St. James the Greater - July 25th

 

 Today we celebrate the feast of St. James, the apostle, often called “James the Greater”. He was first called by Jesus to be closely associated with Him throughout His public ministry. He was one of three, together with Peter and John, whom Jesus would take aside, as privilege witnesses. Him and his brother John were called sons of thunder. All three were present at the transfiguration on Mount Tabor, at the raising of the daughter of Jairus to life, and during the agony of Jesus in Garden of Gethsemane.

There is an old tradition, he preached the Gospel in Spain before he returned to Jerusalem. Santiago, Spain is named after him. In Santiago, the basilica of St. James is believed to hold his relics. The basilica also contains the world largest thurible, which is swung with incense, only on special occasions. There is also a legend in which St. James, centuries later, appeared on a horse near the ocean to scare off attacking Muslims.

When St. James returned from Spain in 42 AD, Herod Agrippa beheaded him, as noted in the Acts of the Apostles. He was the first apostle to share the cup of suffering and death, which the Lord spoke of in today’s Gospel.

James and his brother most likely asked their mother, Mrs. Zebedee, to ask Jesus, if they could have places of honor in Our Lord’s kingdom.

In a sermon by St. John Chrysostom, he said, “the other ten became angry at the two brothers.’ See how imperfect they all are: the two who tried to get ahead of the other ten, and the ten who were jealous of the two! But, is said, before, show them to me at a later date in their lives, and you will see that all these impulses and feelings have disappeared. James, for his part, was not to live much longer: for from the beginning he was inspired by great fervor, setting aside purely human goals, rose to such splendid heights that he straight-away suffered martyrdom.”

The Apostles learned the lesson Jesus taught on this occasion: “Anyone among you who aspires to greatness, must serve the rest”. Today, let us ask Mary, the Queen of Apostles, to grant us that transformation, which changed James from seeking the greatest honor, to accept the chalice of suffering. Through our daily martyrdom, may we accept the chalice of suffering, which is to serve everyone around us.