Today, Holy Church honors Saint Linus, the first successor of the Apostle Peter and the second Bishop of Rome. A man of apostolic faith and martyrdom, he lived in the nascent days of persecution, and his very life bears witness to the unbroken line of shepherds set over the flock by Christ Himself.
The liturgical texts provided for his feast fittingly draw from the First Epistle of Saint Peter and the Gospel of Saint Matthew, anchoring our meditation in the Petrine authority handed down through the bishops of Rome. In these Scriptures, we find the pastoral heart of the Church’s leadership and the divine foundation upon which it stands.
“Feed the flock of God which is among you…”
(1 Peter 5:2)
Saint Peter, writing to the elders, exhorts them to shepherd the flock not by constraint, nor for filthy lucre, but willingly and of a ready mind. These words echo with the tone of a man who knows what it means to have failed his Lord, and yet, having been forgiven, has now embraced the fullness of his vocation: “Simon, son of John, do you love me? Feed my sheep.” (cf. John 21:17)
Saint Linus, appointed by this very apostle, would have heard these words reverberate in Rome, not merely as distant scripture but as a living tradition—the charge of Peter, passed on to his successors.
Saint Augustine, preaching on the duties of bishops, reflects:
“Let not the honor of the episcopate be loved, but the ministry. For he who loves to preside more than to do good, loves not the office of the bishop but the position of honor.”
(Sermon 340.1)
Linus did not inherit a throne of worldly grandeur but a cross-shaped chair, where the shepherd lays down his life for his sheep. The martyrs knew this, and Linus, named in the Roman Canon (Te igitur), is among those early witnesses who sealed their testimony with blood.
“And the God of all grace… shall perfect, confirm, and establish you.”
(1 Peter 5:10)
Peter does not merely exhort—he consoles. He knows that the shepherd’s road is paved with trials. Yet he assures that after a little suffering, the Lord will strengthen and settle those who persevere.
Saint Cyprian, Bishop of Carthage and martyr, teaches:
“The Lord has willed that His servants should be tried and proved; and since He first suffered for us, He has taught us also to suffer.”
(De Mortalitate, 17)
Saint Linus, as bishop in an age of danger, would have lived in constant tension—leading the faithful while always prepared to be offered as a sacrifice. This quiet heroism is the mark of true episcopal service.
“Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build My Church…”
(Matthew 16:18)
Today’s Gospel takes us to Caesarea Philippi, where Christ reveals to Simon his new identity—Peter, the Rock. It is not Peter’s human qualities, but his divinely inspired confession—“Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God”—that wins him this commission.
Saint Hilary of Poitiers writes:
“This faith is the foundation of the Church; through this faith the gates of hell cannot prevail against her.”
(De Trinitate, 6.36)
It is upon this rock that Linus stands—not as a rival to Peter, but as his heir. The very power to bind and loose was handed from Christ to Peter, and from Peter to those who would follow after him in Rome.
Saint John Chrysostom explains:
“He did not say, ‘upon Peter,’ for it was not upon the man, but upon his faith. Yet, in giving him this role, He united the man and the confession.”
(Homily 54 on Matthew)
Thus, the papacy is not a mere office—it is a continuation of Peter’s ministry, in faith and in truth. Saint Linus, occupying the chair of the Prince of the Apostles, would preserve and protect this confession even unto death.
✠ A Final Word: From Rome to the Ages
On this feast, we venerate not only a historical figure but a living link in the chain of apostolic succession. In honoring Saint Linus, we affirm our communion with the faith of the Apostles and the unbroken tradition of the Church.
Let us remember also Saint Thecla, commemorated today—a virgin and martyr of the early Church, whose steadfastness under persecution reminds us that the confession of Christ demands total fidelity. She, like Linus, chose obedience to Christ over safety, and her courage is a model for all the faithful, especially women called to consecrated life.
May the witness of both Linus and Thecla renew in us a desire for holiness, a reverence for the Church’s sacred hierarchy, and a love for the truths handed down through the ages—unchanged and unchangeable.
Sancte Line, ora pro nobis.
Sancta Thecla, ora pro nobis.