Originally posted by One Bad Pig
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Matthew 16:18-19
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Matthew 16:18-19
So, I've been reading some polemical documents regarding this passage, and thought I'd do some digging. Among others, St. Augustine, St. Ambrose of Milan, and St. Jerome were proffered as early Western members of the Church who rather disagree with the Roman Catholic Church's current interpretation.
I'll start with St. Jerome:
There are two issues here. Catholics assert that Peter alone was given the keys of the kingdom of heaven, which Jerome clearly denies. On the other hand, Peter is held to be the head, which Catholics assert is correct. However, the context makes that last statement less helpful than it appears; Jerome argues that Peter was chosen only because he was older (otherwise John, who was more highly qualified, would have been chosen).
St. Ambrose of Milan:
St. Ambrose explicitly disavows that Peter has a primacy of rank. Further, he identifies "rock" with Peter's confession, not Peter himself.
St. Augustine:
St. Augustine apparently once held that the rock referenced by Jesus was Peter, but he retracted it. Here, it is clear that the Rock is Peter's confession that Jesus is the Christ (or simply Christ Himself). Peter is portrayed as representative of the Church, not the head of the Church.
There are other similar citations from Sts. Augustine and Ambrose in my sources, but I wanted to start with those I could quickly verify from the primary sources; I am reluctant to take polemic sources at face value, whether I agree with them or not.Tags: None
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