Skip to main content

The Chair of Saint Peter the Apostle

The Chair of Saint Peter the Apostle: Feast Day Feb. 22


“And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.” (Matthew 16:18) Today, we celebrate the feast day of Peter's appointment by Christ to govern the Church on earth, and his successors in that role to become the next Vicar of Christ—in simple terms, today's feast day celebrates the institution of the papacy. So, today as we celebrate this beautiful role of leadership within the Catholic Church, pray for the Pope, that he will always be guided by the Holy Spirit, and lead the flock he's been entrusted with the gifts of knowledge, wisdom, understanding, piety, counsel, fortitude, and a fear of the Lord. Also reflect on the awesomeness that you are part of something beautiful—you are a part of the Church, the Church founded by Christ, the Bride of Christ! Let that amazing reality sink in!   

Celebrating Through Food:

Since today’s feast celebrates the role of the Pope as the head of the bishops and Vicar of Christ, make “The Pope’s Fettuccine—Fettuccini alla papalina,” using this delicious recipe from the website: “Global Table Adventure.” Serve your fettuccini with lemon flavored Italian soda, since Vatican City is within Rome. If you want to get even more creative, you can even mix pineapple juice in your Italian soda, or rum for the adults, and name your beverage, “The Chair of St. Peter Cocktail." (A modification I made to the recipe was I cooked my egg sauce in a saucepan on low while my fettuccine noodles cooked in order to cook my eggs slightly)

Celebrating with a Craft:

Since I used to be a middle school social studies teacher, I love making interdisciplinary connections. For today's crafts/activities, mix a little geography, history, and religious education together. Print and color the Vatican City Map coloring page  and Saint Peter's Basilica coloring page from "Super Coloring." You can discuss map reading skills with your kids and label the Vatican City Map's various locations. Khan Academy has a short article that discusses how and who helped build the basilica; and the Vatican has a great Virtual Tour of Saint Peter's Basilica for you and your family to embark on a virtual field trip together. Your kids can also color The flag of The Holy See coloring page from "Crayola," and you can discuss how Vatican City is its own city as well as country. Your kids can also make "Pope Francis paper dolls" using this free template from the website "Drawn 2 B Creative." (Scroll down to the bottom of the page to open and print the template).  To wrap everything up, have your children draw a pyramid listing a very simplified "Hierarchy of Catholic Church Leadership." 

Celebrating Through Prayer:

Below is a prayer I wrote that you and your family can say together.

Dear Lord, as you chose Peter from among your apostles to be the rock on which to build your Church, please guide his successor, the Pope. Send the Holy Spirit to fill him with all the gifts, graces, and virtues he needs to lead your church faithfully and according to your holy will. Amen

Additional Reading: 

Here is a great article, from Franciscan Media, for further reading about today's feast day. 


Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Saint Margaret Mary

Saint Margaret Mary: Feast Day October 16th  “Look upon yourself as a tree planted beside water, which bears its fruit in due season; the more it is shaken by the wind, the deeper it strikes its roots into the ground.” ~ Saint Margaret Mary ~ Faith is a gift—an undeserved and valuable grace granted by the Holy Spirit. Each of us has the capacity to seek The Way, The Truth, and The Life, for this longing has been inscribed within our hearts. Yet, in our free will, we have the choice and ability to ignore and turn from this divine call. Like the image of the tree Saint Margaret Mary describes above, if we seek Jesus and are rooted in our faith, nothing can shake us. Our water is the Church, and Jesus, in the Holy Eucharist, is who makes our roots deep and strong enabling us to withstand the winds of the world and produce good fruit in His name.  Jesus offers us so many opportunities to find Him, and so many ways to live with Him in Heaven. In the 1600s, He appeared to Saint Mar...
Post a Comment
Read more

Baptism of the Lord

Baptism of the Lord: The Last Day of Christmas  “I am baptizing you with water, for repentance, but the one who is coming after me is mightier than I. I am not worthy to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” (Matthew 3:11) Today we celebrate the Baptism of the Lord. Since Jesus is God and, therefore, sinless and perfect, he didn’t need to be baptized, but by being baptized, he gave us a sacrament for adoption into his family—a means to become children of God. What makes the Sacrament of Baptism important? (1) Baptism claims us as children of God, forgiving us of our sins, (“I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit”), it is the first sacrament of initiation into the Church and Her mission, and through Baptism, God gifts us with grace. What exactly is grace? The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines it as: “Grace is favor, the free undeserved help that God gives us to respond to His call to become children of ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Saints Joachim and Anne

Saints Joachim and Anne: Feast Day July 26th Have you ever thought about the fact that Jesus had grandparents? When God the Son took on human flesh, he also paced himself within the dynamics of the human family. Although there is no specific reference in the Bible to the Blessed Virgin Mary’s parents by name, the Church celebrates Jesus' maternal grandparents under the names Saint Joachim and Saint Anne. It took a special father and mother to raise, care for, and help prepare the Blessed Virgin Mary for her future vocation and extraordinary relationship with God the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit, and her saintly husband, Saint Joseph; and those special parents were no doubt saints themselves. Speaking of Saint Joseph, his parents would also have been grandparents of the Lord. Celebrating Jesus' grandparents today, reminds us that grandparents are the keepers and transmitters of family history and tradition, and are the patriarchs and matriarchs of families, holding generatio...
Post a Comment
Read more