The Chair of St. Peter – the only furniture with a feast day!

Every bishop has a “seat” from which he leads his flock. Today the Catholic Church recognizes the primacy of St. Peter, the first pope, and the office and authority of the papacy symbolized by The Chair of Peter, Cathedra Petri.

The chair itself has quite a history. There used to be two chairs used by St. Peter when he was in Rome. One was destroyed in the 400s by the Barbarians. The remaining chair is was made of oak, although it was embellished with acacia wood and ivory inlays around the 9th century.

(Side note: Anyone doing The Bible in a Year with Father Mike can tell you that acacia wood is a big deal in the book of Exodus. It’s mentioned at least two dozen times!)

In the 17th century, Bernini encased the chair in bronze. It was moved behind the main altar at St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome.

At one time it was discovered that worms had attacked the wooden frame of the chair and parts had to be removed. Other pieces were saved as relics. The chair measures four feet seven inches high, three feet wide. The seat is almost two feet from the ground.

The chair used to be brought out for the public to see and every new pope was seated on the chair. But after the move to Avignon and back, the chair was not on display and the public had no access for 200 years. In 1867, Pope Alexander VII enclosed the altar of St. Peter in bronze castings supported by the four Doctors of the church Ambrose, Augustine, Athanasius, and Chrysostom.

Today the Pope doesn’t have to actually sit in the chair to exercise his authority over the church, but it is still a very important historical and spiritual piece of history for Catholics all over the world.

You can read Pope Benedict’s teaching on the chair here, and here.