Iconography of the Supreme Apostles Peter and Paul. What is an icon
The icon of St. Peter is the most important part of any home iconostasis. Prayers before her can save you from danger, as well as strengthen and maintain faith in the Lord.
The Apostle Peter was the son of a fisherman and from childhood he was a fisherman. Upon reaching an older age, Peter met Christ and followed Him. Among the 12 apostles, Peter became a favorite disciple and follower of Jesus: it was to him that the Savior entrusted the keeping of the keys to the gates of heaven.
When Jesus Christ was arrested and sentenced to death, Peter, fearful of persecution, denied Him three times at dawn. Realizing the horror of his act, he bitterly repented and was later forgiven by the Lord. Peter devoted the rest of his life to preaching the teachings of God, was captured and martyred during the reign of Nero.
After his death, the apostle was canonized, and his icon still works miracles of healing and signs that save people's lives.
Where is the miraculous icon
There are many copies and lists of the miraculous image, but the original icon, painted in the 6th century, is located in Egypt, in the monastery of St. Catherine. The canonical image of Peter, from which the frescoes of St. Isaac's Cathedral were copied, is located in the Cathedral of the Holy Life-Giving Trinity in St. Petersburg.
Description of the image
The icon depicts the Apostle Peter in the prime of his spiritual path. The saint is dressed in a monastic chiton, holds the Holy Scriptures in one hand, and the keys to the gates of Paradise in the other. The apostle is on his way.
This image symbolizes a long life journey of preaching and deeds in the name of the Lord and faith in Him, as well as a long road from renunciation to forgiveness and acceptance by the Lord of his beloved disciple at the gates of Paradise.
What helps the icon of the Apostle Peter
Although Peter left his home and family to serve the Lord, he did not forget his daily work and his roots. That is why Peter is considered the patron saint of fishermen and sailors. They pray to the saint for the preservation of life on the water and help in trouble.
In addition, according to legend, the apostle Peter was endowed with such great power that he could heal terminally ill people only by touching them. For this reason, the icon of the saint is prayed for the healing of bodily and mental illnesses, as well as for the relief of chronic pain.
Prayers before the image of the Apostle Peter
“Saint Peter, the patron saint of sailors and travelers, we pray to you, resorting to you in anguish and fear: do not leave our prayers unanswered, save us from danger at sea and on land! We pray you, do not let the belly of the servant of God (name) and save all his companions from all evil. Truly an apostle, guardian and resolver, save and save the servant of God (name) from all evil. Amen".
“Holy Apostle Peter, the keeper of the keys that open the gates of Paradise, the great healer, we implore you humbly and with hope: reveal the gift given to you by our Lord Jesus Christ, heal the wounds of your soul and body, save my stomach, my soul and my mind from intrigues devilish, save my life from pain and suffering. I truly ask you to protect and cover with your cover from diseases in order to give thanks to our Lord and humbly glorify His will until the end of my days. Amen".
What does the icon of the Apostle Peter look like?
In addition to the first canonical image, there are several common versions of the icon of the apostle, recognized by the Church. On one of them, the saint is depicted not in full growth, but to the waist.
In one hand, Saint Peter holds the Holy Scroll, and with the other he blesses everyone who prays in front of the image.
On another fairly common image, Saint Peter is depicted in advanced years. The eyes of the apostle are raised to heaven: at this moment the saint receives God's blessing for martyrdom.
In one hand, Peter holds an open book of the Gospel, and in the other he holds the keys to the gates of heaven.
The apostle Peter was the beloved disciple of the Lord and received the forgiveness of the sin of renouncing the will of the Lord and His teachings. That is why prayers for the forgiveness of sins are especially strong before the image of a saint. We wish you peace of mind and strong faith in God. Be happy and don't forget to press the buttons and
11.07.2017 05:09
The Kazan Icon of the Mother of God is widely known among Orthodox Christians. The intercessor and protector of all people is ...
What is an icon? Why do icon painters create icons of the Virgin . patron saint icons . icons of the Savior and other Orthodox icons? Why one day we irresistibly want to order an icon? We want the icon to be painted personally for us.
In a literal translation from Greek, an icon is an image. Through the icon, each person turns to God in himself, because he is one in all. Prince E.N. Trubetskoy wrote that Orthodox icons open to a person “a vision of a different truth in life and a different meaning of the world” 1. different from the struggle for survival. No words can convey the power of Divine love and the joy of feeling Divine grace that comes from the icons of the Mother of God, the icons of saints and the icons of the Savior Jesus Christ, painted by contemporary icon painter Yuri Kuznetsov.
As you know, icons “have a special language - a system of signs that convey certain information” 2. But the “decoding” of these symbols can only be done with the heart. For a person who would like to order an icon, it is important to acquire not just an icon depicting the Savior Jesus Christ, the Mother of God, or saints, but behind an Orthodox icon there should be “the discovery of a saint, a place of his mystical presence. An icon is a visual link in the dialogue between a praying soul and a saint: a Christian prays not to an icon, but through the icon to the one depicted on it. A special impression is made by the icon of the Mother of God Tenderness Rejoice Bride Unbrideed.
Of course, “... ecclesiastical art has its own special features, peculiar to it alone, and therefore puts the artist in a special position: the artist must clarify for himself the demands placed on him. He must give not an ordinary real picture, not a copy from a sample that accidentally came to hand, not an idle fiction of fantasy, not consecrated by a clear religious consciousness, but an icon corresponding to its high purpose ”4. And if a prayer, contemplating the icons of the Mother of God, the icons of saints, icons of the Savior Jesus Christ or other Orthodox icons will experience a soul-piercing feeling of the reality of the spiritual world. If the icon suddenly opens as a bright, shedding vision, which is recognized as exceeding everything around, remaining in another, its own space and in eternity, then the burning of passions and the vanity of the world subsides, the feeling of God is recognized as above-peaceful, qualitatively superior to the world and acting from its own area. here, there are 5 of us.
All of the above was experienced by me personally and by many people who keep icons of “Kuznetsov’s writing” in their homes. Everyone in the house has an icon of his patron saint.
Icon, be it the Kazan icon of the Mother of God. icon of the Mother of God All-Tsaritsa. the icon of the patron saint, the Savior Jesus Christ or another Orthodox icon is “Church Tradition and the grace of God, manifested through lines and colors, as through color writing. The power of the icon testifies that this world [spiritual approx. KK] near us, that the soul itself is a particle of this world” 6.
Father John of Kronstadt wrote about the need for icons in the house: “Icons in the church, in houses are necessary, among other things, for the fact that they remind of the immortality of the saints, live the essence (Luke 20, 38), as the Lord says, that they are in God see us, hear us and help us” (John of Kronstadt, My Life in Christ, St. Petersburg, 2005, p. 468). Through the icon of a saint, the icon of the Mother of God or the icon of the Savior Jesus Christ, we join his life and seem to live it together. Together with the icon of the Mother of God “I am with you and no one is against you”, the prayer is affirmed in his faith. Literally, the name of the icon sounds like - "I am always with you and no one will offend you."
“The icon starts from the line, and the line starts from the heart; it has no other basis or reason for it. The heart in the patristic understanding is the seat of the human spirit or the spirit itself. Therefore, the starting point of the icon lies in the invisible world, and then appears and manifests itself, as if descending to the plane of the icon; it is not a repetition of the line of the model from which the icon is written. 7. Imagine a thin silver thread coming from the heart, and every moment of life colors it in the appropriate color, so you get a multi-colored carpet woven from episodes of life. This is the essence of the icons of "Kuznetsov's letter". Icons of the Mother of God, icons of saints, icons of the Savior Jesus Christ or other Orthodox icons are painted by Yuri Kuznetsov according to this principle: each dot is an episode in the life of a saint. If we perceive the icon not logically, but in spirit, then in the ornament of the Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God one can see that this icon was brought from Byzantium to Russia at the beginning of the 12th century, as a gift to Yuri Dolgoruky from the Patriarch of Constantinople Luke Chrysoverha. The icon was placed in the convent of Vyshgorod, not far from Kyiv, and the rumor about its miraculous works reached the son of Yuri Dolgoruky, Prince Andrei Bogolyubsky, who decided to transport the icon to the north.
Such an understanding and reading of the Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God is possible, because “the line on the icon is a cut into the spiritual world, it is a gap in the world of bone and, therefore, in its essence, darkened matter – only grace can enlighten matter” 8. A cut in icons "Kuznetsov's letter" is the ornament underlying it. The ornament is rounded, since the line in the icon “should not be pointed and angular, as if broken (angularity, convulsiveness, kinks, pointed ends refer to the image of dark power). Circumference and roundness, the natural movement of the line - this is the life of the line ... "9. Variations of the ornament vary depending on whether the icon of the Mother of God, the icon of the saints or another Orthodox icon or the icon of the Savior Jesus Christ is written.
In the process of icon painting, “the mystical experience of communication with the Heavenly Church and the experience of spiritual realities” is very important 10. It is this experience that gives the true content to the icon.
The canonical form and historical authenticity of the Orthodox icon is given by the sample from which the list is taken. There is a fundamental difference between a list and a copy from an icon of the Mother of God, an icon of saints, or an icon of the Savior Jesus Christ. “A list is closeness to a person, a copy is a similarity, or even a visual match with an iconographic image” 11. “To make a list, you must experience the icon internally, read its semantic text, and then write it in your own handwriting” 12.
Icons of the 21st century is a site created specifically to popularize and promote the work of the icon painter Yuri Kuznetsov, as well as to revive and restore Orthodoxy in Russia, to return people to the path of joy, love and kindness. With us you can order an icon"Kuznetsov" letter, get acquainted with the stories of finding Orthodox icons, learn about the earthly life of saints and their veneration, read about the meaning and content of the holidays of the Orthodox calendar.
Icons of the Mother of God, patron saints, the Savior Jesus Christ and other Orthodox icons are created according to ancient monastic technologies in tempera on a lime board.
Before ordering an icon, we invite you to find out our recommendations. If you want an icon for yourself, an icon that will be with you throughout your life, then this can be nominal icon. that is, an icon depicting a saint with the same name as you. You can choose the appropriate image from the proposed list of already written nominal icons. If your name is not on the list, this does not mean that you will not be able to order a nominal icon, write to us or call and we will select a holy image for you. A personal icon does not have to be personalized. It can be an icon of the Mother of God, an icon of a saint, an icon of the Savior, or another Orthodox icon.
The peculiarity of the icons of "Kuznetsov's writing" is that the icon painter Yuri Kuznetsov, having a very sensitive perception of a person, writes for him an image that corresponds precisely to his spirit. The icon of the author's letter, written specifically for a particular person, will strengthen him in faith throughout his life and support him in difficult moments of life. When painting a holy image, it is very important for an icon painter to understand the life path of the person for whom he presents a holy image, since after painting the icon, the person and the saint will be connected. Therefore, a personal icon: the icon of the Mother of God, the icon of a saint, a nominal icon, an icon of the Savior, family icon or another Orthodox icon, painted especially for you, in no case should be sold or given to another person.
After you decide on the image, in order to order an icon, you will need to choose its size. Yuri Kuznetsov paints icons of saints mainly in 2 sizes: large - 75x100 cm and small - 35x40 cm.
In which case is it better to order a large icon, and in which a small one? A large icon allows the icon painter to convey in more detail the history of the life of the saint and his spiritual feat with the help of ornament and color. A small icon is more private, easy to transport. Of course, it is possible to choose an icon in a different format, but keep in mind that this will require additional time to make the base for the icon. “The icon is both a way and a means; she is prayer itself” 13. The purpose of an icon, whether it be icons of the Mother of God, icons of saints or other Orthodox icons or icons of the Savior Jesus Christ, is “to direct all our feelings, as well as the mind and all our human nature, towards its true goal - to path of transformation" 14.
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1 Trubetskoy E.N. Speculation in colors / Icons of Russia. M. 2008. p. 117
2 L.V. Abramova. Semiotics icons. Saransk, 2006, p. 4
3 Archimandrite Raphael (Karelin). About the language of the Orthodox icon / Orthodox icon. Canon and style. M. 1998, p. 79
4 N.V. Pokrovsky. New church art and church antiquity / Theology of the image. Icon and icon painters. M. 2002, p. 267
5 Florensky P. Iconostasis. M. 2009. S. 36
6 Archimandrite Raphael (Karelin). About the language of the Orthodox icon / Orthodox icon. Canon and style. M. 1998, p. 60
7 Archimandrite Raphael (Karelin). About the language of the Orthodox icon / Orthodox icon. Canon and style. M. 1998, p. 66-67
8 Archimandrite Raphael (Karelin). About the language of the Orthodox icon / Orthodox icon. Canon and style. M. 1998, p. 63
9 Archimandrite Raphael (Karelin). About the language of the Orthodox icon / Orthodox icon. Canon and style. M. 1998, p. 71
10 Archimandrite Raphael (Karelin). About the language of the Orthodox icon / Orthodox icon. Canon and style. M. 1998, p. 60
11 Archimandrite Raphael (Karelin). About the language of the Orthodox icon / Orthodox icon. Canon and style. M. 1998, p. 67
12 Archimandrite Raphael (Karelin). About the language of the Orthodox icon / Orthodox icon. Canon and style. M. 1998, p. 67
13 Leonid Uspensky. The meaning and content of the icon / Orthodox icon. Canon and style. M. 1998, p. 111
14 Leonid Uspensky. The meaning and content of the icon / Orthodox icon. Canon and style. M. 1998, p. 111
Even on the miniature of the Khludov Psalter. Pronounced portrait features of the apostles Peter and Paul can be traced already in early Christian iconography: in the painting of the Roman catacombs of the 3rd - early 4th centuries. one can recognize the apostle Peter with short gray hair and a small beard, and Paul with his characteristic Jewish (cf. Phil. 3:5) appearance, high forehead and long dark beard.
Typical for the pre-Mongolian period is the full-length depiction of the holy apostles Peter and Paul, standing side by side. This is how they are depicted on the oldest (XI century) of the icons that have come down to us - from St. Sophia Cathedral in Novgorod. Perhaps this icon was brought from Korsun to Kyiv by the Equal-to-the-Apostles Grand Duke Vladimir himself, and later it came to Novgorod. Currently, researchers date it to the middle of the 11th century. - perhaps this is a list of an earlier Kyiv icon, transferred to Novgorod. The icon was revered as miraculous, so in the XVI century. Ivan the Terrible, along with other revered shrines, took her from Veliky Novgorod to Moscow.
Later, the icon was returned to Novgorod, and it was in St. Sophia Cathedral until the middle of the 20th century. During the Great Patriotic War, the icon was taken by the German invaders to Germany, but in the early 1950s. she was returned to Novgorod.
After restoration, already in the 21st century, it again entered the Novgorod Museum-Reserve.
In the iconography of our earliest icon of the apostles, there are details that have become canonical for subsequent times. This is not only the characteristic appearance of the apostles. The Apostle Paul holds a closed book in a precious frame, Peter has a rolled scroll - a symbol of his apostolic writings, a long golden staff (cf. John 21:15-17) and golden keys (Matt. 16:19). Between the apostles - a little higher, as if in the distance - a shoulder-length image of the blessing Savior with the Gospel in his left hand. The Apostle Peter, repeating the blessing gesture of Christ, also folded his hand in a nominative blessing, and the right hand of the Apostle Paul with folded fingers is at chest level, as if he were making the sign of the cross. The figures of the apostles are slightly turned towards each other - and towards the Savior located between them.
Another well-known icon depicting the supreme apostles in pairs comes from the church of the apostles Peter and Paul in Belozersk, dates back to the end of the 12th - beginning of the 13th centuries. and is in the State Russian Museum. It differs from the Novgorod strict conciseness: the apostles are depicted side by side and facing the viewer, they are quite recognizable by their portrait resemblance to canonical samples, but their hands are folded in almost the same blessing gesture, and the arrangement of their writings is almost the same - the books of the Apostle Paul and the scroll of Peter . Peter does not have a staff or keys. This iconographic type also became widespread in Rus' - an example is the icon of the 15th century. from the Petrozavodsk Museum of Fine Arts.
The image is extremely simplified; the apostles have only their writings in their hands, moreover, Paul holds the book with both hands, while Peter's right hand holding the scroll is folded for blessing. The portrait resemblance is noticeable, but the apostle Paul's beard is not quite dark.
There are many examples of the further development of the first - "Novgorod" - iconographic type of the paired image of the supreme apostles. On the icon of the beginning of the XVII century. from the village of Sludka (Perm Art Gallery), the portrait resemblance is undeniable, although the Apostle Peter does not have emphasized gray hair, and Paul's beard is not as dark and long as on early icons. They stand in prayer before the Savior, who is seated on the Throne in clouds, surrounded by the disembodied powers of Heaven. The right hands of the apostles are not depicted in a blessing gesture, but prayerfully stretched out to Christ. A thin chain with an elegant golden key is put on Peter's open palm.
But most of the surviving images of the supreme apostles are icons of the Deesis tier. They, depending on the adopted scheme, can be waist - as, for example, located in the State Tretyakov Gallery, the famous "Vysotsky" rank (from the Vysotsky Monastery in Serpukhov), and full-length. A remarkable example of a half-length image is the icon of the Apostle Paul from the Zvenigorod tier, painted by the Monk Andrei Rublev (TG). Only three icons from the Deesis tier have survived to our time, painted by the Monk Andrei, apparently for the Moscow Resurrection Monastery "on Vysoky".
Of great interest are the hagiographic icons of the apostles Peter and Paul. On the Novgorod icon of the apostles Peter and Paul with life (XVI century), some atypical details attract attention. The Apostle Peter is dressed in a golden-colored himation, and the scroll in his left hand is fan-shaped (the right hand is folded in a nominative blessing). The Apostle Paul holds a book almost horizontally with both hands; it is difficult to read it in this position. The hagiographic hallmarks show scenes from the lives of the holy apostles, including their martyrdom: the crucifixion of the apostle Peter on the cross headlong, that is, head down, and the beheading of the head of the apostle Paul with a sword.
Thus, in the ancient Russian monuments of the iconography of the supreme apostles Peter and Paul, we see not only adherence to the canon, but the diversity of its interpretations, which can be traced already in the earliest images.
Bishop Nikolai Balashikhinsky
Material source: Moscow Diocesan Gazette, No. 6, 2015
Two chief apostles. The two pillars of the Christian faith. Two such different personalities, two such different paths to Christ, they came together in a single ministry and it is not for nothing that they are considered supreme, for their contribution to the foundation of the Christian faith is invaluable in the history of Christianity, which changed the spiritual image of mankind, raised the bar of moral categories to a new level, which can be reached. only with great personal zeal. They ascended to the Throne of the Lord on the same day, but although they were executed in different ways - Peter was crucified, Paul was beheaded with a sword, their life and death are evidence that, no matter what difference there is in the properties of nature, social status and even the original worldview between people who have unequivocally and voluntarily decided to follow the Lord. They come to Christ each in their own unique way as to the only, dominant peak of Being, Alpha and Omega of all that exists.In the common fisherman Simon and the noble Roman Pharisee Saul, who became the supreme apostles Peter and Paul, upon meeting with Christ, an incredible spiritual upheaval took place, an instant transformation that only God can accomplish.
Apostle Peter
Peter in Greek, Cephas in Aramaic. And from that and from another language this name is translated as "stone, rock." The fisherman Simon, the beloved disciple of Jesus, received his nickname when the Lord told him: “I say to you: you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My Church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it; and I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven” (Matthew 16; 18-19). Simon-Peter was the first to unreservedly confess Christ, and when asked by Him what the disciples thought of Him, He answered without hesitation that Jesus is “the Christ, the Son of the Living God” (Matt. 16; 16). It was then that Peter received his nickname from the Lord Himself, which contained the missionary plan of his entire future destiny.
He accepted Christ with all his heart even before Jesus' memorable question about Him, from the moment he was called. The Evangelist Luke describes in detail the event of the calling of Peter (Lk. 5; 2-11), from this description one can immediately see the impressionability and emotionality of his personality. When Christ ordered Peter, then still the Galilean fisherman Simon, and others who were fishing with him and who came from fishing with empty boats to go out to sea again and cast their nets, Simon at first says with disbelief that they fished all night, but did not catch anything, and at the same time he calls Jesus - the Mentor. However, he obeys, and when he and his comrades soon return with nets that have broken from the catch, in boats full of fish, he is already full of a completely different, sublime feeling and expresses it according to his immediate nature: “Simon Peter fell to the knees of Jesus and said: Get out of me, Lord! because I am a sinful man" (Luke 5; 8) - so burningly did he feel his smallness, insignificance, the fear of being close to the Living God, and even then he calls Him - "Lord!", and the Lord, knowing everything about the future of everyone and of everything, calls on Simon-Peter, with all the unworthiness that Simon feels in himself, to follow him and become his disciple ...
Impatient and impetuous, quick-tempered and childishly sincere, Peter was deeply devoted to Christ, his faith was without doubts - he decided, seeing how the Lord walked on the water, to follow Him (Matt. 14; 25-30). Yes, the wind picked up, and he was frightened, broke off and began to sink, but he tried! After all, it was not for nothing that Jesus took Peter, together with James and John Zebedee, who were called with him, to Mount Tabor so that they could see His Transfiguration, and he, with everlasting ardor, exclaimed: “Lord! it is good for us to be here…” (Matthew 17; 4). And on a difficult night in Gethsemane, the same three were with Him, but only Peter stood up, raised his sword and cut off the ear of a servant from those who came to take the Savior.
However, again, in a fit of temporary feeling, dictated by the human instinct of self-preservation, Peter was capable of instant renunciation, but then - of subsequent complete and absolute deepest repentance.
He was destined to go through renunciation three times (Luke 22; 55-62) - Christ predicted this to him during His farewell conversation with His disciples: “Lord! Why can't I follow You now? I will lay down my life for You!” Peter asked, and the Lord answered, “Will you lay down your life for me? Truly, truly, I say to you, the rooster will not crow until you deny me three times” (Luke 13; 37-38). But Peter, who was the first to confess Christ as the Living God, in essence, renounced neither Christ nor faith in Him. At that moment, he renounced himself, which is why he wept bitterly when, after that memorable cock's cry, Christ being led away to death turned and silently looked at Peter, and he remembered the words of the Lord's prediction ...
Most shame is not when we are punished. The most embarrassing thing is when they forgive. When they are punished, one can be offended here and say that, they say, the punishment is disproportionate to the fault, or “I didn’t want it, it happened like that.” In short, there is a loophole, how to moderate, or even completely pacify your shame, to come to an agreement with your conscience. When they forgive you, you are left alone with your shame, and then it is merciless. Three times after his Resurrection and appearance to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias, Christ asked Peter: “Simon Jonin! Do you love me?" and Peter answered the Lord three times: “Yes, Lord! You know that I love You!”, and three times the Lord said to him: “Feed My lambs,” “Feed My sheep” (John 21; 15–23), and thus forgave him three times.
(From the author. Once, a long time ago, in a conversation with my first confessor about what will happen to us when we all stand at the Last Judgment, he said: “We will be forgiven. We will be forgiven everything, but what a shame it will be ...” Then, thinking over his words, I realized that hell is not just terrible pictures in the style of Bosch. True hell burns not from the outside, but from the inside. It is a boundless, unbearable shame before God, a murderous shame before the One Who knows everything about you and always you who is so pure and merciful that to deceive the trust of the one who gave Himself to be crucified for the moral imperfection of past and future generations, and personally you among them, is felt as the gravest of betrayals committed by you. shame, as if boiling water was splashed in the face". When we are ashamed, we are "thrown into a heat to sweat" - an expressive folk word. It is the Divine nobility and indescribable greatness of the All-Forgiving, Merciful Lord that makes the mental anguish of shame such that, having experienced them, you after you can never go back to repeating the fault. Divine forgiveness cleanses, for all spiritual and moral offenses before Him are the very straw, which is said in the Holy Scriptures, that it will burn, leaving incorruptible the best that is in you, and this flame will become the Tabor Light of Transfiguration in the eyes of the Lord.)
And so Peter's faith was strengthened, tempered to the hardness of a rock, precisely through his renunciation and the fullness of subsequent repentance. And then, precisely because of the burning of the heart and perfect sincerity, Peter, through his impeccable faith, received the necessary words and arguments, becoming a magnificent preacher, capable of converting three thousand people with his sermons already on the first day of his apostolic ministry after the Descent of the Holy Spirit on the apostles, Thus, the words of Christ about him: “I say to you: you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My Church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it” (Matt. 16; 18). A little later, after healing the lame man, he converted 5,000 people at once! His apprenticeship as a preacher was not taken from bookish wisdom: what was it to a disciple whose Teacher was the One Whom we call God the Word? The book "Acts" in chapters 1-12 tells in detail about the ways and preaching of the holy apostle Peter, his miracles and ministry. The strength of his faith was so great, he so zealously acquired the Holy Spirit with his deeds, that even the shadow of the holy apostle healed the sick who found themselves under its shadow (Acts 5; 15).
Having converted many and many on his apostolic path, Peter came with a sermon to Rome, where he was arrested, but had the opportunity to escape and took advantage of it. According to the book "Acts", the grandson of Herod the Great, the one who ordered the beating of babies in order to destroy the Infant Christ among them, Herod Agrippa the First, in 42 began the persecution of Christians. He took Peter into custody, but an angel of God, through the prayers of Christians for the apostle, appeared and released him, after which Peter left unnoticed.
However, historical sources claim that the apostle Peter was captured and executed under the emperor Nero, who was especially angry after the apostle converted two of his wives to Christianity. However, the Tradition has preserved the episode about how Peter, having received the opportunity to secretly escape from prison, met Christ on the Appian Way, and between them took place known from the novel “Where are you coming?” - "Quo vadis?" Polish writer Henryk Sienkiewicz dialogue. "Quo vadis, Domine? (Where are you going, Lord?),” asked the old apostle. “A sad, gentle voice reached Peter’s ears: “Since you are leaving my people, I am going to Rome, to a new crucifixion.” The apostle lay motionless in the dust for a long time, then got up and went to Rome...
It was the 64th, and according to other researchers, 67-68 years from the Nativity of Christ. When soldiers came for Peter, imprisoned in the Mamertine dungeon, to lead him to execution on the Vatican Hill, where Nero's circus was located, he asked them to turn the cross upside down after crucifixion. He believed that he was unworthy of likeness to the Crucified Christ and should remain bowed his head under His feet, because he never forgave himself the triple renunciation. The feeling of guilt remained with him all his life, and his apostolic zeal was for him every minute work to atone for the weakness to which he succumbed three times in the night after parting with Him in the Garden of Gethsemane. So he went to God - upside down on an inverted cross, fulfilling another Lord's prophecy about him: “When you were young, you girded yourself and walked where you wanted; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you, and lead you where you do not want to. He said this, making it clear by what death Peter would glorify God. And having said this, he said to him, Follow me” (John 21:18-19). After the execution, the Christians, led by the Hieromartyr Clement of Rome, buried him here on the Vatican Hill.
The fact that the historical memory of generations unmistakably preserved information about the resting place of the holy apostle was confirmed by archaeological data: during the excavations of 1939-1941 under St. here", but the relics were not there, obviously, they were reburied. For a long time, a group of archaeologist Margherita Guarducci was engaged in searches, and, finally, she found the remains identified by scientists as the relics of the holy Apostle Peter. In 1968, Pope Paul VI announced that the research had been completed and, based on their results, the tomb of St. Peter the Apostle could be considered discovered.
Apostle Paul
The beginning of the path of the holy Apostle Paul was completely different. Prior to this, Saul, originally from a noble Jewish family of the tribe of Benjamin, received his name, apparently in honor of the biblical king Saul. Pavel is his middle name, he began to be called by him after meeting with Christ. Raised in a family of pious Pharisees who lived in Tarsus, a city in the Greek province of Cilicia, he inherited Roman citizenship, and with it all the rights and privileges of a Roman citizen. There is an assumption that he could be part of the Sanhedrin, who decided the fate of the immediate followers of Christ, living with him at the same time, and was somewhat younger than Jesus in age.
Tarsa is a city that at that time was the center of culture and education along with Athens and Alexandria. Scientists write that the apostle clearly possessed, in addition to an ideal knowledge of the Torah - the Pentateuch, and knowledge of other sciences: in his works, knowledge of Greco-Roman literature, philosophy, history, rhetoric can be traced in accuracy and figurativeness of formulations. He, apparently, was fluent in Latin as a Roman citizen, Greek as a resident of a Greek city, Aramaic as the majority of educated Jews, and he received the fullness of the theological education in apprenticeship with the then famous Rabbi Gamaliel the Great, who is mentioned in the "Acts" in connection with with the release from custody of the apostles Peter and John in Jerusalem (Acts 5; 34-35). About this he himself says: “I am a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, carefully instructed in the law of the fathers” (Acts 22; 3). It is obvious that Saul-Paul was going to become a rabbi: according to Acts, chapter 18; 3, the holy apostle knew how to sew tents, it was necessary to feed himself. Since the rabbi was not supposed to take money for his ministry, he had to learn some kind of craft and earn a living from them.
According to the book "Acts", the Pharisee Saul asked the Sadducean high priest for letters with the authority to go to Damascus and from there bring the Christians of Damascus to Jerusalem for punishment (Acts 9:1-2). On the way to Damascus, a light descended on him, blinding him for three days, and he heard a voice: “Saul! Saul! why are you chasing me? He [Saul] said, Who are you, Lord? I am Jesus whom you are persecuting” (Acts 9; 4-5). For three days Saul did not see, did not drink or eat. During these three days, which became days of fasting for him, complete repentance took place in him. During that time, the Lord appeared to the pious Christian Ananias who lived in Damascus and told him where to go for Saul in order to heal and baptize him. Ananias, who knew Saul as an irreconcilable persecutor of Christians, reminded Christ of this, but the Lord stopped Ananias, saying that from now on Saul-Paul is “My chosen vessel to proclaim My name among the nations and kings and the sons of Israel” (Acts 9; 15 ). Ananias followed the command of the Lord, did everything that he commanded. And Saul received his sight, although this, of course, is a direct connection between spiritual insight and physical - so deep was his shock from a personal meeting with Christ.
Thus, the holy Apostle Paul received his appointment - to convert the Jews, especially the convinced Pharisees, in the name of the Lord, as Christ repeatedly did. The Apostle Paul, a scribe, a Pharisee, could speak to the people of Israel in terms that he understood, with his own logic, and he himself was a living example of a converted Jew, which was important in the mission prepared for him by the Lord. It is not for nothing that he says about himself: “A Jew from the Jews, according to the teachings - a Pharisee, out of jealousy - a persecutor of the Church of God, in righteousness of the law - immaculate. But what was an advantage to me, I considered loss for Christ's sake. Yes, and I count all things loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord” (Phil. 3; 5-8).
Zeal in the matter of preserving the Law of an unchanging constant, sincerity in the persecution of Christians, conviction in the rightness allowed him to consider himself a great righteous man. Where did Saul's self-confidence go after meeting the Risen One on the road to Damascus?! Saul, a Pharisee, from his youth a strict zealot for the teachings of the Torah, had the goal of fulfilling all the "traditions of the elders", but it was he who was appointed to finally connect the Law of the Old Testament, called the "tutor to Christ" with the New Testament. Here he writes about himself in the Epistle to the Philippians: “For Him I have renounced everything, and count everything as rubbish, in order to gain Christ and be found in Him by my righteousness, which is from the law, but with that which is through faith in Christ with the righteousness of God. by faith; to know Him, and the power of His resurrection, and participation in His sufferings, in order to comprehend the resurrection of the dead” (Phil. 3; 8-11). Thus, the holy supreme apostle Paul, with the words “... be found in Him by your righteousness, which is from the law, but with that which is through faith in Christ with the righteousness of God by faith ...” affirms what the Lord Himself once said in the Sermon on the Mount: “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the prophets: I did not come to destroy, but to fulfill” (Matt. 5; 17).
Of the 28 chapters of the book "Acts" of the New Testament, twelve are devoted to the labors of the Apostle Peter, but the remaining sixteen are a detailed account of the apostolic travels of St. Paul, his exploits, hard work in building the Church of Christ, and the suffering he endured on the roads of serving God. We learn even more about him from his fourteen Epistles to the nations, whose lands he visited in his three missionary journeys, founding new and new communities, and, having once visited, he no longer left his fatherly cares. And this is understandable, because we know a lot about Peter from the Four Gospels, while Paul was called by Christ after the Descent of the Holy Spirit on the apostles and the building by the holy apostle Peter of the foundation of the Church of Christ in Jerusalem (Acts 2; 1-13). He now called himself by his second name - Paul, Paulus - "younger, lesser", and spoke of himself as "the least of the Apostles", who "is not worthy to be called an Apostle, because he persecuted the church of God" (1 Cor. 15; 9). And just as Peter carried all his life in himself a feeling of unredeemed guilt for his triple renunciation, so Paul suffered for Christ with joyful humility and a guilty heart, remembering every hour about his past as a persecutor of the followers of Christ, in whom he believed, whom he loved and accepted with all his mind and with all my heart. As the verse of the feast says: “Thou hast given the image of the conversion of those who sin, both of Your apostles: oh, oh, who rejected You during the passion and repented, but resisted and believed in Your preaching ...”
So, under the emperor Nero, as we have already said, according to some sources in the year 64, according to others - in 67-68 AD, the holy chief apostles were taken and executed on the same day. Peter, as we have already said, was crucified on the Vatican Hill, and Paul, since he was a Roman citizen and could not be put to shameful death on the cross, was beheaded on the Ostian road outside Rome. At the resting place of his remains, the grieving students put up a memorial sign. Later, the Equal-to-the-Apostles Tsar Constantine the Great erected the church of San Paolo Fuori le Mura on this site.
In 2009, Pope Benedict XVI announced that scientists had examined the sarcophagus under the altar of San Paolo Fuori le Mura, and carbon dating data could date the remains contained between the 1st and 2nd centuries AD. The opening of the sarcophagus has not yet been carried out, it was unsafe for the safety of the remains, the transillumination did not give anything - the thickness of the stone is too large, so the studies were carried out using a probe. In the sarcophagus, traces of expensive purple linen fabric, from which the robes of the Roman elite were made, particles of blue fabric, a plate of pure gold and pieces of red incense were found. The fact that a noble Roman was buried under the altar of a Christian church, and the time of burial, made it possible to confirm that the remains in the sarcophagus are indeed the honest relics of St. Paul the Apostle.
The meaning of the icon
Since ancient times, icon painters often depict the Holy Primate Apostles Peter and Paul together, although their lives were not connected by earthly kinship. However, they were connected by a different kinship, above all blood ties - a spiritual brotherhood in Christ, a faith that unites all members of the Church, being brothers and sisters in Christ. The apostles Peter and Paul are truly the pillars of the apostolic ministry. A simple fisherman, who thrice denied Christ in a moment of weakness, thrice forgiven by Him, laid the foundation of the Church of Christ with his ardent sermon, and the Pharisee, who persecuted Christians, but later believed so that in the history of Christianity he became perhaps the wisest Father of the Church, on whose Epistles For two millennia the believers of the Christian world have been brought up. Therefore, they are captured together: in early iconography, more often frontally, facing us, and from the 16th century, with faces facing each other. A bunch of keys in Peter's left hand, a traveling staff in Paul's hand, and a book with his written works in the other - they cannot be confused. In addition, the oldest frescoes with their images have been preserved, according to which the foundations of the canonical tradition of writing their faces in Orthodox icon painting were laid.
“Thou gavest the firmness of Thy Church, O Lord, to Peter's firmness and Paul's mind,” says the hymn of the feast. “Peter’s firmness” is courage in confessing the faith: “Shepherd God’s flock, which is among you, overseeing it not under compulsion, but willingly and pleasing to God, not for vile self-interest, but out of zeal, And not ruling over the inheritance of God, but setting an example herd; And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive an unfading crown of glory” (1 Pet. 5; 1-4) – the apostle writes in the First Catholic Epistle.
"Paul's mind" is the wisdom of the apostle, which for thousands of years has served as a source for soul-beneficial reflections, inspiring and nourishing the spiritual and moral life of believers. Hieromonk Simeon (Tormachinsky) says that “…probably in human history you will not find a more intelligent person than the Apostle Paul, except that the wise Solomon could compare with him. It is enough to read the Epistles of the Apostle Paul to make sure that he really has the “mind of Christ”, and Vladyka Filaret of Moscow writes: “If you do not want to teach and admonish yourself in Christianity, then you are not a disciple and follower of Christ, - not for you the apostles have been sent, you are not what all Christians have been since the beginning of Christianity…”
Such different personalities, such different destinies! As Metropolitan Anthony of Sourozh said in one of his sermons on the Day of Remembrance of the Holy Primate Apostles Peter and Paul, “From the beginning, the radical persecutor and the believer met in one, single faith about the victory of Christ - the Cross and the Resurrection.<…>They turned out to be fearless preachers: neither torment, nor the cross, nor crucifixion, nor prison - nothing could separate them from the love of Christ, and they preached, and this sermon really was what the apostle Paul calls it: “Our faith is the conqueror of the world” ".
Speaking about the importance of the days of remembrance of all the saints of Orthodoxy, Vladyka Philaret says: "Remember your mentors, imitate their faith." On July 12, we commemorate the holy chief apostles Peter and Paul, which means that in commemorating them, we must also imitate them, inherit their apostolic service to the best of our ability, joyfully testifying of the Lord Jesus Christ. How can we imitate them? What strength is needed for this? We most often do not have such strength, but this is not a reason for despondency, because Vladyka Anthony says: “If we cannot achieve such strong faith as that of the Apostle Peter, to walk on the waters and raise Divine wisdom, like that of the Apostle Paul, in order to convert thousands of people to Christ with our own words, then let us try to imitate their unfeigned repentance and deepest humility.”
So, we tell you, dear readers, about the Lives of the Saints, about the stories of finding and creating icons with faith and joy, and in the hope that this, too, is our humblest possible contribution to witnessing the Orthodox Christian Faith.
Probably, the icon of the apostles Peter and Paul is one of the most familiar to everyone who has ever turned to the images of Christian saints. Their canonical appearance has been preserved unchanged since those ancient times, when the followers of the doctrine of the resurrected Savior gathered for their services in the depths of the catacombs. The key to the gates of the Kingdom of God in the hands of one of them and a sword? the symbol of sacrifice is in the hands of another? evidence that before us are precisely those who are commonly called the supreme apostles.
The researchers came to the conclusion that the description of the saints given in the early traditions, apparently, is true, and on its basis the image that the icon conveys was formed. Peter and Paul lived in the era when the first chronicles of their ascetic service were compiled, the authors of which could well be familiar with them, or at least see them. This probably explains the immutability attached to their portrait features.
It is believed that the icon "Peter and Paul" owes this extraordinary constancy to the traditions of the Roman sculptural portrait, brought to perfection by that time. The authors of the first frescoes found on the walls of the catacombs were undoubtedly familiar with the technique of portraiture, which allowed them to give the images of the apostles truthful and realistic features.
Closeness of individual traits
Comparing the works of masters who lived in different eras, in different parts of the Christian world and never saw each other's creations, one is struck by the similarity of the faces depicted by them. For example, the icon "Peter and Paul", painted in ancient Byzantium, and its analogue of the Novgorod school of the 16th century, no doubt, convey the features of the same people. Moreover, it is known for sure that the painters from the banks of the Volkhov were not familiar with the works of their predecessors.
A special place in the iconography of the holy apostles is occupied by their joint images. Such compositions are often associated with the circumstances of the lives of saints and martyrdom, which took place on the same day. As plots, an apocryphal text is often used, which tells about their last meeting and farewell shortly before the execution. Usually the icon "Peter and Paul", painted on its basis, is an image of the apostles, fraternally hugging and kissing each other.
Veneration of the Holy Apostles on the banks of the Dnieper and Volkhov
Since the adoption of Christianity, the image of the supreme apostles has been considered one of the most revered in Rus'. It is known that upon his return from Korsun, Saint Prince Vladimir brought to Kyiv the icon of Peter and Paul, which later became a gift to St. Sophia Cathedral in Novgorod. It has not survived to this day, but in the ancient temple you can still see a fresco of the 11th century, painted according to this plot.
Spirituality at the heart of the image of the apostles
Today, in the iconostases of most churches, an integral part of the deesis row is the icon of Peter and Paul. Its value has increased immeasurably over time. The reason lies in a more complete understanding of their images. They are symbols of boundless faith in the truth of Christ's teaching, which allows even a simple, unlearned and weak person, as Peter was before, to rise to the heights of holiness.
In addition, it is a symbol of the openness of the path to spiritual perfection for those who initially not only did not accept the teachings of Christians, but were also their furious persecutors, like the Apostle Peter. Of course, in our post-atheist times, such images are very relevant, especially since the Orthodox Church is conducting extensive educational work aimed at filling those gaps in the religious education of the people that arose in the era of theomachism. In general, any image of the apostles is a visual sermon of the Christian faith, which opens the gates to eternal life.
