Saint Thomas the Apostle

feast day: 3 July

about:
- patron saint of architects
- called Didymus which means "the twin"
- was one of the original Apostles of Jesus Christ
-  is informally called doubting Thomas because he doubted Jesus' resurrection when first told, (in the Gospel of John), followed later by his confession of faith, "My Lord and my God", on seeing Jesus' wounded body.
-  Traditionally, he is said to have travelled outside the Roman Empire to preach the Gospel, travelling as far as India. According to tradition, the Apostle reached Muziris, India in AD 52 and baptized several people, founding what today are known as Saint Thomas Christians or Nasranis. After his death, the reputed relics of Saint Thomas the Apostle were enshrined as far as Mesopotamia in the 3rd century, and later moved to various places. In 1258, some of the relics were brought to Abruzzo in Ortona, Italy, where they have been held in the Church of Saint Thomas the Apostle. He is often regarded as the Patron Saint of India and the name Thoma remains quite popular among Saint Thomas Christians of India.
- He was a dedicated follower of Christ. Thomas, unwilling to believe other Apostles had seen the risen Lord, he earned the title "doubting Thomas". On Christ's second apparition, Thomas saw the wounds on our Lord's hands and side and proclaimed "My Lord and my God".
- As the Apostle dispersed, Thomas eventually reached India.

links/ sources:
- "Thomas the Apostle" (Wikipedia):
   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_the_Apostle
- "St. Thomas the Apostle" (Catholic Encyclopedia):
   http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/14658b.htm - "St. Thomas" (Catholic Online):
   http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=410
   http://www.catholic.org/saints/fun_facts_arch.php?saint=410

Saint Matthias, Apostle

feast day: May 14

about:
- The Greek Matthias (or, in some manuscripts, Maththias), is a name derived from Mattathias, Hebrew Mattithiah, signifying "gift of Yahweh".
- born: 1st century AD, Judea, Roman Empire
- died: c. 80 AD, Jerusalem, Judea or in Colchis (modern-day Georgia)
- attribute: axe
- was the apostle chosen by the believers to replace Judas Iscariot following Judas' betrayal of Jesus and suicide. His calling as an apostle is unique in that his appointment was not made personally by Jesus, who had already ascended into heaven, and, it was made before the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the early Church.
- Matthias was one of the seventy disciples of Jesus, and had been with Him from His baptism by John to the Ascension (Acts 1:21-22). It is related (Acts 1:15-26) that in the days following the Ascension, Peter proposed to the assembled brethren, who numbered one hundred and twenty, that they choose one to fill the place of the traitor Judas in the Apostolate. Two disciples, Joseph, called Barsabas, and Matthias were selected, and lots were drawn, with the result in favour of Matthias, who thus became associated with the eleven Apostles. Zeller has declared this narrative unhistoric, on the plea that the Apostles were in Galilee after the death of Jesus. As a matter of fact they did return to Galilee, but the Acts of the Apostles clearly state that about the feast of Pentecost they went back to Jerusalem.
-  All further information concerning the life and death of Matthias is vague and contradictory. According to Nicephorus (Church History II.40), he first preached the Gospel in Judea, then in Ethiopia (that is to say, Colchis) and was crucified. The Synopsis of Dorotheus contains this tradition: Matthias in interiore Æthiopia, ubi Hyssus maris portus et Phasis fluvius est, hominibus barbaris et carnivoris praedicavit Evangelium. Mortuus est autem in Sebastopoli, ibique prope templum Solis sepultus (Matthias preached the Gospel to barbarians and cannibals in the interior of Ethiopia, at the harbour of the sea of Hyssus, at the mouth of the river Phasis. He died at Sebastopolis, and was buried there, near the Temple of the Sun). Still another tradition maintains that Matthias was stoned at Jerusalem by the Jews, and then beheaded (cf. Tillemont, "Mémoires pour servir à l'histoire eccl. des six premiers siècles", I, 406-7). It is said that St. Helena brought the relics of St. Matthias to Rome, and that a portion of them was at Trier. Bollandus* (Acta SS., May, III) doubts if the relics that are in Rome are not rather those of the St. Matthias who was Bishop of Jerusalem about the year 120, and whose history would seem to have been confounded with that of the Apostle. The Latin Church celebrates the feast of St. Matthias on 24 February and the Greek Church on 9 August. [Note: After this article was written, the Latin Church moved the feast of St. Matthias to 14 May.]


links/ sources: 
- "Saint Matthias" (Wikipedia):
   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Matthias
- "St. Matthias" (Catholic Encyclopedia):
   http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/10066a.htm
- "St. Matthias" (Catholic Online):
   http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=5
- "Saint Matthias, Apostle" (EWTN):
   https://www.ewtn.com/library/MARY/MATTHIAS.HTM
- "St. Matthias" (American Catholic):
   http://www.americancatholic.org/features/saints/saint.aspx?id=1383

Saint John, Apostle and Evangelist

feast day: December 27

about:
- apostle and evangelist
- John the Apostle = Aramaic: ܝܘܚܢܢ ܫܠܝܚܐ‎ Yohanan Shliha; c. AD 6 – c. 100
- was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus according to the New Testament. He was the son of Zebedee and Salome. His brother was James, who was another of the Twelve Apostles. Christian tradition holds that he outlived the remaining apostles and that he was the only one not to die a martyr's death. The Church Fathers consider him the same person as John the Evangelist, John of Patmos, and the Beloved Disciple. The tradition of many Christian denominations holds that he is the author of several books of the New Testament.
- attributes: eagle, a serpent in a chalice, scrolls, book


links:
- "John the Evanglist" (source: Wikipedia):
   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_the_Evangelist
- "John the Apostle" (source: Wikipedia):
   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_the_Apostle
- - "St. John the Evangelist" (source: EWTN):
   http://www.ewtn.com/library/MARY/JOHNEVAN.HTM
- "St. John the Evangelist" (source: Catholic Online):
   http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=67 
- "St. John the Evangelist" (source: Catholic Encyclopedia):
   http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/08492a.htm

Saint Matthias the Apostle