The Chair of St. Peter - February 22

Feast of the Chair of St. Peter - February 22 On the one hand, there is a physical chair which is an ancient, ornamented chair and is located in the apse of St. Peter's Basilica. On the other hand, there is the spiritual authority that this chair represents. Early martyrologies indicate that two liturgical feasts were celebrated in Rome, in honor of earlier chairs associated with Saint Peter, his Roman chair was kept in the baptismal chapel of St. Peter's Basilica, while the Antioch chair was housed in the catacomb of Priscilla. The dates of these celebrations were January 18 and February 22 respectively.. According to recent scientific studies, the object-now known as the Cathedra Petri (Latin for "Chair of Peter”) dates back to the sixth century and-is located in the apse of St. Peter's Basilica. It is enthroned in the back of the chamber, behind the famous altar, on the far, back wall, below the the well-known, stained glass image depicting the Holy Spirit as a dove This display contains an ancient chair that has been repaired and ornamented over time. The wooden throne was a gift from the Holy Roman Emperor Charles the Bald to Pope John VIII in 875. The seat is about one foot ten inches above the ground, and two feet eleven and seven-eighths inches wide; the sides are two feet one and one-half inches deep; the height of the back up to the tympanum is three feet five and one-third inches; the entire height of the chair is four feet seven and one-eighth inches. The oldest portion is a perfectly plain oaken arm-chair with four legs connected by cross-bars. The wood is much worm-eaten, and pieces have been cut from various spots at different times, evidently for relics. To the right and left of the seat are four strong iron rings, intended for carrying-poles, which are set into the legs. Over time, various modifications have been made to the chair, to repair and ornament it. Most notably, the famous Italian artist/architect Bernini (1598-1680) created the current display. During the Middle Ages it was customary to exhibit the chair yearly to the faithful, and the newly-elected pope was also solemnly enthroned on this venerable chair. In order to preserve this precious relic for posterity, Pope Alexander VII (1655-67) enclosed, after the designs of Bernini, the Cathedra Petri above the apsidal altar of St. Peter's in a gigantic casing of bronze, supported by four Doctors of the Church (Ambrose, Augustine, Athanasius, and St. John Chrysostom). The Chair of St Peter, represented in the apse of the Vatican Basilica is a monumental sculpture, a symbol of the special mission of Peter and his Successors to tend Christ’s flock, keeping it united in faith and in charity The Chair of St. Peter is a very ancient tradition, proven to have existed in Rome since the fourth century. On it, we give thanks to God for the mission He entrusted to the Apostle Peter and his Successors. "Cathedra" literally means the established seat of the Bishop, placed in the mother church of a diocese which for this reason is known as a "cathedral"; it is the symbol of the Bishop's authority and in particular, of his "magisterium", that is, the evangelical teaching which, as a successor of the Apostles, he is called to safeguard and to transmit to the Christian Community. The See of Rome, after St Peter's travels, thus came to be recognized as the See of the Successor of Peter, and its Bishop's "cathedra" represented the mission entrusted to him by Christ to tend his entire flock. Celebrating the "Chair" of Peter, therefore, as we are doing today, means attributing a strong spiritual significance to it and recognizing it as a privileged sign of the love of God, the eternal Good Shepherd, who wanted to gather his whole Church and lead her on the path of salvation. By the way, the pope does not have to sit in the physical Chair of Peter to be infallible? Although the pope's infallible pronouncements are called ex cathedra (Latin, "from the chair") statements, he does not have to be sitting in the physical chair (which is rather high off the ground in any case). In fact, he doesn't have to be seated at all. He simply has to use the fullness of his authority as the successor of Peter to definitively teaching a particular matter pertaining to faith or morals. This use of the full extent of his teaching authority is referred to figuratively, as him speaking "from the chair" of St. Peter. It's a figurative expression, not a reference to the physical object.