Was it St. Peter the greatest of Jesus' original Twelve disciples?
St. Peter is certainly the most commonly mentioned of the original Twelve. He always stands at the head of the list whenever the names of the Twelve apostles are listed in the Bible. And he was clearly part of Jesus' inner circle, even within the Twelve. He is, unquestionably, the most prominent of the Twelve.
But did Jesus give him a special role among the Twelve, a special position, or was he just more active than the others?
Jesus gives us an answer to this question, and in an unexpected place . . .
Who Is the Greatest? Round 1
Jesus took three disciples with him to the Transfiguration: Peter, James, and John. These three were uniquely privileged to witness the Transfiguration, and they--together with Peter's brother Andrew--formed Jesus' inner circle within the Twelve.
After these three received the special privilege of seeing their Master's glory, it's not surprising that a dispute broke out among the Twelve concerning their relevant ranks. This provided Jesus with an occasion to give them both a lesson in humility and a lesson in true leadership. In Luke 9, we read . . .
Luke 9
[46] And an argument arose among them as to which of them was the greatest. [47] But when Jesus perceived the thought of their hearts, he took a child and put him by his side, [48] and said to them, "Whoever receives this child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me receives him who sent me; for he who is least among you all is the one who is great."
Lessons Learned
It's possible for us to learn several lessons from Jesus' response to the disciples' quarrel.
One is that it was foolish--although still very human--for the disciples to be concerned with rank in this way.
A second is that, as so often is the case, the nature of Christian truth is paradoxical. The one who is great in God's eyes is not automatically the one who is great in man's eyes. It can even be the one who is least in the eyes of man, like a little child.
That is why it is important to receive even the least of God's people with Christian love, for to do so is to receive Christ and to receive his Father.
Another Lesson?
But there is another lesson that some may be tempted to draw out of this passage, which is that the apostles weren't just foolish to question who was the greatest among them because it revealed a preoccupation with pride and position rather than service to others.
Instead, this view would hold, it was foolish for them to ask the question because there simply was no greatest among them, that they were all equals, with none having any special position.
That would be a little hard to square with the fact that Jesus had just taken three, who we know from other passages were members of his inner circle, to witness the Transfiguration.
Indeed, Jesus himself indicates that some are greater than others in God's eyes, and who they are have to do with who serve others.
But we don't have to leave the matter there, surprisingly, it comes up again in Luke's Gospel, and the second time, Jesus gives a specific answer to the question.
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Indeed Peter was chosen as ‘the leader’ because of his strong character and leadership qualities… often he is the first to take the first step before the other apostles (like when Jesus asks ‘who do you think I am?’).
Peter was probably not the ‘greatest’ in Christian terms… he had his shares of flaws.
The ‘holiest’ of the apostles, I always tought, was John, who probably is ‘the beloved disciple’ referred to in John’s Gospel.
Yet, Jesus recognized that a leader must not only be holy, but has a strong personality and be someone who is not afrait of taking the lead. That person was Peter.
errata corrige:
but has a strong personality = but must have a strong personality as well
I meditate daily on the passages in John 21 after the Resurrection when Christ asks Peter three times - do you love me more than the these? Something in those statements mitigates in favor of a hypothesis that Peter was the greatest. At least to me. It’s quite a mystery to me.
“
Something in those statements mitigates in favor of a hypothesis that Peter was the greatest. At least to me. It’s quite a mystery to me.
“
That passage was Jesus way to let Peter atone for his denial during the passion.
Peter denied knowing Jesus three times after Jesus was arrested. Now after the Resurrection Jesus askes him three times if he loves Him.
And after the third time Jesus says:
“Very truly I tell you, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, “Follow me!”” (John 21:18-19)
prophetizing to Peter that Peter too would eventually follow Jesus fully, even in His passion, since Peter was martyred (and probably crucified) in Rome.
This conversation is vaguely reminiscent of the argument the apostles had about which is the greatest. Each one was a different personality which allowed each to serve in his own best way.
I thought it very humorous that you are speaking of who is the greatest among the apostles while wearing the shirt from “Greatest American Hero!” Very meta!
Fr.Rod: Yes! That was the idea! Ten points for being the first one to catch it!
Oh Dear, Jimmy . . . !!
I think I really have to, in all humility, re-write your paragraph shown here:
‘A second is that, as so often is the case, the nature of Christian truth is paradoxical.’ (That is, of course, very true!)
Then you have written: “The one who is great in God’s eyes is not automatically the one who is great in man’s eyes. It can even be the one who is least in the eyes of man, like a little child.” What a strange way around to see the issue!
This has to be the re-write, according to God’s word:
“The one who is great in *man’s* eyes, is not automatically the one who is great in *God’s* eyes. It must *always* be the one who is least in the eyes of God, - like a little child!” God *never* asks us to be great, though He might ask that we do great things - on the contrary, He insists on us being poor in spirit, the servant of the poor and the least of all.
Jesus makes it quite clear there is a huge difference between *being* great and *doing* great things. In order to do great things we must be the least of the brethren and be servants of all and then God will use us, in all our weakness and simplicity, (and nobody was weaker and simpler than Peter) to *do* great things.
It follows then that, even when we do great things, it does not make us great, and we certainly must not think of *ourselves* as great, - it actually makes us even more a humble servant of God and man.
This, sadly, is something that is forgotten all the time by *all* of us (from the magesterium of the church downwards - or upwards - whichever way you see it!) in our slow, creeping journey to our being united with God in the Kingdom of Heaven.
Was Peter the greatest disciple? I don’t think so. Possibly the greatest disciple was the thief on the cross, who recognised first his own sin and insignificance, but then also acknowledged that Jesus was the Son of God and begged to be with Him in the Kingdom. Think of it - a dying thief begging a dying man for the gift of eternal life. That’s a paradox – and that’s true discipleship!
May God be with us and teach us true humility.
God bless
Ray
I don’t disagree with anything you’ve written, but another part of the answer is that the question of greatness is certainly ambiguous. Who is greater—the Virgin Mary, or Satan? By order of nature, it would seem to be Satan; by order of grace, the Blessed Virgin. Who is greater—the Blessed Virgin, or St. Peter? The Blessed Virgin is more “full of grace” than any other mere human being, but her role has never been an administrative one. Who was more faithful, St. Peter or St. John? Uh, at the Crucifixion at least, St. John. Who was the greater theologian, St. Peter or St. Paul? Maybe St. Paul? Who was the better NFL player, Jim Brown or Jerry Rice? Is that even a meaningful question?
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