St. Peter was the son of Johannes and was born in Bethsaida. The apostle Andrew was his brother and the Apostle Philip came from the same town. Peter first met Jesus on the eastern bank of the Jordan. Even at the first meeting, the Saviour foretold the change of Simon's name to Cephas, which is translated into Peter. This proves that Christ had already special views with regard to Simon. After the first meeting Peter with the other disciples remained with Jesus accompanying him to Galilee, Judaea, Jerusalem, and through Samaria back to Galilee. In especially solemn fashion Christ emphasized Peter's priority among the Apostles after Peter had recognized Him as the Messiah. He promised him that he would be the head of His flock. St. Peter became to be known as the rock of the church when Jesus declared to Peter, "Thou art Peter (Kipha, a rock), and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven. And whatsoever thou shalt bind upon the earth, it shall be bound also in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on the earth, it shalt be loose in heaven." His statement then admits that He wishes to make Peter the head of the whole community of those who believed in Him as the true Messiah; that through this foundation the Kingdom of Christ would be unconquerable, that the spiritual guidance of the faithful was placed in the hands of Peter, as the special representative of Christ.  His symbols are  crossed keys, silver and gold keys which signify Saint Peter's divinely-given power of binding and loosening.