Held aloft in the background, under the Holy Spirit window,
is the "Chair of Peter"
(photo courtesy of Br. Lew, O.P.)
"The Lord said to Simon Peter: I have prayed that your faith may not fail; and you in turn must strengthen your brothers" (Luke 22:32). The Chair of St. Peter refers to his seat of authority. The Fathers of the Church used this term as a symbol of a bishop's authority, paying special regard to the Bishop of Rome. In the Third Century, Saint Cyprian wrote: "Peter holds primacy so as to show that Christ's Church is one, that his Chair is one." He goes on to emphasize the matter of unity with these words: "God is one. The Lord is one. The Church is one. The Chair founded by Christ is one" (Epistle 43,5).
For many years the people of Rome had on display a wooden chair which Saint Peter reputedly sat upon. Saint Damasus moved this relic to the baptistry of the newly built Vatican in the fourth century. The chair was seen and honoured by thousands of pilgrims from all over Christendom. At the time when the present Basilica of St. Peter was erected, it was thought advisable to preserve the chair in bronze and gold.
Before the fourth century, in the earliest liturgical calendars of the Church one finds this feast, 'Natale Petri de Cathedra,' the celebration of the institution of the papacy. This feast highlights the fact that the Bishop of Rome has jurisdiction throughout the entire world. It has been a long-standing custom to commemorate the consecrations of bishops in their respective dioceses. Yet these commemorations pertained solely to the limits of each diocese. The Chair of Peter, however, is unique in that it extends to all Christianity and has done from the first centuries. As Saint Augustine has pointed out on a sermon for this feast: "Our forefathers gave the name 'Chair' to this feast so that we might remember that the Prince of the Apostles was entrusted with the 'Chair' of the episcopate" (Sermon 15 on the Saints). We should be sure to review the quality of our love and obedience to the Pope.
