And so I say to you, you are Peter,
Matthew 16:18-20
and upon this rock I will build my Church,
and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.
I will give you the keys to the Kingdom of heaven.
Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven;
and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
This is our faith. This is what we profess. We believe in the Catholic Church. We believe in the universal blessing promised to Abraham. Through Jesus Christ, all nations and all people belong to God.
The Keys to the Kingdom of Heaven
The Nicene Creed
I believe in one God,
the Father almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all things visible and invisible.
I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ,
the Only Begotten Son of God,
born of the Father before all ages.
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father;
through him all things were made.
For us men and for our salvation
he came down from heaven,
and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary,
and became man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate,
he suffered death and was buried,
and rose again on the third day
in accordance with the Scriptures.
He ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory
to judge the living and the dead
and his kingdom will have no end.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son,
who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified,
who has spoken through the prophets.
I believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church.
I confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins
and I look forward to the resurrection of the dead
and the life of the world to come. Amen.
Oh St. Peter! What a wonderful gift you are to the Church. You are a simple, flawed person, chosen by Jesus. He recognized the beauty in you and knew you would be a strong foundation. I wonder what his trust must have meant to you when he said this.
This quote is the basis for the sacrament of reconciliation (confession). Jesus, through St. Peter, gave the authority to share the grace of forgiveness of sins.
This is also the basis for the image of St. Peter as the gatekeeper of heaven.