Saint Peter

===Accounts===
Peter was a Jewish fisherman in [[Bethsaida]] ([[John 1]]:44).<ref>{{bibleverse|John|1:44}}</ref> He was named Simon, the son of a man named Jonah or John.{{refn|group=note|His father's name is given as 'Jonah' ([[John 1]]:42,<ref name="bibleverse|John|1:42">{{bibleverse|John|1:42}}</ref> [[Matthew 16]]:17),<ref>{{bibleverse|Matthew|16:17}}</ref> although some manuscripts of John give his father's name as 'John'.}} The three [[Synoptic Gospels]] recount how Peter's mother-in-law [[Healing the mother of Peter's wife|was healed by Jesus]] at their home in [[Capernaum]] ([[Matthew 8]]:14–17,<ref>{{bibleverse|Matthew|8:14–17}}</ref> [[Mark 1]]:29–31,<ref>{{bibleverse|Mark|1:29–31}}</ref> [[Luke 4]]:38);<ref>{{bibleverse|Luke|4:38}}</ref> this passage clearly depicts Peter as being married or widowed. [[1 Corinthians 9]]:5<ref>{{bibleverse|1 Corinthians|9:5}}</ref> has also been taken to imply that he was married.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JwZWAgAAQBAJ&q=%22Peter's+wife%22+Corinthians&pg=PA92|title=Accompanied by a Believing Wife: Ministry and Celibacy in the Earliest Christian Communities|first=Raymond F.|last=Collins|date=22 November 2013|publisher=Liturgical Press|via=Google Books|isbn=978-0-8146-8238-8}}</ref>

[[File:Duccio di Buoninsegna 036.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|left|''The Calling of the Apostles Peter and Andrew'' (from the ''Maestà''), {{c.|1308–1311}}]]

In the Synoptic Gospels, Peter (then Simon) was a fisherman along with his brother, [[Saint Andrew|Andrew]], and the sons of [[Zebedee]], [[James the Great|
James]] and [[John the Apostle|
John]]. The [[Gospel of John]] also depicts Peter fishing, even after the resurrection of Jesus, in the story of the [[Miraculous Draught of Fish|Catch of 153 fish]]. In Matthew and Mark, Jesus called Simon and his brother Andrew to be "[[fishers of men]]" ([[Matthew 4:18]]–[[Matthew 4:19|19]],<ref>{{bibleverse|Matthew|4:18–19}}</ref> [[Mark 1]]:16–17).<ref>{{bibleverse|Mark|1:16–17}}</ref>

In the [[Confession of Peter]] he proclaims Jesus to be the [[Christ]] ([[Jewish Messiah]]), as described in the three Synoptic Gospels: Matthew 16:13–20,<ref>{{bibleverse|Matthew|16:13–20}}</ref> Mark 8:27–30<ref>{{bibleverse|Mark|8:27–30}}</ref> and Luke 9:18–21.<ref>{{bibleverse|Luke|9:18–21}}</ref> It is there, in the area of [[Caesarea Philippi]], that he receives from Jesus the name Cephas (Aramaic {{transliteration|arc|Kepha}}), or Peter (Greek {{transliteration|grc|Petros}}).

In [[Gospel of Luke|Luke]], Simon Peter owns the [[Boat of Saint Peter|boat]] that Jesus uses to preach to the multitudes who were pressing on him at the shore of [[Sea of Galilee|Lake Gennesaret]] ([[Luke 5]]:3).<ref>{{bibleverse|Luke|5:3}}</ref> Jesus then amazes Simon and his companions James and John (Andrew is not mentioned) by telling them to lower their nets, whereupon they catch a huge number of fish. Immediately after this, they follow Him ([[Luke 5]]:4–11).<ref>{{bibleverse|Luke|5:4–11}}</ref> The [[Gospel of John]] gives a comparable account of "The First Disciples" ([[John 1]]:35–42).<ref>{{bibleverse|John|1:35–42}}</ref> In John, the readers are told that it was two disciples of [[John the Baptist]] (Andrew and an unnamed disciple) who heard John the Baptist announce Jesus as the "[[Lamb of God]]" and then followed Jesus. Andrew then went to his brother Simon, saying, "We have found the [[Messiah]]", and then brought Simon to Jesus, who immediately, at the first sight of him, named him as "Cephas". ([[John 1]]:42).<ref name="bibleverse|John|1:42"/>

[[File:Cavalier d'Arpino - Christ Taken Prisoner - WGA04690.jpg|thumb|right|Apostle Peter striking the [[High Priest]]s' servant [[Malchus]] with a sword in the [[Garden of Gethsemane]], by [[Giuseppe Cesari]], {{c.|1597}}]]

Three of the four gospels—Matthew, Mark and John—recount the story of [[Jesus walking on water]]. Matthew additionally describes Peter walking on water for a moment but beginning to sink when his faith wavers ([[Matthew 14]]:28–31).<ref>{{bibleverse|Matthew|14:28–31}}</ref>

At the beginning of the [[Last Supper]], Jesus washed His disciples' feet. Peter initially refused to let Jesus wash his feet, but when Jesus told him: "If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me", Peter replied: "Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head" ([[John 13]]:2–11).<ref>{{bibleverse|John|13:2–11}}</ref> The [[Maundy (foot washing)|washing of feet]] is often repeated in the [[service of worship]] on [[Maundy Thursday]] by some [[Christian denominations]].

The three [[Synoptic Gospels]] all mention that, when Jesus was arrested, one of his companions cut off the ear of a servant of the [[High Priest of Israel]] ([[Matthew 26]]:51,<ref>{{bibleverse|Matthew|26:51}}</ref> [[Mark 14]]:47,<ref>{{bibleverse|Mark|14:47}}</ref> [[Luke 22]]:50).<ref>{{bibleverse|Luke|22:50}}</ref> The Gospel of John also includes this event and names Peter as the swordsman and [[Malchus]] as the victim ([[John 18]]:10).<ref>{{bibleverse|John|18:10}}</ref> Luke adds that Jesus touched the ear and miraculously healed it ([[Luke 22]]:49–51).<ref>{{bibleverse|Luke|22:49–51}}</ref> This healing of the servant's ear is the last of the [[Miracles of Jesus|37 miracles attributed to Jesus]] in the Bible.

Simon Peter was twice [[arraigned]], with John, before the [[Sanhedrin]] and directly defied them ([[Acts 4]]:7–22,<ref>{{bibleverse|Acts of the Apostles|4:7–22}}</ref> [[Acts 5]]:18–42).<ref>{{bibleverse|Acts of the Apostles|5:18–42}}</ref> After receiving a [[Peter's vision of a sheet with animals|vision]] from God that allowed for the eating of previously unclean animals, Peter takes a missionary journey to [[Lod|Lydda]], [[Jaffa, Israel|Joppa]] and [[Caesarea Maritima|Caesarea]] ([[Acts 9]]:32–[[Acts 10]]:2),<ref>{{bibleverse|Acts of the Apostles|9:32–10:2}}</ref> becoming instrumental in the decision to evangelise the [[Gentile]]s ([[Acts 10]]).<ref>{{bibleverse|Acts of the Apostles|10}}</ref> Simon Peter applied the message of the vision on clean animals to the gentiles and follows his meeting with [[Cornelius the Centurion]] by claiming that "God shows no partiality".

According to the [[Acts of the Apostles]], Peter and John were sent from Jerusalem to [[Samaria]] ([[Acts 8]]:14).<ref>{{bibleverse|Acts of the Apostles|8:14}}</ref> Peter/Cephas is mentioned briefly in the opening chapter of one of the [[Pauline epistles]], [[Epistle to the Galatians]], which mentions a trip by [[Paul the Apostle]] to [[Jerusalem]] where he meets Peter ([[Galatians 1]]:18).<ref>{{bibleverse|Galatians|1:18}}</ref> Peter features again in Galatians, fourteen years later, when Paul (now with [[Barnabas]] and [[Saint Titus|Titus]]) returned to Jerusalem ([[Galatians 2]]:7–9).<ref>{{bibleverse|Galatians|2:7–9}}</ref> When Peter came to [[Antioch]], Paul opposed Peter to his face "because he [Peter] was in the wrong" ([[Galatians 2]]:11).<ref>{{bibleverse|Galatians|2:11}}</ref>{{refn|group=note|See [[Incident at Antioch]]; see also the section below headed "Road to Rome: Antioch and Corinth".}}
[[File:Apostle Peter Released from Prison, Jacopo di Cione, 1370-1371 (Philadelphia Museum of Art).jpg|left|thumb|''Apostle Peter Released from Prison'', [[Jacopo di Cione]], 1370–1371 ([[Philadelphia Museum of Art]])]]
[[Acts 12]] narrates how Peter, who was in Jerusalem, was put into prison by [[Agrippa I]] (AD 42–44) but was [[liberation of Saint Peter|rescued by an angel]]. After his liberation Peter left Jerusalem to go to "another place" (Acts 12:1–18).<ref>{{bibleverse|Acts of the Apostles|12:1–18}}</ref> Concerning Peter's subsequent activity there is no further connected information from the extant sources, although there are short notices of certain individual episodes of his later life.<ref name="newadvent"/>