Cardinal Tobin: Saints Peter and Paul, Spirit-filled Evangelizers

My dear sisters and brothers in Christ,

On Monday, June 29, 2026, our archdiocese will join dioceses worldwide in celebrating the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul. As Pope Leo XIV has observed (quoting Saint Augustine), “the feast of the two Apostles is celebrated on one day. They too were one. For although they were martyred on different days, they were one.”

We are familiar with these two great saints. Peter is “the rock” whom Christ chose as the foundation on which his Church is built. Paul is the great missionary who proclaimed the Gospel through his words and actions and helped St. Peter and the other Apostles step beyond their comfort zones to engage in missionary work in the Church’s earliest days.

If we look closely at these two giants of our faith, we see they were ordinary people—like you and me—who were asked by Christ to do extraordinary things. Peter was a fisherman. The Gospels portray him as passionate, impulsive, and weak (despite his bravado). He protests loudly, “Lord, I will never betray you!” But when put to the test, he falls far short of his well-intentioned promise.

Paul was a tentmaker by trade who became a zealous Pharisee and persecuted the first Christians. He was present at the murder of the first Christian martyr, St. Stephen. Paul’s conversion was dramatic, and the assignment the Risen Lord gave him—to be the Apostle to the Gentiles—was both incredibly important and difficult. Through the letters and missionary example of St. Paul, Christ continues to be made known today to people of diverse cultures, languages, and religious backgrounds in every corner of the world.

Using the term Pope Francis coined in his apostolic exhortation, Evangelii Gaudium (The Joy of the Gospel), I think we can say that Saints Peter and Paul were truly “Spirit-filled evangelizers.” They allowed the Holy Spirit to enter their minds and hearts. Empowered by the Spirit, they overcame their weaknesses, prejudices, and fears. On fire with Gospel joy, both men worked miracles of faith and healing. They built up the Body of Christ in the Church’s earliest days, when proclaiming the Gospel was dangerous and extremely difficult!

Continue reading Cardinal Tobin’s latest newsletter.