“You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church … and I will give you the keys to the Kingdom of heaven.” When you go to Rome the image of crossed keys is found on walls, doorways, lintels, pictures, mosaics — a vivid reminder that the Pope, as bishop of Rome, is the successor of St. Peter. While there is something solid and foundational about a rock, a rock can also serve as “an obstacle,” as Jesus told Peter. A rock does not grow or change or adapt or react. It is just there. Maybe that is why almost always when you see an image of St. Peter in Rome there is also an image of St. Paul as an icon of change.
