Feast of the Saint Apostles Peter and Paul, martyrs in Rome around the years 60-70. Memorial of blessed Raymond Lullo (1232-1316). A Catalan close to the spirit of Saint Francis he loved the Muslims and promoted dialogue among believers.

Reading of the Word of God

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

If we die with him, we shall live with him,
if with him we endure, with him we shall reign.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

Matthew 16,13-19

When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi he put this question to his disciples, 'Who do people say the Son of man is?' And they said, 'Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.' 'But you,' he said, 'who do you say I am?' Then Simon Peter spoke up and said, 'You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.' Jesus replied, 'Simon son of Jonah, you are a blessed man! Because it was no human agency that revealed this to you but my Father in heaven. So I now say to you: You are Peter and on this rock I will build my community. And the gates of the underworld can never overpower it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of Heaven: whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven; whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.'

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

If we die with him, we shall live with him,
if with him we endure, with him we shall reign.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

Today we celebrate the feast of the apostles, Saints Peter and Paul. It is a feast that accompanies the history of the Church in particular the Christian community of Rome, where the two disciples witnessed to their faith till martyrdom in the last years of their lives. Jesus called Peter while he was mending his nets along the shores of the Sea of Galilee. He was a simple fisherman, but he felt the desire of a new world. Indeed, as soon as Jesus called him to a greater life and to fish for people and not fish, "immediately he left his net and followed him." But the true Peter - the disciple to whom Jesus entrusted his flock - is the one who is weak, who lets the Spirit of God touch him, and who is the first of all to proclaim, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God," (Mt 16:16) as we heard in the Gospel. The Lord made of Peter's weakness the "rock" of the spiritual building of which we are all part of.
We see Paul as a young man standing near those who are stoning Stephen. He was standing guard over the cloaks of those who were casting the stones. He was a zealous combatant against the young Christian community and asked even to be authorized to persecute it. But on the road to Damascus, the Lord threw him down from his self-assuredness and pride. Finding himself face down in the dust, he looked up to heaven and saw the Lord who told him: "Why do you persecute me?" Paul felt his heart touched. Tears did not flow from his eyes, but they stayed close. And he allowed others to lead him to Damascus where, after listening to the Gospel, opened his eyes again and started to preach the Gospel that tears down the walls of division: there was no more Jew or Greek, slave or a freeman.
On today's feast, the Church remembers them together as if to compose their precious testimony in unity. Both of them, with their different riches, with their charisma, marked the one Church of Christ. Today, when borders are once again forming in the hearts of so many, separating one from the other, their witness does not cease to preach that boundless love that alone can save our world. We need the strength of Peter's faith and the universality of Paul's faith to show everyone the way to salvation.