When the Cardinal entered to choose his successor, the mural was located on the north wall of Sistine Church. It depicts a scene in Jesus’ life, as the Gospel of Matthew painted by the 15th-century Italian Renaissance artist Pietro Perugino.
Jesus was robbed by the blue, leaning against the left of the center, his disciples were in an open square with a temple in the background. The right center of justice kneeled down on his disciple Peter and reached for what Jesus was going to hand him, an object of ultimate importance, which was located in the exact center of the painting.
The key to heaven.
Jesus said to Peter in the gospel story: “I will give you the key to the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you are bound on earth will be bound to heaven, and whatever you are relaxing on earth will be relaxed in heaven.”
With these words, one of the most enduring symbols in the Christian world, the Key of St. Peter, was created, and the story of the Pope was born.
When the Roman Catholic Cardinals gathered at the meeting on Wednesday, they were not just voting for the Vatican’s next head of state. They chose the 266th Pope – St. Peter’s 266th successor, and as church tradition teaches, Jesus was chosen as the first leader of the church.
“People, especially now, are they saying, ‘Well, who is the pope? Does he like the CEO, or does he like the chairman of the board?'” Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan of New York said in an interview at Kennedy Airport that he boarded his flight to Rome after Pope Francis’ death. “No. He is the successor of St. Peter, and he is the bishop of Rome.”
Choosing a pope is a political process and a profound theological process. The symbolic past of the key is one of the oldest rituals in Christianity.
The image of two cross keys is an ancient symbol of the Pope’s authority. In the Vatican, they are everywhere. They were wearing the Holy See’s badge, one gold and one silver. They were on a special version of the Vatican stamp, currently marked “Sede Vadante MMXXV”, released for the period between the death of Pope Francis and the election of his successor, and are so popular that they are limited to one sheet for each client.
Inside St. Peter’s Basilica, St. Peter’s bronze statue holds the key with his left hand, and in the square, a huge statue of St. Peter holds them to his right.
Just as Jesus changed Peter’s name from Simon, the new pope changed his name and almost became a new man in the eyes of the church, Cardinal Dolan explained. Those who have the key have the power that Jesus possesses to uphold and deliver the integrity of faith.
“Peter’s successor had no army to sell, no currency, no trade, no tariffs, no awesome moral authority and spiritual authority, and you can see the desires of the world.”
Today, the Pope’s office is widely regarded as one of the moral authority. But the meaning of the Pope and the Key has changed over the centuries as the politics and theology of the church may have changed.
In early Christianity, these keys were largely theological symbols of forgiveness, and when Peter was given the key, Jesus was offering salvation to people. Metaphorically, they unlock the door to heaven and the eternal life.
Images of Peter and the Key would not appear before the 4th century, when Roman Emperor Constantine converted to Christianity, faith became legal.
“The focus at this time is Peter’s position as a direct recipient of Christ’s authority, which happened when the church established its own religion in the empire,” said Felicity Harley-McGowan. “In Rome, this image had a special significance in expressing the authority of the church.”
The first known image of Christ handing over the key to Peter in Rome, hidden in a quiet path behind the school, in the tomb of Constantine’s daughter, who died in the 4th century.
Inside, the tomb is known as the “Mausole di Santa Costanza” and is both cool and dark, away from the blazing Roman sun. In the apse, near the sarcophagus ruins, is the glittering mosaic of Jesus, wearing a red and gold robe, sitting on the ball of the world. In his right hand, he gave Peter a key.
The tour guide Coumba Sall practices adding the website to her route there. She pointed out the themes of grapes and Roman winemakers around APSE and noted that wine is a reminder of the Eucharist for Christians. She said Jesus was robbed by the color of the empire.
“These mosaics show us the transition from pagan to Christianity,” she said.
In Egypt, the ancient Orthodox monastery on Mount Sinai, was an idol of Mount Peter, occupying the keys of the sixth century for pious practice.
The keys are made of metal – they are made of metal – but even so, they are not more refined than Christian devotion, said the keys are not as refined as Christian devotion.
“This is Christian hope, you are studying,” he said. “Because Peter has the key, you are looking at hope, sinful forgiveness, and I can unite with Jesus Christ in eternal life.”
During the Middle Ages, as the Pope gained sovereignty in territory or papal states, the Pope’s authority became more specific. Through some church statements, the Pope received the actual key to the conquered city.
“People see this power and are developing completely different models, now political and military,” said Father Toreta.
Through the Renaissance, when Perugino created the mural in the Sistine Church, more visuals were not only of Jesus and Peter, but also with all the other disciples. Art scholars say this shows that the church began to emphasize the pope’s succession in social and political settings.
Pope Francis explained his understanding of the keys last June as he preached the gospel text from the window overlooking St. Peter’s Square.
They represent “the authority ministry entrusted to him to serve all the churches” and he carefully describes how to interpret “authority.”
“Authoritation is a service, not the authority of service is dictatorship,” he said.
Molly Farneth, associate professor of religion at Haverford College, explained that it is worth noting that Pope Francis, the top man of the church’s power structure, was concerned about the moral boundaries of that authority.
“I think Francis recognizes this difference and tries to be a good and virtuous leader, and also tries to stop the person who takes it in the role of the Pope in the way he dominates the Pope,” she said.
Ms. Farneth taught a course on ritual politics and saw that these politics were in real time when one Pope ended, while another would begin.
“It was interesting to think of handing over the key as a symbol of this transition to power and asked all these questions,” she said. Will they use it to regulate the crossing point? “People who hold the keys have a lot of power over who is in the community and who is outside the community,” she said.
These questions – and the power they possess on earth and in heaven – are at the heart of the Cardinal’s decision in the coming days, as they chose St. Peter’s 266th successor. And, not only is the gospel of Perugino’s murals and Matthew’s writings, but it reminds them of what they do.
Their ceremony involved a meeting that took place in the Sestin Church’s secrecy. “candave” itself comes from the Latin phrase – meaning “with key”.
