In a sermon he preached in 395, St Augustine said this about St. Peter and St. Paul: “Both apostles share the same feast day, for these two are one; and even though they suffered on different days, they are one. Peter went first, and Paul followed. And so we celebrate this day made holy for us by the apostles’ blood. Let us embrace what they believed, their life, their labors, their sufferings, their preaching, and their confession of faith.”
Some facts about St. Peter: Simon, a fisherman from Galilee was introduced to Jesus by his brother Andrew. Jesus gave him a new name Petros (Greek) Cephas (Aramaic), meaning “Rock.” In English it is rendered Peter. And Jesus said to him, “You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of the netherworld will not prevail against it.” St. Peter spent his last years in Rome, leading the Church. He was martyred in 64 A.D. being crucified upside-down at his request because he was not worthy to die as Jesus died. He is buried on Vatican hill. St. Peter’s Basilica is built over his tomb. (Pope Francis is a successor to St. Peter.)
Some facts about St. Paul: Saul was born in the first decade of the first century A.D. in the city of Tarsus, in the Roman province of Syria-Cilicia. His family was a devout Jewish family and he was a Roman citizen. Paul was his Roman name. He had an excellent education in Greek culture and he studied also in Jerusalem under Rabbi Gamaliel, a great Jewish teacher. As a student of Rabbi Gamaliel, Saul memorized the Scriptures. He identified himself as a Pharisee. Saul persecuted the Church and on the road to Damascus he had a dramatic conversion. He was baptized and become an Apostle, tirelessly preaching the Gospel to the Gentiles of the Mediterranean world. Paul was imprisoned and taken to Rome where he was beheaded in the year 67 A.D. He is buried in Rome in the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls.