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Tuesday of this week, June the 29th, is the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul. They are among a small cadre of Saints who enjoy two Feast Days, along with Saint Joseph and Saint John the Baptist. And, of course, the Blessed Mother has more than a dozen Feast Days in our country, with varying observances in other parts of the Catholic world.
Saint Peter’s other Feast Day is February 22nd, known as the Chair of Saint Peter; Saint Paul’s other Feast Day is January 25th, called The Conversion of Saint Paul. These other feasts speak of a particular element of the Saint’s life. The “Chair” of Saint Peter alludes to his authority as first among the Apostles. We use this word in our day to describe the Chair of a committee, or an endowed Chair in a college’s academic department. Saint Paul’s other feast points out the important event of his conversion: as a Pharisee, he had previously been persecuting Christians. But meeting Christ on the road to Damascus opened his eyes to the person of Jesus, and brought him around to the faith he had formerly detested.
For this week’s Feast Day, we put together these two very different men, who had very different missions. Saint Peter’s presence here refers to the institution and the hierarchical structure of the Church. Saint Paul’s presence speaks to the outgoing mission of the Church among the Gentiles and other non-Jews who would be joining this nascent community of faith.
When in Rome one can visit the tombs of both of these great saints. Saint Peter is buried beneath the great dome and high altar of the Basilica that bears his name in Vatican City. His tomb was discovered during World War II when Pope Pius XII ordered the excavation of space to bury his predecessor, Pope Pius XI. The workers discovered a necropolis, a buried “city of the dead” that had been covered over when the Emperor Constantine decreed the building of the first basilica in the fourth century. Fearing Nazi interference during World War II, dirt was removed one bucket at a time under the cover of darkness until Peter’s own tomb was discovered.
Saint Paul is buried outside the ancient city walls, beneath the high altar of the aptly-named Basilica of Saint Paul-outside-the-walls. He had been dragged outside the city where he was beheaded. He was buried in an unmarked tomb, but people remembered the exact place, so a church was built over his tomb in the mid-fourth century. This basilica burned to the ground in 1823, and then a new church was built there. He is depicted by a statue in the courtyard, holding a sword, the instrument of his martyrdom.
When my brothers and I were in Rome five years ago, we visited both tombs in the crypts beneath the altars. Saint Paul’s is easier to get to; Saint Peter’s is difficult: in Rome “it’s not what you know… it’s who you know” in order to gain access to many places. One can only get to Saint Peter’s Tomb with a guide, and these are not easy to come by. I found it sufficient to pray in the main body of the churches. Perhaps you will, too, if you go there.