SEPTEMBER 12, 2017
8:45 AM ORDINARY FORM (ENGLISH) MASS (3RD GRADE)
Saint Peter
Peter was also known as Simon or Cephas. He was the brother of Andrew. He became the leading Apostle after Pentecost until the Council of Jerusalem in 50 A.D. Afterward his whereabouts are not known with certainty.
Peter was crucified in Rome under Nero. An ancient historian records that he asked to be crucified upside down because he felt unworthy to be crucified as his Lord. The keys represent Jesus' saying, "I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven."
St. Peter's Day is June 29.
Peter, who was appointed by Jesus the leader of the new sect, is viewed by Roman Catholics as the first pope, was eventually martyred in Rome during the reign of the emperor Nero. As the story goes, Peter asked to be crucified upside down, so that his death would not be the equal of Jesus and the Romans supposedly obliged.
Saint Andrew
Andrew was the brother of Peter. He is said to have founded the church in Russia. He is the patron saint of both Russia and Scotland.
Tradition holds that Andrew was crucified in Greece on a cross saltire.
Saint Andrew's Day is November 30.
According to 15th Century religious historian Dorman Newman, Andrew—the brother of Peter—went to Patras in western Greece in 69 AD, where the Roman proconsul Aegeates debated religion with him. Aegeates tried to convince Andrew to forsake Christianity, so that he would not have to torture and execute him. But when that didn’t work, apparently he decided to give Andrew the full treatment. Andrew was scourged, and then tied rather than nailed to a cross, so that he would suffer for a longer time before dying. Andrew lived for two days, during which he preached to passersby.
Saint James the Greater
James was the brother of John and a son of Zebedee. He traditionally preached in Spain after working in Jerusalem.
James was beheaded by Herod Agrippa. He is the only apostle whose death is recorded in scripture (Acts 12:2). His shield shows a scallop (or cockle) shell, a symbol of pilgrimage by sea, and the sword of martyrdom. Sometimes three shells are shown without a sword.
St. James' the Greater's Day is July 25.
Acts 12:1-19 says that James was killed with a sword. The newly-appointed governor of Judea, Herod Agrippa, decided to ingratiate himself with the Romans by persecuting leaders of the new sect. After James was arrested and led to place of execution, his unnamed accuser was moved by his courage. He not only repented and converted on the spot, but asked to be executed alongside James. The Roman executioners obliged, and both men were beheaded simultaneously.
Saint John
John was the bishop of the church at Ephesus. He was exiled to Patmos and then returned.
Tradition claims that John was the only disciple to die a natural death, at great age. Various attempts were made on his life, including a poisoned chalice from which he was miraculously spared.
St. John's Day is December 27.
John was the only one of the original disciples not to die a violent death. Instead, he passed away peacefully in Patmos in his old age, sometime around 100 AD.
Saint Philip
A questionable tradition holds that Philip was a missionary to Phrygia and Galatia.
Philip is said to have been martyred by crucifixion or the spear, or bound to a cross and stoned to death. Two loaves of bread recall Philip's comment at the feeding of the multitude recorded in John 6:7.
St. Philip's Day is May 3.
Philip, the first of Jesus’ disciples, became a missionary in Asia. Eventually, he traveled to the Egyptian city of Heliopolis, where he was scourged, thrown into prison, and crucified in 54 AD.
Saint Bartholomew
Bartholomew probably preached near the border of India and in Armenia.
According to tradition, Bartholomew was flayed alive, crucified and then beheaded.
Saint Bartholomew's Day is August 24.
Bartholomew supposedly preached in several countries, including India, where he translated the Gospel of Matthew for believers. In one account, “impatient idolaters” beat Bartholomew and then crucified him, while in another, he was skinned alive and then beheaded.
Saint Matthew
Matthew was a son of Alphaeus and a tax collector. He was also known as Levi. According to tradition, he went to Ethiopia after preaching to the Jews in Palestine.
Traditional accounts of Matthew's death vary. Some say he died a natural death. Others say that he was crucified in Ethiopia and was then beheaded. His shield displays three purses.
St. Matthew's Day is September 21.
According to legend, the former tax collector turned missionary was martyred in Ethiopia, where he was supposedly stabbed in the back by an swordsman sent by King Hertacus, after he criticized the king’s morals.
Saint Thomas
Thomas was an evangelist in Persia and India. In India he is reported to have built a church with his own hands.
Thomas died when he was shot with arrows, stoned and left to die. A priest then ran a spear through him.
St. Thomas' Day is July 3.
Apparently Thomas preached the gospel in Greece and India, where he angered local religious authorities, who martyred him by running him through with a spear.
Saint James the Less
James (called "The Less" or "The Just") was a son of Alphaeus. He worked in and near Jerusalem and was probably its first bishop.
An ancient historian claims that James was pushed from a pinnacle of the temple at the age of 96. Near death, he rose to ask forgiveness for his enemies, who then beat him with a fuller's bat and sawed his body in pieces.
Saint James' Day is May 3.
According to Foxe, James, who was elected by his fellow believers to head the churches of Jerusalem, was one of the longest-lived apostles, perhaps exceeded only by John. At the age of 94, he was beaten and stoned by persecutors, and then killed him by hitting him in the head with a club.
Saint Simon
This disciple was also known as Simon the Zealot. Nothing of his missionary work can be authenticated, but he is variously said to have worked east of Palestine or to have accompanied Jude in his journeys.
An early historian claims that Simon was martyred in Persia by being beheaded or sawn in pieces. His shield indicates that he was a fisher of men through preaching the gospel.
St. Simon's Day is October 28.
Simon preached in Mauritania on the west coast of Africa, and then went to England, where he was crucified in 74 AD.
Saint Jude
Jude was also known as Thaddeus.
Traditions vary as to his field of missionary work. he is reputed to have traveled with Simon. His manner of death is also unknown, though some have supposed that he and Simon were martyred together.
St. Jude's Day is October 28.
According to several stories, he was crucified at Edessa (the name of cities in both Turkey and Greece) in 72 AD.
Judas Iscariot
Judas, whose emblem is a length of rope fashioned into a "J" or an "I", is rarely found in a list of the 12 Apostles. His place is usually taken by Saint Matthias, who was chosen by lot to replace Judas after he committed suicide, or by Saint Paul, who many believe to have been God's chosen successor to Judas.
According to Matthew 27:3-6, the treacherous apostle quickly felt remorse over his betrayal of Jesus and went to the Temple to recant. When the high priests ignored his plea, he threw down the 30 pieces of silver that he had been paid, and went off and hanged himself. But Acts 1:15-20, gives a different and even grislier version of Judas’ demise. He says that Judas used the blood money to purchase a piece of land and then fell headlong from a high place there, so that “he burst asunder in the midst, and all his bowels gushed out.” Jerusalem residents subsequently named the place Aceldama, which means “the field of blood.”
