St.

James

I. General Information

St. James, also called James, son of Zebedee, or James the Greater, was born in Galilee, Palestine and
died 44 CE on Jerusalem. His feast day is on July 25. James was one of the twelve apostles of Christ,
distinguished as Jesus’ innermost circle and the only apostle whose martyrdom is recorded in the New
testament found in Acts 12:2. Saint James is the patron saint of Spain and, according to tradition, his
remains are held in Santiago de Compostela in Galicia.

II. Family Background

Son of Zebedee and Salome; brother of John the apostle. They lived in Capernaum on the Sea of Galilee.
James occupation before the calling of Christ was a fisherman together with his brother.

III. Apostolic Ministry

James was called along with this brother John to be one of Jesus’s twelve apostles who would
accompany him on his ministry. They were given the nickname “Boanerges” (sons of thunder) by Jesus;
because of their characteristic fiery zeal. With Saints Peter and Andrew, James and John were the first
four disciples whom Jesus called.

As a member of the inner circle, James witnessed the raising of Jairus’s daughter from the dead, the
Transfiguration, and Jesus’ agony in the Garden of Gethsemane. James and John asked Jesus to let them
sit, one at his right and one at his left, in his future glory (Mark 10:35–40), a favor that Jesus said was not
his to grant. James was beheaded by order of King Herod Agrippa I of Judaea about 44 A.D., in a general
persecution of the early church.; according to Spanish tradition, his body was taken to Santiago de
Compostela, where his shrine attracts Christian pilgrims from all over the world.