The House of Saint Peter

The Home of St Peter


Today we had the opportunity to visit Capernaum and have mass in a church that was built right over the ruins of St. Peter’s house. As scripture tells us, after Jesus left Nazareth he came to the region of Galilee and began to call his disciples. Most notably of these was Simon, son of John, whom he would later call Peter and give him the keys to heaven. Peter’s house has special meaning for Christians because of the many miracles performed in Capernaum. So, much meaning that one translation of the name of Capernaum is The Village of Consolations. The two miracles that I reflected upon are the curing of Simon Peter’s mother-in-law, and the curing of the paralytic.

Not many people knew of Jesus when he arrived in Galilee, but after he cured Simon Peter’s mother-in-law people flocked to his house in order that they too may be healed. The house is rather small and unassuming, yet it was no match for the faith of some people. We know that the friends of the paralytic could not get him inside because of the crowds, so they broke through the roof and lowered him down. What we don’t realize is that this roof was not made of sticks and straw, or any other flimsy material. There are seven layers of cement, each thirty centimeters thick, placed over each other to prevent any water from leaking through. This was not a simple task for those friends to accomplish, nor was is it a simple “Thank you for healing our friend, we’ll be on our way!” Once the roof was damaged, it was not reparable, but had to be torn down and rebuilt anew. This was the faith they had in Jesus, and the love they had for their friend. Could we say we have the same devotion ourselves? The house that saw such faith and love later became a holy place for early Christianity and had a church built around the house. It became a house of prayer for Christians who could not openly practice their faith.

Next to this house there is a first century synagogue floor upon which we believe Jesus taught and performed other signs and wonders. It is here in Capernaum that Jesus dwelt and lived. This place became Jesus’s city and is now a reminder of how important our faith should be. Let no obstacle stop us from reaching out to Jesus in our time of need, no matter how many layers there may be, always push through for our Lord is always waiting to heal us.