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 Bernini's "Cathedra Petri" Scott 321 (1961) The Feast Day of the Chair Of Saint Peter ("cathedra petri") has little to do with furniture, but is a celebration of the authority of Saint Peter, and his successors who have served the Church. The term chair comes from the Latin term cathedra, meaning "the seat of government". The term "ex cathedra" (literally “from the chair”) refers to instances when the pope invokes his full authority to declare a doctrine on faith or morals to be infallible. Around 34 AD, Peter went to Antioch and established there a seat, or chair, of Church government. It is here that we first hear the disciples of Christ referred to as "Christians": "Then he [Peter} went to Tarsus to look for Saul, and when he had found him he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with the church and taught a large number of people, and it was in Antioch that the disciples were first called Christians."(Acts 11:25-26)The success of his work was acknowledged by the establishment of an annual Church celebration on February 22nd. He later went to Rome and headed the establishment of the Roman Church until he was crucified by Emperor Nero in 68 AD. Sometime around the fourth century, the celebration of Peter establishing the Roman Church began, celebrated on January 18th. The Roman celebration was linked to a date believed to be the day when Peter gave his first homily in Rome. Pope Paul IV (r. 1555-1559) formalized the feast of the Chair of Peter in Rome in 1558. For 400 years the Church celebrated two feast days regarding the Chair of Peter. In 1962, Pope John XXIII combined the two feasts into one as a celebration of the authority entrusted to Saint Peter and his successors. The Feast of the Chair of St. Peter is celebrated now on February 22 each year. A view of Bernini's "Cathedra Petri" at Saint Peter's Basilica, which contains the relic believed to be the physical chair of Saint Peter, is provided in the article which follows. Hopefully, the article above for today's feast explained that the religious celebration has nothing to do with a chair for sitting but rather the office held by Saint Peter and his successors. This next article is about the physical chair that Saint Peter is said to have sat in. 
 Left: The Bernini enclosure housing the Chair of Peter Right: The bronze statue of the seated Saint Peter The Basilica of Saint Peter, Vatican City Guidebooks describing St. Peter's Basilica will point out that the bronze chair located in the apse is "the Chair of Saint Peter". Some stories say that this is the very chair that St. Peter used to sit on during his sermons. Others believe the chair to be a mid-ninth-century artifact, given by the Frankish king Charles the Bald to Pope John VIII. Opinions vary, but most recognize its symbolism, as Pope Benedict did in his Angelus sermon of February 19th 2012: "The Chair of Saint Peter, represented in the apse of the Vatican Basilica, is a monumental sculpture by Bernini. It is a symbol of the special mission of Peter and his Successors to tend Christ’s flock, keeping it united in faith and in charity."Historically, the chair had been at Saint Peter's for some years when Gian Lorenzo Bernini enclosed it in bronze and placed it above the apse altar. He completed his work in 1666 after smelting a massive amount of bronze. At each side of the chair enclosure are four statues depicting Doctors of the Church, two from the east (Sts. Athanasius and John Chrysostom ) and two from the west (Sts. Ambrose and Augustine). Each statue is 16 feet, six inches high. The papal coat of arms at the base is that of Alexander VII. In the background is a gilded cloud of angels surrounding an alabaster window with a dove, representing the Holy Spirit, which provides rays of sunlight to shine in around the chair area. 
There have seen several pontifical investigations concerning the chair. Most have concluded that "there is no reason for doubting the genuineness of the relic", but there is no absolute proof of authenticity. The enclosure that Bernini built to encase is truly a marvelous sight. To date, the only Vatican stamp to depict the Bernini encasement is from 1961 as part of the 80th Birthday of Pope John XXIII issue (Scott 321). The inclusion of the Chair of Saint Peter in the set signifies the importance of papal succession. References Photographs are from the photo collection of Marvin Lanahan |
