St James the Greater

Yesterday was the feast day of St James the Apostle (7/25), also known as James the Greater. He was the brother of St John, the sons of Zebedee. Jesus tagged them with the nickname “Boanerges”, Sons of Thunder, possibly because of James’ fiery nature.

James and John, along with Peter, were privileged to witness the Transfiguration and they were with Jesus in the garden before He was arrested. Around 44 A.D. James became the first Apostle to become a martyr. Herod Agrippa had him beheaded in Jerusalem and his head is buried beneath the altar in the Chapel of St James the Great in the Armenian Apostolic Cathedral of St James. Legend has it that his body was transferred to Santiago de Compostela in Spain because he preached the Gospel there, but there is no evidence that he ever was there. Nevertheless, he is the patron saint of Spain.

What we know for sure about James is that when Jesus called him and his brother, they left their fishing boat and followed Jesus for the rest of their lives. This is an action that we should model in our own lives. St James, pray for us.