Peter is here . . . are we sure?

Tomb of St. Peter the Apostle

St. Peter Basilica

Underneath the massive Basilica of St. Peter at the Vatican in Rome lie, since the mid first century A.D., the buried remains of the Apostle Peter, now 2,000 years later, in human bones.  Most sacred to the Christian history and to the Catholic Church in particular, the discovery of these remains indeed cemented in time and Biblical confirmation that the words of Jesus to the fisherman from Galilee, would resonate down through the centuries like a bell that is forever ringing.

Why else would that enormous structure be located where it is?  There must be some history, some connection to ancient Rome and to the Apostles themselves.  And of course when we hear those words we imagine the ruthless persecution of Christians who at best could gather safely in catacombs and caves.  The Vatican and St. Peter's Basilica itself has a reason to be where it is.  It wasn't just good real estate.  In fact, it was the most unlikely place - except for one fact:  St. Peter was buried there.  But where exactly?  Was he really there?

Today, it would be hard to imagine what ancient Rome appeared like and in particular the "Vatican hill," which was discovered to be outside the city itself and the cemetery of the rich and famous pagan families of ancient Rome.  They had neither any interest in nor likely were unaware of the steadily growing sect, the followers of the preacher from Nazareth and Israel who claimed to be divine - or at least his followers held rock solid to that belief as they were led by none other than twelve men who had walked in his company and none other than the fisherman whom Jesus tagged: "Petrus" - Rock. Why is this Peter so essential to understand and in particular why his grave site?

If you're looking for a great summer read, I want to share with you my personal recommendation on a book that I found recently published and authored by John O'Neill titled: The Fisherman's Tomb .  
As the back jacket states:

"The incredible, sometimes shocking, story of the seventy-five year search and its key players has never been fully told - until now."

If you love history and drama that is totally based in true historical fact, get a copy of this book and read it.  It smacks of the fictional Davinci Code and I personally do think it would make a compelling film, supported by the facts, not fiction.  Who doesn't like the "secret files of the Vatican," or archaeologists, at the direct request of Pope Pius XII, had to vow secrecy in all their diggings while World War II raged above them in their subterranean painstaking effort to uncover the burial site of the first among the Apostles, the one from whom the Papacy itself has been established at the direct foundation of Christ himself - "You are Peter and upon this Rock I will build my Church."  

So, rush to Amazon or some other source you may find and order a copy of:

The Fisherman's Tomb by John O'Neill