The Seed of the Church

“These are the ones who, living in the flesh, planted the Church with their blood; they drank the chalice of the Lord and became the friends of God.”

This is the antiphon, sung at the beginning of the Mass on the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, which describes the effect of their martyrdom: their blood being spilt planted the Church, and through their acceptance of martyrdom, they entered perfect union with God. The Church, since the earliest times to even today, is built and sanctified by those who give their life for Christ, and through this gift of themselves, they are joined in perfect communion with Him.

Tertullian, a prolific early Christian writer from Carthage, North Africa, in the late 2nd century, famously wrote, “the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church,” which is echoed in today's antiphon. In the early Church, the brutal persecution of Christians often had the opposite of its intended effect. Instead of destroying the Christian community, it galvanized it. The martyrs are seen as imitating Christ’s own passion and death. Their suffering is united to Jesus' redemptive sacrifice, and thus it has spiritual power. Their deaths are not in vain—they participate in Christ's saving work - and their relics housed in altars around the world provide a continual testament to their sacrifice, being united with our Lord’s to provide spiritual food for their descendants.

There are still martyrs in modern times, even close to home. In the 1920s in Mexico, the government of President Plutarco Elías Calles, supported by the United States government, brutally persecuted Catholics, including torturing and executing women and children. One such case is José Sánchez del Río, a 14-year-old boy who was canonized as a saint by Pope Francis in 2016. When he refused to deny Christ, the Mexican federal soldiers cut the soles of his feet, made him walk through town, then shot him. A rallying cry for the Catholics in Mexico during this time was “¡Viva Cristo Rey!”, meaning “Long live Christ the King!” Even more recently, in 2015, 21 members of the Coptic Orthodox Church were beheaded by ISIS for refusing to deny Christ. While not Catholic, the Vatican recognized their deaths as a shared Christian witness. Pope Francis has called them "martyrs of all Christians.”

Peter and Paul, despite their faults and failings —such as Peter denying Christ the night he was betrayed and Paul persecuting Christians —became the most foundational fathers of our faith. Peter gave his life for Christ and His church by being crucified up-side down, and Paul likewise gave his life through decapitation. They are honored together with a Solemnity in the Church, with their tombs being housed in two of the most magnificent churches in Rome.