I like this:
Quite rightly, too, did the Lord after his resurrection entrust his sheep to Peter to be fed (Jn. 21: 15-19). It is not, you see, that he alone among the disciples was fit to feed the Lord’s sheep; but when Christ speaks to one man, unity is being commended to us. And he first speaks to Peter, because Peter is the first among the apostles. Do not be sad, Apostle. Answer once, answer again, answer a third time. Let confession conquer three times with love, because self-assurance was conquered three times by fear. What you had bound three times must be loosed three times. Loose through love what you had bound through fear. And for all that, the Lord once, and again, and a third time, entrusted his sheep to Peter.
from this link.....thanks.....http://www.crossroadsinitiative.com/library_article/151/Peter_and_Paul____St._Augustine.html
The Protestant Bible thumpers here only read Mt 16:16-18 and get into a bible thumping match as to the meaning of Christ changing Simon to Cephas [Peter]. Simon actually means obedient one and Cephas does mean rock in CHrist language of Aramaic. When it got translated into Greek, there were some distinctions made in Greek, not present in Aramaic which distinguish Christ as the Rock and Peter as still a rock, but not a rock like Christ [which of course he is not]. So this big rock small rock debate is more dealing with the Greek. The name Cephas in Aramaic means rock. Now, as to what is the theological meaning of Mt 16:16-18, it is Peter and his confession, is it Peter’s person, etc, both views are plausible and whatever one you take, does not negate Peter’s role as Chief of the Apostles. Saint Augustine, who favored the rock Being Peter’s confession of faith, although he also thought it being his person was acceptable, when you read his commentary on John 21:15-20, it is clear he sees Peter as Chief among the Apostles. Other Fathers also take the position of Peter as Chief of the Apostles, regardless of the differences of interpretation of Mt 16:16-18.
Furthermore, if you go to the Doctrine of Papal Infallibility as defined at Vatican 1, both Mt 16:16-18 and John 21:15-20 “Together” provide the full theological basis for the Definition of Papal primacy from scripture, and I might add, Luke and the feed my sheep passage as well as it often times is read at Liturgy.
In addition, in the Vatican I definition of Papal Primacy, it is also correlated with the authority of the Church of Rome for there is a cite to Saint Irenaeus [I think it is stated and footnoted] that does draw the link between the Primacy of the Bishop of Rome to the Authority of the Church of Rome and from where does the authority of the Church of Rome come from, its connection to Saint Peter and Saint Paul [both] as Saint Ireneaus so clearly stated and as Saint Augustine notes in Sermon 295, it is for this reason that the Church of Rome even in his time [and well before] celebrated the feast day of SS Peter and Paul on June 29th together. Furthermore, Papal Bulls are issued with the Seal of the current Pope on one side and icons of both SS Peter and Paul on the other. Not a coincidence.
Unfortunately, what we are dealing with here in many cases are a bunch of Protestants who think the Bible fell out of the sky [in King James English] sometime during the Protestant revolt in the 16th century and that only American Protestants, because we are American and Protestant, are the ones who figured this stuff all out as it can’t be those peoples of Mediterranean stock [of which my ancestors came from, being of Sicilian ancestry] who wrote in Latin and Greek and lived in the Roman culture that was Latin and Greek because we are American WASP and we know better.