Today’s homily: The Chair of St Peter at Rome

The Chair That Guards the Faith: Authority, Teaching, and Fidelity to the Perennial Tradition

MASS Státuit ei Dóminus
LESSON 1 Peter 1: 1-7
GOSPEL St Matthew 16: 13-19
HOMILIST Mt Revd Jerome Lloyd OSJV

Beloved in Christ, welcome to this broadcast Mass on this Feast of the Chair of St Peter at Rome.

Today Holy Mother Church commends unto us and commemorates the remembrance of the Great Commission given by our Lord Jesus Christ to St Peter: a role of pastoring, of governance, and of teaching for the whole Church — for the universal Church.

Indeed, the Chair of St Peter at Rome. Some of you who have perhaps been on pilgrimage to Rome and have been to the Basilica of St Peter at the Vatican, built of course over the site of the tomb of St Peter in the catacombs underneath, will have seen, behind the great baldacchino — the great ciborium over the high altar at the centre of the crossing, at the east end — underneath a stained-glass window of the Holy Spirit, the great throne: or rather, the altar of the throne, the altar of the Chair of St Peter.

And there is, literally, if you look up, this great Baroque edifice rising above this altar. You will see, quite literally, a chair — a chair in the conventional sense. Forgive me for saying so, but in many ways it looks like a sort of Baroque dining chair, suspended in mid-air, surrounded by clouds and cherubim. But contained within the chair that you can see is the relic of a much older chair, believed perhaps to have belonged to St Peter, which, if you were to see it, looks very different from the casing and the chair that you can behold today.

And there is, of course, another Feast of the Chair of St Peter at Antioch, which we commemorate in February, recalling that St Peter went to other places before he arrived at Rome. But it is from Rome that the headquarters of the universal Church, we might say, are to be found, and long have been found.

There is no question, even from our Eastern Orthodox brethren, about the pre-eminence of the Holy See of Rome from the earliest days of the Church’s history. But notice that this chair is in St Peter’s, which is, of course, not a cathedral. St Peter’s is a basilica. The cathedral of the Bishop of Rome is actually St John Lateran — or the Archbasilica of Our Holy Saviour and St John the Baptist and St John the Evangelist at the Lateran, to give it its full title. The Lateran is, in fact, the cathedral of Rome.

And in the Lateran again, in the apse at the east end, in the presbyterium, you can see marble benches hugging the wall of the apse, where in times past the priests assisting the bishop would have sat. And in the middle of those benches is a marble throne, designed on Romanesque classical lines. And that technically is the chair — the cathedral — of Rome.

And of course there are these two sides to the ministry of the Roman Pontiff. He is at once Bishop of Rome, of the Archdiocese of Rome; he is the Primate of Italy; he technically has a diocese of his own to look after. And then, based at the Vatican and from St Peter’s, he is head of the universal Church.

An interesting fact is that in the Lateran, in the position above the high altar — the ciborium above the high altar — there are contained relics of the heads of Peter and Paul. Whereas at St Peter’s, the altar is roughly above the place beneath which St Peter’s tomb is found. St Paul, of course, is buried outside Rome, at St Paul Outside the Walls.

We commemorated St Paul today with the second collect of this Mass, as we always do on the feasts of these two Apostles. If it is a feast of St Peter or a feast of St Paul, the other is always commemorated, because Holy Tradition considers them both to be the foundations — the two pillars — upon which the Church was founded.

The Church was founded upon that confession of faith in Christ by St Peter, for which he was named the Rock. And then, of course, the Church expanded and grew through the great missionary preaching and evangelisation of St Paul. Thus both Apostles represent the establishment and the mission of the Church.

Now, a cathedral, or a bishop’s chair, is of course where we get the term “cathedral” from. Every diocese around the world has a cathedral; it has a chair which belongs to the bishop of that place. And in ancient times it was the custom for masters, rulers, professors, and teachers to be seated when making official declarations and pronouncements, and when teaching.

So the traditional posture of a bishop when preaching is usually seated. If I were to sit here, however, you would not be able to see me, which would look a bit odd. And while this tradition is more or less kept to this day, more often than not we expect — or usually see — bishops preaching in the conventional way that other priests do, standing at the ambo or from a pulpit.

But notice this: the popes have always been seated when teaching, especially in the conferences they give — the weekly audiences and addresses in Rome. They always prepare a speech which is instructional, a catechesis of some kind, and it is delivered by them seated. So the cathedra — the chair — speaks to this. It speaks to authority and governance, but it also speaks to the teaching office.

Thus all bishops everywhere, of dioceses who have jurisdiction, are responsible for the governance of that place and also for the teaching — the doctrine — of that place. And of course the Bishop of Rome, the Pope, has, as it were, almost two cathedras: one, the cathedral of the Archdiocese of Rome in the Lateran; and another, figuratively, at St Peter’s Basilica, representing the universal dimension of his office.

These feasts of the Chair therefore speak to both governance and teaching authority and responsibility.

Now of course we are living in interesting times — both in the secular world, in global politics, and more locally within our particular societies and communities — and likewise, particularly, within the Church.

It is worth recalling the words from Pastor Aeternus, the declaration of papal infallibility given at the First Vatican Council. There is a very important phrase in that document which states that the Holy Spirit is not promised to the successors of Peter so that they may promulgate novel doctrine.

Benedict XVI, when writing about the papacy, noted that popes are guardians of the faith and of tradition. This is an important point to consider and to remember in these difficult days in the Church, where it would seem — and to all intents and purposes be proven — that the contemporary papacy has introduced doctrines and is attempting to impose them upon the Church. This used to be done in a much more subtle way; now it is done in a far more forceful and blatant manner.

We have already had cause to speak earlier this week concerning Traditionis Custodes, the decree issued two years ago, once more forbidding the traditional Latin Mass. And now, in more recent times, the declaration Fiducia Supplicans, which is causing great havoc and confusion in the Church.

Indeed, those awesome prophecies of Our Lady from Fatima, Akita, and other places warned that there would come a time when bishops would be against bishops. And for the last fifty years we have experienced this phenomenon within the Church — bishops against bishops — not as in former times, not as in the Renaissance or medieval periods when they vied for political power, but rather today, tragically, because they are fighting over doctrine, fighting for the faith of the Church.

This is a serious matter, because it affects the salvation of souls. And so it matters what is taught, what is said, by whom, and why — and with what intention.

If we take Benedict XVI’s own understanding of the papal office, it is to guard the faith and to guard the tradition of the Church. We might therefore use this as a rule of thumb, a regula fidei, by which to evaluate the strange and often alarming material that appears week after week in Church headlines.

We might ask ourselves, following St Vincent of Lérins: is it Catholic? And how do we define what is Catholic? That which has always been believed everywhere and by all.

If something does not fit that description, that criterion, then we are not obliged to depend upon it. This does not mean that we dismiss it outright. But if it is something new, it is not something upon which our faith depends.

How can our faith — and thus our salvation — depend upon something new, when Christ gave His life for us two thousand years ago?

As my namesake St Jerome once said, contradicting others: “Who are you to tell us, O Romans, what we need to believe that Peter and Paul have not already told us?”

So yes, in these so-called progressive times, we must be careful to ensure that what is presented to us as teaching is indeed consistent with the perennial magisterium of the Church. We must be able to discern and recognise that which truly accords with it.

With regard, for example, to recent contemporary papal teaching: if it is not consistent with the perennial magisterial teaching of the Church, then even though it may come from the Holy See, it is not necessarily to be received as part of the infallible magisterium of the Church.

That may sound controversial at first hearing, but it is not. Teaching must be consistent with what the Church has always taught. The Holy Spirit is not promised to the successors of Peter so that they may invent new doctrines.

There may, of course, be new ways of expressing that which has always been believed everywhere and by all. And indeed many good theologians are engaged in precisely that work. Even in the modern period there have been theologians who have enlightened us with a deeper, and yet slightly different, perspective on old truths. But such developments remain consistent with what has gone before.

Only that which has always been believed everywhere and by all, only that which is utterly consistent with what has always been taught, can be considered worthy of and demanding our assent.

Anything else may be interesting, questionable, debatable, worthy of further study, or even theoretical exploration — but it should not be wholesale adopted as Gospel truth if it is not immediately and clearly consistent with the perennial tradition and magisterium of the Church.

Likewise, it must be said that there are many commentators on social media — on YouTube, on X, on Facebook, and elsewhere — expressing concerns shared by many of the faithful, and indeed clergy, about recent actions from Rome. Some speak of leaving the Church, of crossing the Bosphorus to Constantinople, or the Thames to Lambeth.

There is no need to desert the Church. There is no need to desert the Church. There are havens; there are lifeboats, we might say, such as the Society of St Pius X, or indeed our Old Roman Apostolate, and other similar traditional groups, who are not schismatic in intent, but seek to preserve and to hand on the traditional faith, customs, and doctrine of the Church.

There is no need to become an actual schismatic and leave the communion of the Church. There is no need to become Eastern Orthodox, or Anglican, or some other form of Protestant. Why? Because of Our Lord’s promise that the gates of Hell will not prevail against the Church.

We have had bad popes before. We have had antipopes. We have had times when three men claimed to be pope simultaneously. And yet we are still here. And the Church is still here.

The Holy Spirit has a remarkable way of eventually revealing His will. These are indeed testing times. And perhaps for the first time it appears that an occupant of the See of Peter has acted in ways that seem less than orthodox in approach and teaching. Yet often the Church has benefited from hindsight, from retrospective clarity.

Sometimes the errors of popes have taken time to be revealed. At other times those errors were pointed out to them — and were resented.

Let us not forget that Cardinals have attempted to remonstrate with Pope Francis. At least two sets of dubia were submitted seeking clarification of his teaching. The answers that returned were not wholly satisfactory and did not come directly from him, but through others whom he appeared to endorse.

The most recent dubia were answered by the present head of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith. Earlier dubia concerning Amoris Laetitia were answered via the Argentinian Conference of Bishops with the statement: “This has my understanding and interpretation.”

This makes it difficult to attribute responsibility fully and clearly, since the Pope appears to speak and respond through various intermediaries. Unless one is in a one-to-one encounter with him, it is difficult to obtain a direct and unambiguous answer.

This papacy will be reflected upon in the future.

Another important point to remember is that no one in the Church contemporary with a reigning pontiff has the authority to judge him. While the theological speculations of great saints and doctors of the Church — such as St Robert Bellarmine, Cardinal Suárez, Cardinal Cajetan, and others — are fascinating, none of these opinions regarding the judgement of a pope have ever been formally adopted by the Church or incorporated into her governance.

Thus, while we may have sympathy for those drawn toward sedevacantism, we cannot fully condone such an approach. As someone else once famously said: “Who am I to judge?” Ultimately, only a successor in the See can judge his predecessor.

What, then, can we do?

We can keep our regula fidei. We can abide by the wisdom, guidance, and collective judgement of the Church throughout the ages. We can trust only that which is consistent with what has always been believed everywhere and by all.

And we can pray.

We should always pray for the conversion of others, as well as ourselves. To pray for someone else is to pray that God’s will may be realised in them — that they may embrace, accept, and manifest His will. And it can never be God’s will that error should prevail.

So we pray — and we ought to pray — for the conversion of all within the Church. And we may as well begin at the top.

Our intention for the offering of this Mass on this feast, then, is for the conversion of the Holy See: for all those who hold authority, particularly doctrinal authority, and also those responsible for governance. Because, as we all know, things are not in a good state.

Beyond doctrinal confusion, discipline, practice, custom, piety — everything at present is afflicted and affected. But we can pray. And we can ensure that our own behaviour, attitude, and understanding conform to the perennial tradition and practice of the Church.

So let us pray for the Bishop of Rome. Let us pray for the successor of Peter. Let us pray for those around the world responsible for the governance and teaching of the Church. Let us pray for the continual conversion of all of us within the Church, that we may conform ourselves to God’s will and to Jesus, who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.
Amen.

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