Saint Peter

**Saint Peter** is one of the twelve apostles of Jesus. He is often talked about in the New Testament of the Bible across the different Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John). 

## Peter in the New Testament
Most of what we know about Peter comes from the Bible. Peter is an important person in all four Gospels and in the early chapters of the Acts of the Apostles. Peter was a fisherman that Jesus called to follow Him. He was one of the "inner circle" of Jesus along with James and John. These three disciples were with Jesus when he went up on a mountain where Moses and Elijah appeared and God said that Jesus was his Son. In the Gospel of Matthew   Jesus Christ says "You are Peter (rock), and upon this rock I will build my church". When Jesus was arrested Peter ran away. He said three times that he was not a follower of Jesus. After He was raised from the dead Jesus forgave Peter and restored him to his work as a pastor.  In the first 7 chapters of Acts Peter seems to be the leader of the Christians. He had a vision telling him that salvation was now open to non-Jews. Yet later, Paul the Apostle had to remind Peter of this. Peter is believed to be the author of two letters in the New Testament. He is thought to be the source of the stories in the Gospel of Mark . Since he had seen Jesus after he was raised from the dead, he could be an author of New Testament scriptures.  Peter was married according to the Gospel of Mark. The name of his wife is unknown.

## Peter's time in Rome
The historical accuracy of the accounts of Peter's role in Rome is a matter of ongoing debate.

Paintings from later centuries often show him holding the keys to the kingdom of heaven – a reference to Matthew .  It is not known when Peter was born. 

The date of his death is said to be about the year 64 AD. He died by being nailed to a cross in Rome, the modern capital of Italy. This type of death is called crucifixion. According to the apocrypha's *Acts of Peter*, Peter asked to be crucified upside down, as he felt unworthy to die as Jesus did. Most historical sources only say that he was crucified this way.

## Saint and Pope
The Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Lutheran Churches, as well as the Anglican Communion, consider Simon Peter a saint. Roman Catholics believe that the Pope is Peter's successor. For this reason, he is the rightful head of all other bishops. Eastern and Oriental Orthodox also recognise the Bishop of Rome as the successor to Saint Peter and the Ecumenical Patriarch sends a delegation each year to Rome to participate in the celebration of his feast.

### *Ravenna document*
In the *Ravenna document* of 13 October 2007, representatives of the Eastern Orthodox Church agreed that

Christian tradition says Saint Peter was the first leader of an early apostolic community for at least 34 years. Back then, the word Pope or "Papa" was not used to name the leader of the Roman Catholic Church. At that time there was only one Christian Church. Later, the Roman Catholic Church would say that Peter was their first Pope. Tradition also locates his burial place where St. Peter's Basilica was later built, in Vatican City.

## Related pages
* Twelve Apostles

## Footnotes
## References