Saint Peter

===New Testament===
[[File:Francesco del Cossa 017.jpg|thumb|upright|''St Peter'' by [[Francesco del Cossa]], 1473]]

====Epistles====
{{main|Authorship of the Petrine epistles}}

The [[New Testament]] includes two letters (''epistles'') ascribed to Peter. Both demonstrate a high quality of cultured and urban Greek, at odds with the linguistic skill that would ordinarily be expected of an [[Aramaic]]-speaking fisherman, who would have learned Greek as a second or third language. The textual features of these two epistles are such that a majority of scholars doubt that they were written by the same hand. Some scholars argue that theological differences imply different sources and point to the lack of references to 2&nbsp;Peter among the early Church Fathers.

[[Daniel B. Wallace]] (who maintains that Peter was the author) writes that, for many scholars, "the issue of authorship is already settled, at least negatively: the apostle Peter did not write this letter" and that "the vast bulk of NT scholars adopts this perspective without much discussion". However, he later states, "Although a very strong case has been made against Petrine authorship of 2 Peter, we believe it is deficient. ...Taken together, these external and internal arguments strongly suggest the traditional view, viz., that Peter was indeed the author of the second epistle which bears his name."<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20031209164253/http://www.bible.org/docs/soapbox/2petotl.htm ''Second Peter: Introduction, Argument, and Outline'']. Archive date: 9 December 2003. Access date: 19 August 2013.</ref>

Of the two epistles, the [[First Epistle of Peter|first epistle]] is considered the earlier. A number of scholars have argued that the textual discrepancies with what would be expected of the biblical Peter are due to it having been written with the help of a secretary or as an [[amanuensis]].<ref name="ce-epistles">{{cathEncy|wstitle=Epistles of St. Peter|volume=11|author=Vander Heeren, Achille}}</ref>

[[Jerome]] explains:

{{blockquote|The two Epistles attributed to St. Peter differ in style, character, and the construction of the words, which proves that according to the exigencies of the moment St. Peter made use of different interpreters. ''(Epistle 120 – To Hedibia)''<ref name="Jerome">{{cite web|last1=saint|first1=Jerome|title=Epistle 120 – To Hedibia Question 11|url=http://www.tertullian.org/fathers/jerome_hedibia_2_trans.htm|publisher=tertullian.org|access-date=9 June 2015}}</ref>|author=|title=|source=}}

Some have seen a reference to the use of a secretary in the sentence: "By Silvanus, a faithful brother unto you, as I suppose, I have written briefly, exhorting, and testifying that this is the true grace of God wherein ye stand".<ref>{{bibleverse|1Pet|5:12|ESV|1 Pet. 5:12}}</ref> However New Testament scholar [[Bart D. Ehrman]] in his 2011 book ''Forged'' states that "scholars now widely recognise that when the author indicates that he wrote the book 'through Silvanus', he is indicating not the name of his secretary, but the person who was carrying his letter to the recipients."<ref>{{cite book |last1=Ehrman |first1=Bart D. |author-link1=Bart D. Ehrman |title= Forged|url=https://archive.org/details/forgedwritinginn00ehrm |url-access=registration |year= 2011|publisher=HarperOne, [[HarperCollins]] |isbn=978-0-06-201262-3 |page=[https://archive.org/details/forgedwritinginn00ehrm/page/76 76]}}</ref> The letter refers to Roman persecution of Christians, apparently of an official nature. The Roman historian [[Tacitus]] and the biographer [[Suetonius]] do both record that Nero persecuted Christians, and Tacitus dates this to immediately after the fire that burned Rome in 64. Christian tradition, for example Eusebius of Caesarea (''History'' book 2, 24.1), has maintained that Peter was killed in Nero's persecution, and thus had to assume that the Roman persecution alluded to in First Peter must be this Neronian persecution.<ref name="ce-epistles"/> On the other hand, many modern scholars argue that First Peter refers to the persecution of Christians in Asia Minor during the reign of the emperor [[Domitian]] (81–96), as the letter is explicitly addressed to Jewish Christians from that region:

{{blockquote|Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to God's elect, strangers in the world, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and sprinkling by his blood: Grace and peace be yours in abundance.<ref>{{bibleverse|1Pet|1:1–2}}</ref>}}

Those scholars who believe that the epistle dates from the time of Domitian argue that Nero's persecution of Christians was confined to the city of Rome itself and did not extend to the Asian provinces mentioned in 1 Pet 1:1–2.
 
The [[Second Epistle of Peter]], on the other hand, appears to have been copied, in part, from the [[Epistle of Jude]], and some modern scholars date its composition as late as ''c.'' 150. Some scholars argue the opposite, that the Epistle of Jude copied Second Peter, while others contend an early date for Jude and thus observe that an early date is not incompatible with the text.<ref name="ce-epistles"/> Many scholars have noted the similarities between the [[apocrypha]]l [[Second Epistle of Clement]] (2nd century) and Second Peter. Second Peter may be earlier than 150; there are a few possible references to it that date back to the 1st century or early 2nd century, e.g., [[1 Clement]] written in ''c.'' AD 96, and the later church historian Eusebius wrote that [[Origen]] had made reference to the epistle before 250.<ref name="ce-epistles"/><ref>{{cite web|author=Eusebius|title=Church History Book VI, Chapter 25|url=http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/250106.htm|publisher=newadvent.org|access-date=11 June 2015}}</ref>

Jerome says that Peter "wrote two epistles which are called Catholic, the second of which, on account of its difference from the first in style, is considered by many not to be by him" (''De Viris Illustribus'' 1).<ref name="Jerome1" /> But he himself received the epistle, and explained the difference in style, character, and structure of words by the assumption that Peter used different interpreters in the composition of the two epistles;<ref name="Jerome" /> and from his time onward the epistle was generally regarded as a part of the New Testament.

Even in early times there was controversy over its authorship, and Second Peter was often not included in the [[biblical canon]]; it was only in the 4th century that it gained a firm foothold in the New Testament, in a series of synods. In the East the [[Syriac Orthodox Church]] still did not admit it into the canon until the 6th century.<ref name="ce-epistles"/>

====Mark====
Traditionally, the [[Gospel of Mark#Authorship and genre|Gospel of Mark]] was said to have been written by a person named [[John Mark]], and that this person was an assistant to Peter; hence its content was traditionally seen as the closest to Peter's viewpoint. According to Eusebius' ''Ecclesiastical History'', [[Papias of Hierapolis|Papias]] recorded this belief from [[John the Presbyter]]:

{{blockquote|Mark having become the interpreter of Peter, wrote down accurately whatsoever he remembered. It was not, however, in exact order that he related the sayings or deeds of Christ. For he neither heard the Lord nor accompanied Him. But afterwards, as I said, he accompanied Peter, who accommodated his instructions to the necessities [of his hearers], but with no intention of giving a normal or chronological narrative of the Lord's sayings. Wherefore Mark made no mistake in thus writing some things as he remembered them. For of one thing he took especial care, not to omit anything he had heard, and not to put anything fictional into the statements.<ref>Eusebius,'' Ecclesiastical History'', 3.39.14–16</ref>|author=|title=|source=}}

Clement of Alexandria in the fragments of his work ''Hypotyposes'' (A.D. 190) preserved and cited by the historian Eusebius in his ''Church History'' (VI, 14: 6) writes that:

{{blockquote|As Peter had preached the Word publicly at Rome, and declared the Gospel by the Spirit, many who were present requested that [[Mark the Evangelist|Mark]], who had followed him for a long time and remembered his sayings, should write them out. And having composed the Gospel he gave it to those who had requested it.<ref name="CL" />}}

Also, Irenaeus wrote about this tradition:

{{blockquote|After their (Peter and Paul's) passing, Mark also, the disciple and interpreter of Peter, transmitted to us in writing the things preached by Peter.<ref>Irenaeus, ''Against Heresies'', III. 1.2.; quoted by Eusebius in ''Ecclesiastical History'', book 5, 7.6</ref>}}

Based on these quotes, and on the Christian tradition, the information in Mark's gospel about Peter would be based on eyewitness material.<ref name="ce-epistles"/> The gospel itself is [[Anonymous work|anonymous]], and the above passages are the oldest surviving written testimony to its authorship.<ref name="ce-epistles"/>