The Pope

The pope is the successor of the apostle Peter, Bishop of Rome and visible head of the whole Church. He holds his charge from the one Christ entrusted to Peter: the primacy over the apostles and over the whole Church, to govern her and keep her united. This charge does not die with Peter; it continues in his successors, and it is this that the pope exercises today.

You are Peter (Kephas, in Aramaic)

At Caesarea, Simon confesses that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God. This confession came from the Father: “It is not flesh and blood that revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 16:17 And it is to the one who has just received it that Jesus gives a new name and a mission: “You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it.” Matthew 16:18

The keys of the Kingdom

Jesus then hands Peter the keys. “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Matthew 16:19 The image comes from the Old Testament. In the royal house of Judah, the king entrusted to a steward the key of the palace, the charge of governing in his name, which he passed on to a successor. “I will lay on his shoulder the key of the house of David; he shall open, and none shall shut; he shall shut, and none shall open.” Isaiah 22:22 Peter receives this charge for the Kingdom of Christ: the authority to open and to close, to bind and to loose, in the name of his Lord. And as the steward's charge passed to another, that of Peter is made to be transmitted.

Feed my sheep

The promise becomes a charge after the Resurrection. Three times, the Risen One asks Peter if he loves him, and three times entrusts his flock to him. “Feed my sheep.” John 21:17 Peter thus receives the keeping of all the sheep of Christ, the other shepherds included. On the evening of the Supper, Jesus had already entrusted to him a singular mission: to sustain the faith of his brothers. “I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail; and you, strengthen your brothers.” Luke 22:32

The first of the apostles

Peter's place appears throughout the Gospel. The lists of the apostles always name him first. “These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon, called Peter.” Matthew 10:2 He speaks in the name of the others, he is the first to confess Christ, the first to enter the empty tomb, the first to proclaim the Gospel on the morning of Pentecost. This constant precedence manifests the charge the Lord entrusted to him.

The Rock and the rock

One single stone founds the Church in the last resort: Christ. “No one can lay another foundation than the one already laid, Jesus Christ.” 1 Corinthians 3:11 Peter holds his role from this unique foundation: he is the visible rock by which Christ, the invisible Rock, maintains his Church in time. In giving Simon his own name of Rock, the Lord makes him participate in what he himself is, remaining the one source from which Peter receives everything.

A charge that remains

The Church is built to last until the end of time; her visible foundation thus had to last as long as she does. The charge of Peter did not die out at his death: it passes to his successors. The apostles showed it from the very beginning: to replace Judas, Peter cites the psalm, and the office left vacant is at once entrusted to another. “Let another take his charge.” Acts 1:20 Peter himself finished his course at Rome, where he shed his blood; the bishop of Rome is his heir, and this is why the pope today exercises the same primacy over the whole Church. It is on this charge that rests the charism by which he confirms his brothers in the faith and keeps them in the truth.

The first successors

The New Testament already names the first links of the Roman chain. After Peter comes Linus, greeted by the second letter to Timothy: “Eubulus, Pudens, Linus and Claudia greet you.” 2 Timothy 4:21 Further on appears Clement, that fellow worker of Paul whom tradition recognises as the fourth pope: “... with Clement and my other fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.” Philippians 4:3 The first of those who held the place of Peter are thus inscribed in Scripture itself.

Vicar of Christ

The pope holds the place of Christ as visible shepherd of the flock that the Lord leads invisibly: this is what his title of vicar of Christ means, the one who acts in the name of another and in his place. The bishops, successors of the apostles, form one single college of which he is the head, as Peter was among the Twelve; and one is in the Church of Christ only by remaining in communion with him.

Servant of the servants of God

This primacy is given to serve, not to dominate. The greatest in the Church makes himself the servant of all, following Christ who washed his disciples' feet; and Peter himself teaches it to the shepherds. “Shepherd the flock of God entrusted to you, not as lords, but making yourselves models for the flock.” 1 Peter 5:2-3 Hence the oldest of the pope's titles, servant of the servants of God. And this charge rests not on the holiness of the one who bears it, but on the promise of Christ: Peter, who had denied his Master, was raised up and then charged to strengthen his brothers, a sign that the office holds from God and not from man.