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CHRISTIAN APOSTLE JAMES THE GREATER
Of my cup you shall indeed drink..
James was the son of Zebedee and Salome,
brother of Saint John the Apostle, and may have been
Jesus' cousin. He is called "the Greater" simply because he
became an Apostle before Saint James the Lesser.He
was a disciple of Saint John the Baptist and a fisherman on
the Lake of Galilee. He was one of the first,
together with Andrew, Peter and John, disciples called by
Christ. He left everything when Christ called him to be a
fisher of men. He was present during most of the recorded
miracles of Christ. He was present at the Transfiguration
and at Agony in the Garden.
The pilgrimage to his relics in Compostela became
such a popular devotion that the symbols of pilgrims have
become his emblems, and he became patron of pilgrims. His
work in Spain, and the housing of his relics there, led to
his patronage of the country and all things Spanish; for
centuries, the Spanish army rode to battle with the cry
"Santiago!" ("Saint James!")
Like all men of renown, many stories grew up around James.
In one, he brought back to life a boy who had been unjustly
hanged, and had been dead for five weeks. The boy's father
was notified of the miracle while he sat at supper. The
father pronounced the story nonsense, and said his son was
no more alive than the roasted fowl on the table; the cooked
bird promptly sat up, sprouted feathers, and flew away.
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He was one of Jesus' closest disciples and was present at
the miracle of the raising of Jarius' daughter and the
Transfiguration.
After Crucifixion and Assumption of the Teacher he preached
in Syria and during his life he also preached in Samaria,
Judea, and Spain. Later in his life he returned to Jerusalem
where he was beheaded by King Herod Agrippa I in 44 AD. He
was the first Apostle to be martyred.
Symbol - Scallop Shell and Sword
St. James' shield shows a scallop (or cockle) shell, the
sign of his pilgrimage by the sea and the sword of
martyrdom. Sometimes three shells are shown without a sword.
His feast day is the 25th of July.
St James the Moorslayer,
one of the most valiant saints and knights the world ever had …
has been given by God to Spain for its patron and protection.
Cervantes, Don Quixote
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