning the Christians Faith for all time. He called himself an Apostle, and he was the greatest of them, even though he was not of the Twelve Disciples. St. Paul was martyred in Rome during the reign of the Emperor Nero, about 87 A.D."
 
Taken from The Icon Book by Boojamra, Essey, McLuckie, and Matusiak.
 
"Peter and Paul were martyred in Rome under Emperor Nero in the year 87. Peter was crucified, head down at his own request [so that he would not die in the same way as Christ], and because Paul was a Roman Citizen, he was beheaded. The Church unites them in a common celebration and gives them identical honor.
 
Peter, a brother of Andrew the First-Called, was from Bethsaida. They were the sons of Jonas, of the tribe of Simeon. They lived by the work of their hands. At the time when John the Baptist was in prison, Jesus came to the Lake of Genesarett, and finding Peter and Andrew mending their nets, He called them and they followed Him without hesitation. Peter preached the Gospel in Judea, founded the Church of Antioch and finally came to Rome.
 
Paul, a Pharisee, belonged to the tribe of Benjamin. He was born in Tarsus of Asia Minor. At first, he persecuted the Church with great zeal and violence, imprisoning and killing Christians. But Christ appeared to him on the way to Damascus and changed his heart. He was baptized in Damascus by Ananias. He was to become one of the greatest exponents of Christ's teachings, which he explained in letters or epistles."
 
Taken from Byzantine Daily Worship.

Information Link: http://www.theologic.com/oflweb/feasts/06-29.htm



THE MANY JOURNEYS OF ST. PAUL-APOSTLE TO THE GENTILES


ST. PAUL'S CALL TO CONVERSION and NEW LIFE AS A CHRISTIAN
Witnessed St. Stephen's martyrdomActs 8:1
Mission to arrest Christians ;for the SanhedrinActs 8:3
Conversion experience on the Road to DamascusActs 9:1-19
Paul preaches in DamascusActs 9:20-25
Spends 3 years in ArabiaGalatians 1:17-18
Returns to Damascus Galatians 1:17
Meets with the Apostles Peter, James (Bishop of Jerusalem) , and John in JerusalemActs 9:26-30; Galatians 1:17-19
Goes to Caesarea and from there home to TarsusActs 9:30; Galatians 1:21
Called by Barnabas to join him in Antioch, SyriaActs 11:26
Takes a famine relief contribution to JerusalemActs 11:30
Returns to Antioch, SyriaActs 12:25


ST. PAUL'S FIRST MISSIONARY JOURNEY:
Approximate dates: AD 45 - 49
Companions: Barnabas, John, Mark
Mission field: Cyprus and Asia Minor (Turkey)
Approximate miles traveled: 1,400 miles
Sent by church of Antioch, Syria
Mission to Cyprus by way of SeleuciaActs 13:4-12
Antioch in PisidiaActs 13:13-51
Iconium Acts 14:1-5
Lystra in LycaoniaActs 14:6-19
DerbeActs 14:20
Back through Lystra, Iconium and Antioch PisidiaActs 14:21-26
Return to home church at Antioch, Syria Acts 14:27-28
Council of JerusalemActs 15


ST. PAUL'S SECOND MISSIONARY JOURNEY:
Approximate dates: AD 50 - 52
Companions: Silas, Timothy, Priscilla and Aquila, Luke
Mission field: Syria, Turkey, Greece
Approximate miles traveled: 2,800 miles
Sent by church of Antioch, Syria
Syria and Cilicia (Tarsus, the capital of Cilicia was Paul's hometown)Acts 15:23
Derbe and Lystra in Lycaonia (Timothy's home)Acts 16:1-5
Phrygia and GalatiaActs 16:6
Mysia to TroasActs 16:10
Samothracis and NeapolisActs 16:1
Philippi in MacedoniaActs 16:12-40
Amphipolis and ApolloniaActs 17:1
ThessalonicaActs 17:1-9
Beroea (Berea)Acts 17:10-15
AthensActs 17:16-34
CorinthActs 18:1-18
Cenchrea (Cenchreae)Acts 18:18
EphesusActs 18:19-21
CaesareaActs 18:22
Antioch, SyriaActs 18:23
JerusalemActs 18:23


ST. PAUL'S THIRD MISSIONARY JOURNEY
Approximate dates: AD 53 - 58
Companions: Timothy, Luke, and other disciples
Mission field: Turkey, Greece, Lebanon, Judea-Samaria-Galilee
Approximate miles traveled 2,700 miles
Sent by church of Antioch, Syria
Galatia and PhrygiaActs 18:23
EphesusActs 19:1-20; 23-40
MacedoniaActs 19:21; 20:1
Greece (Achaia)20:2-3
Macedonia, Philippi, and TroasActs 20:3-12
Assos, Mitylene; near Chios, Samos, Trogyllium, MiletusActs 20:13-38
Cos, Rhodes, PataraActs 21:1-2
Tyre and PtolemaisActs 21:3-7
CaesareaActs 21:8-16
JerusalemActs 21:17-23:22
Caesarea (imprisoned 2 years)Acts 23:23-26:32


ST. PAUL'S FOURTH JOURNEY TO ROME
Approximate date: AD 60/61
Companions: Luke, Roman guards, others
By way of Lebanon, Turkey, Crete, Malta, Sicily, Rome
Approximate miles traveled: 2,250 miles
Sent by Roman Governor Festus
CaesareaActs 27:1-3
Sidon, Myra, CnidusActs 27:4-7
Fair Havens (Crete)Acts 27:8
Clauda (Cauda)Acts 27:16
Malta (Melita)Acts 28:1-10
Syracuse, Rhegium, PuteoliActs 28:11-13
Forum of Appius and Three TavernsActs 28:15
RomeActs 28:16



Site Link: http://www.agapebiblestudy.com/charts/St.%20Paul's%20Missionary%20Journeys.htm



Map Link: Google Images


'Oldest' image of St Paul discovered

Archaeologists have uncovered a 1,600 year old image of St Paul, the oldest one known of, in a Roman catacomb.



Image Link: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/vaticancityandholysee/5675461/Oldest-image-of-St-Paul-discovered.html




The Basilica of Saint Peter in Chains, Rome.



Site Link: http://www.piercedhearts.org/treasures/holy_sites/st_peter_in_chains.htm


"This Basilica is one of the “tituli,” one of a set number of Early Christian churches built round the edges of the city of Rome. It is known as the Titulus Eudoxiae o la Eudoxiana. It was constructed over the ruins of the imperial villa in the year 442 AD in order to serve as a home for the chains that bound St. Peter in the Jerusalem prison (Acts of Apostles, chapter 5 and 12). The priest Philip constructed the Church with the help of Eudoxia, wife of Emperor Valentinian III."






History

"The basilica was first built in the middle of the 5th century to house the relic of the chains that bound Saint Peter while imprisoned in  Jerusalem, given to Pope Leo I by Empress Eudoxia (wife of Emperor Valentinian III).

According to legend, when the pope held them next to the chains from of Peter's first imprisonment in the Mamertine Prison in Rome, the two chains miraculously fused together."




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