Icon of St Peter and St Paul Painted at St. Mary & St. Joseph Coptic Orthodox Church
St. Peter
St. Peter was originally a fisherman, and the Lord Christ chose him as one of his 12 disciples. Moreover, he was one of the three disciples in Christ's inner circle, which included Peter, John, and James. These 3 witnessed special events, such as the Transfiguration of Christ and the Lord's Prayer in Gethsemane. St. Peter was the first to confess the divinity of the Lord Jesus Christ, but he also denied knowing him three times on the night of his trial. However, when he repented, the Lord Christ accepted him once again and returned him to his apostolicity, commanding him, Feed my sheep. On the day of the Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit came down upon the disciples, it was St. Peter that stood and preached to the multitudes about what they had witnessed. And that day, 3000 people were baptized and added to the church.
At this time, St. Paul was persecuting the church in Jerusalem. As zealous Pharisee, he was well educated in the Jewish law and sought to attack the Christians. He even witnessed the death of the first martyr Saint Stephen the Deacon. He was so motivated by his cause, he even got permission from the chief priests to leave for Damascus and persecute the Christians there. On his way to Damascus, the Lord Christ appeared to him with blinding light from heaven. He asked Paul, then called Saul, Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? Christ then ordered him to find a disciple called Ananias who was in Damascus. Ananias laid hands on Saul so that he could receive the Holy Spirit, and so that his sight would be restored. St. Paul went on to spend three years in seclusion in the Arabian desert, after which he began to preach to the multitudes that Christ was the Son of God. They all marveled that the one who had been persecuting the Christians was now preaching Christ, even to his own brethren, the Jews.
God wrought many miracles through St. Peter and St. Paul, so that even the shadow of St. Peter healed the sick, and the handkerchiefs of St. Paul exorcised demons. In the end, they were both martyred by the Emperor Nero. St. Peter was crucified head down, while St. Paul was beheaded. At the martyrdom of St. Paul, a young girl gave him her veil, which he placed over his head before being martyred. She met the executioner on his way back to the Emperor and asked about Paul. He told her, He is lying where I left him and his head is wrapped in your veil. But the young girl replied, You are lying, for he and Peter has just passed by me. They were arrayed in the apparel of kings and had crowns decorated with jewels on their heads. And they gave me my veil, and here it is. The executioner and those with him believed in the Lord Christ that day.
The Feast Day
The Coptic Orthodox church celebrates the feast of our fathers the pure Apostles on the day of the commemoration of the Martyrdom of Saint Peter and Saint Paul which is July 12th - the 5th day of the Coptic month of Epep.
