ST. MARY MAGDALENE
Although it is scarcely necessary to enter fully here into the controversy which has been waged for many centuries as to who St. Mary Magdalene was, it is desirable, for the sake of completeness, to state that there are three distinct opinions on the subject amongst ecclesiastical writers. Some assert that the Mary out of […]
ST. SIMON, ST. JUDE, AND ST. MATTHIAS
St. Simon, surnamed the Canaanite, or Zelotes, to distinguish him from Simon Peter and from Simeon, the second Bishop of Jerusalem, is generally associated in legend and in art with St. Jude, whose work in Judea he is said to have shared. Absolutely nothing is, however, known with any certainty of his life, beyond the […]
ST. JAMES THE LESS
It was for many centuries taken for granted that St. James the Less, or the Younger, and James one of the brethren of the Lord, were the same person, but recent research seems to point to a different conclusion, and many modem writers distinguish between James, the son of Cleophas, mentioned in each of the […]
ST. THOMAS
There are few more touching stories in the Gospel narrative than that of St Thomas, the devoted disciple who longed to believe, yet could not ; who was ready to die for the Master even before he was fully convinced of His divinity, and was never afraid to reveal his want of faith by his […]
ST. PHILIP AND ST. BARTHOLOMEW
The allusions to St. Philip in the Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles are few, but they are such as to call up a very vivid picture of his personality. Warm-hearted, impulsive, and full of zeal for the Master’s service, he was yet cautious and reserved, making sure of his ground before he committed […]
ST. JAMES THE ELDER
Although he is often referred to in the Gospels, and was evidently the constant companion of the Lord, little is known of the life of St. James the Elder, so called to distinguish him from the other disciple of the same name. He was the son of Zebedee, the fisherman, and the brother of St. […]
THE TWELVE APOSTLES IN CHRISTIAN ART
When they are represented all together, certain symbols often distinguish the Apostles from each other, but unfortunately there is no absolute uniformity in the distribution of these symbols, a fact leading to no little confusion. Chief amongst them is the Scroll bearing one of the clauses of the Creed named after the Apostles, each of […]
ST. JOHN THE EVANGELIST
St. John, distinguished amongst the other Apostles as the Divine, the Theologian, and ‘the Disciple whom Jesus loved,’ was of Galilean birth, the son of Zebedee and Salome, and brother to St. James the Elder, who was some years his senior. St. Jerome and other ecclesiastical writers assert that he was highly educated, but others […]
ST. ANDREW
The first of the Apostles to receive the call to follow Jesus, St. Andrew was a man of strong affections, but of remarkable humility. In all the incidents related of him in the Gospels these characteristics shine forth, for he ever thought of others before himself and was at all times content to take the […]
ST. PAUL
Although he never knew the Lord on earth and was called to be an Apostle even later than St. Matthias, St. Paul always takes rank next to St. Peter, chiefly because he received his call direct from Christ, but also on account of his strong personality and the great influence that personality enabled him to […]