Feb. 22nd - Chair of St. Peter

               

 Today the Church celebrates the Feast of the Chair of St. Peter. Did you know that St. Peter sat in a real wooden chair, when he acted as leader of the Church? Everyone knew it was his chair, and no one else, ever sat in it. His chair was important, because whoever sat in the chair had the authority, to be the head of the Catholic Church. His chair was preserved over the years, and people used to come to see the chair. The wooden chair was eventually put inside bronze metal, so that it would be protected from falling apart, and was kept at St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome.

The bishop’s chair at the Cathedral is called a “cathedra” and only the bishop sits in it. St. Peter’s chair and the bishop’s chair are both chairs, which are a sign of authority, which comes from God.

Jesus told Peter, “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.” With these words Jesus gave Peter the authority and the power, to be the head of the Church. Whatever Peter says, with regard to faith and morals will be the same as though, Jesus Himself said it.

Therefore, the wooden chair of St. Peter, reminds us of the authority and power of St. Peter, and the authority and power of the other popes, who sat in his chair, to make decisions for the Church, on behalf of Jesus. It is the chair of vicar of Christ, as head of the Church.

According to Vatican I, the first Vatican Council in the 1800’s, papal in fallibility occurs only when the pope defines a particular dogma binding all the people of the whole universal Church to believe with regard to faith and morals only.

The pope is human just like all of us and he can make mistakes and error in faith and morals in his writings and sermons and talks outside of the times he definitively declares something binding for all the faithful to believe in faith and morals.

But if the pope would declare a particular dogma of the faith binding all Catholics to believe, we trust Jesus Himself will be acting and speaking through him.

Today, let us ask Mary to help Pope Francis to fulfill his duties from the chair of St. Peter as God desires of him.