Vatican City, Jun 29, 2017 / 11:16 am
Saints Peter and Paul are pillars of the Church and a reminder that God is with us always, Pope Francis said Thursday in St. Peter's Square.
"The Fathers of the Church liked to compare the holy apostles Peter and Paul to two columns, on which the visible building of the Church rests. Both sealed with their own blood their testimony to Christ of preaching and service to the nascent Christian community," he stated during his June 29 Angelus address on the saints' feast.
He reflected on St. Peter's deliverance from prison by an angel "so that he could complete his evangelizing mission, first in the Holy Land and then in Rome, putting all his energy at the service of the Christian community."
St. Paul similarly experienced hostility to his mission, the Pope said, from both civil authorities and his fellow Jews, "from which he was freed by the Lord."