Miriam and Simon Peter

SIMON PETER

St. Peter

St. Peter was first known as Simon.  Jesus renamed him “Cephas”, the aramaic name for Peter which meant stone or rock. Later church officials believe that Peter was the ‘rock’ the church was built on.  Peter was one of the first disciple to be recruited by Jesus.  He and his brother, Andrew, were lowly fishermen.  Jesus told them he would teach them to be “fishers of men”.  In the Gospels, Peter is often the disciple who speaks for the other disciples.  He was very vocal about proclaiming Jesus as the Messiah.  Peter was also known for sharing his doubts.  Peter was the disciple who denied Jesus three times before the rooster crowed the morning after Jesus was arrested.  But Peter was also the first disciple to see Jesus after his resurrection.  He became a leader in the new young church.  He preached, healed the sick, and travelled to share the message of Jesus.  He ended up in Rome where he died as a martyr. 

MIRIAM

Miriam, as we learned last Fall, was the sister of Moses and Aaron.  Miriam is the one who watched over Moses after his mother placed him in the Nile River.  When Pharaoh's daughter found the baby, she named him Moses, which means "to draw out" as she took him from the water.  It was Miriam who went to her mother and brought her to Pharaoh's Daughter to bet the nurse for Moses.  Miriam led the celebration of the Hebrews after the parting of the Reed Sea and the escape from the Egyptians.  Miriam was called a prophet in Exodus after she led the women in the tambourine dance at the celebration.  Exodus 15 is called the Song of Moses and Miriam.  It is a song that celebrates God and the Hebrew's victory over the Egyptians.  Miriam died befre the Hebrews made it tho the promised land.  In Micah 6:4 Miriam is remembered as one of the leaders of the Exodus with her brothers, Moses and Aaron.