Does Cephas mean a "pointed rock"?

[neilgodfrey]

I believe Aramaic/Hebrew kefa means stone (as in pebble or smaller piece of stone), which is more synonymous with Greek lithos (small stone, or stone block). Petra meant a larger mass of rock or boulder, either of which could be craggy (have sharp edges due to breakage of boulders from exposed bedrock).

I had always heard that "petros" meant something akin to a pebble while "petra" meant a huge boulder. I had also understood that this interpretation contradicts the Catholic claim that Jesus was building his Church on Peter. The Petra was Christ. What do Catholics say about this?

[Andrew]

The Catholic position is generally that "petra" is a feminine word, and thus would be unsuitable as a male's name, thus "petros" is used instead.