St. Peter an Infallible Pope?/Church’s Birthday

Q Wasn’t St. Peter too flawed to be an infallible pope?

A Yes, St. Peter was flawed:  when Jesus said he had to die on the cross, St. Peter scolded him; during Christ’s Passion St. Peter denied Jesus three times. He certainly was flawed, just like all of us.  He was not perfect.  No human being, other than Jesus and Mary is or was free of sin, but Jesus saw something in St. Peter and selected him to lead his church when he said “You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it” (Mt 16:18).  Jesus knew that St. Peter would deny him, but he selected him anyway.  He knew that St. Peter could be solid as a rock, stand firm under pressure and be a trustworthy brother to his fellow disciples.  

If Christ wanted his church to last forever, it follows that the church must be protected from teaching errors regarding faith and morals.  If the church would ever teach heresy, it would cease to exist because it would cease to be Jesus’ church.  To protect the church from teaching heresy, Jesus granted infallibility to the pope when he proclaims a doctrine of faith and morals to be infallible.  That is what the pope’s infallibility is all about, teachings related to faith and morals, not being a perfect individual, never sinning.  

God has always guided his church to keep it free from moral errors, but in 1870 the church defined when the pope can declare something infallible.  The pope cannot speak infallibly unless he intends to do so.  And he must speak in a deliberate, formal, official way, intending that the faith and moral issue must be accepted by all Catholics as official church teaching.  When he does this, he is being guided by the Holy Spirit.  

Q On May 23rd we celebrated the solemnity of Pentecost, which some people call the birthday of the church.  Why is that?

A In the Catholic Church, Pentecost takes place 50 days after Easter (if you count both Easter Sunday and Pentecost Sunday).  It replaces the Jewish feast of Pentecost, which takes place 50 days after the Passover.  Pentecost, therefore, celebrates the passing away of the old law of Moses which is replaced by the new law in Jesus Christ.  

At the Last Supper, Christ promised the Twelve Apostles that he would send an advocate (the Holy Spirit) to teach them and help them.  Fifty days after Jesus’ resurrection, the apostles were behind locked doors for fear of the Jews; they were afraid that what the Jews did to Jesus could happen to them.  But, the Holy Spirit descends upon them to give them the courage to fulfill the mandate of Jesus to go “and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the father, and of the son and of the Holy Spirit” (Mt 28:19).  Through the power of the Holy Spirit, the apostles conquered their fears, got out of their comfort zone and proclaimed the Gospel to thousands of Jews gathered in Jerusalem celebrating the Jewish feast of Pentecost.  Three thousand people were converted and baptized.  On that day, with the descent of the Holy Spirit, the New Covenant was established, and the church began to grow, hence, the birthday of the church.

Deacon Hooper is a deacon assistant at Immaculate Conception Church in Denham Springs. He can be reached at ghooper@diobr.org.