Dr Augustine Sokolovski
On July 12, the Orthodox Church celebrates the memory of the holy apostles Peter and Paul. Orthodox tradition calls them "the glorious and all-praised leaders of the Apostles," thus emphasizing their contribution and importance in the spread of Christianity.
Like the celebrations in honor of the Circumcision of the Lord, the Nativity and Beheading of John the Baptist, and, in the Russian tradition, the Protection of the Virgin Mary, the day of Peter and Paul is one of the five major feasts of the Orthodox liturgical year.
However, in the Greek Orthodox tradition, the Protection of the Virgin Mary is not included in the number of major feasts. There are four, and this number also has a certain biblical and sacred symbolism. For the Fathers of the Church, the number four symbolizes the four cardinal points, the four elements, or fundamental substances, the four rivers of Paradise, the four sides of the Holy Cross, and the four Gospels. The number five, for its part, evokes the ancient idea of the five human senses.
Unlike the Virgin Mary and John the Baptist, neither Peter nor Paul were relatives of the Lord. Mary gave birth to the Savior, and John foretold His coming and baptized Him. In this sense, the biographies of the Apostles had no direct connection with the dogma of the Incarnation. However, through their vocation and, above all, through their preaching, they literally continued God's work on earth.
No one ever called the Church "Marian," in honor of Mary, or "Johannine," in honor of John the Baptist. From the earliest Creeds, the Church has been described as "apostolic." This is one of the fundamental characteristics of the Church.
The Apostles Peter and Paul are mentioned in the New Testament Scriptures. Both Peter and Paul were personally called by the Lord Jesus. He called Peter during his earthly life, and Paul after the Ascension and Pentecost. Both left sacred texts that have entered the canon of Scripture. However, if the direct appropriation of Peter's Epistles is questioned by modern exegetes, then, according to these same scholars, it was Paul's Epistles that were the first to be called the "New Testament" in Christian history. According to the Church's oldest belief, both Peter and Paul ended their journeys with martyrdom in Rome.
Their common memory on June 29, or July 12 for the Churches following the Julian calendar, is linked to this last page of their biography. This day marks the date of their martyrdom, or the transfer of their relics, but perhaps another event, which remains unknown to us.
Grace is communication. It is true communication between man and God in Christ Jesus. Only grace is truly capable of healing infirmities, filling gaps, and fostering the growth of the Christian faith. The special grace of the Holy Spirit was granted to the Apostles Peter and Paul.
The Apostle Peter represented the apostolic community during the first decades of its existence; he is the founder of the Churches of Antioch, Rome, and, through his disciple Mark, of Alexandria.
Paul became the greatest, or, as they say in modern language, the most successful missionary in the history of Christianity. It is surprising and paradoxical that despite the incredible development of technology and means of communication, no one has ever surpassed, and no one will ever be able to equal the evangelistic work of Saints Peter and Paul.