1 Corinthians 15:1-11
Paul's Account of Who Saw Jesus After His Death
1 Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. 2 By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.
3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. 6 After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, 8 and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.
9 For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. 11 Whether, then, it is I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed.
Luke 24:25-35
Jesus Appears to Cleopas and His Friend
25 He said to them, “How foolish you are, and how slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken! 26 Did not the Messiah have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?” 27 And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.
28 As they approached the village to which they were going, Jesus continued on as if he were going farther. 29 But they urged him strongly, “Stay with us, for it is nearly evening; the day is almost over.” So he went in to stay with them.
30 When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. 31 Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight. 32 They asked each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?”
33 They got up and returned at once to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven and those with them, assembled together 34 and saying, “It is true! The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon.” 35 Then the two told what had happened on the way, and how Jesus was recognized by them when he broke the bread.
We learn from St. Paul and St. Luke that Peter was one of the first men to see Jesus alive after His Resurrection...
St. Paul writes that for what he had received in knowledge and fact, He would pass on to all of us...He writes about how many people saw Jesus after His death on the cross...And St. Paul would write that these things are of utmost importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve...After that, He appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep...Then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all He appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born...
And as we read what St. Luke wrote about the day of Jesus' death on the road to Emmaus that He appeared to Cleopas and his friend...And St. Luke adds that when Cleopas and his friend saw the Eleven on the First Easter, they told how they saw Jesus...Then St. Luke writes that Jesus had also appeared to Simon Peter...So we learn from St. Paul that right after Jesus rose from His death, He appeared to Cephas or Peter...And we also learn from St. Luke in his gospel that Jesus also saw Peter right after His death...