But Joseph, who phases out of the gospel narrative after Jesus’ childhood, could have divorced Mary, remarried, and had other children. James is always listed as “son of Alphaeus,” but Matthew never is. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). This is the same death tradition ascribes to James, brother of Jesus, but scholars have little reason to trust On the Twelve Apostles of Christ. If these are all references to the same James, that would make James son of Alphaeus the author of the Book of James and one of the three men Paul called “pillars” of the church. The chapter beg Many modern scholars are more hesitant to make these associations, but one distinction is absolutely clear: James son of Alphaeus is not the same person as James son of Zebedee, one of Jesus’ closest disciples who was martyred in Acts 12:2. It’s unclear if “of Clopas” means she was married to Clopas or the daughter of Clopas. Luke 5:27 And after these things he went forth, and saw a publican, named Levi, sitting at the receipt of custom: and he said unto him, Follow me. Scripture doesn’t make these connections explicit, and while it’s certainly possible, the early church doesn’t offer much more clarity. There’s no way to be sure where he went. The moniker is ambiguous, but it’s clearly intended to distinguish this James from James son of Zebedee, who was one of the most prominent disciples. And while the church and many modern scholars take Jerome’s assertion for granted, some are more critical. James may be he whose mother, Mary (not the mother of Jesus), is mentioned among the women at Jesus’ crucifixion and tomb (Mark 15:40, 16:1; Matthew 27:56). Twelve Apostles. 2. They were twenty-six years old and married, James having three children, Judas two. Hippolytus, a theologian who lived in the second and third centuries, allegedly recorded James’ death in On the Twelve Apostles of Christ: “And James the son of Alphaeus, when preaching in Jerusalem was stoned to death by the Jews, and was buried there beside the temple. James the Less, also referred to as the Lesser, the Younger, the Little, and the Minor, is mentioned four times in the gospels, always in relation to his mother, Mary, whom John refers to as Mary of Clopas in John 19:25. By signing up for this email, you are agreeing to news, offers, and information from Encyclopaedia Britannica. Holy Apostle James the son of Alphaeus one of the Twelve Apostles, was the brother of the holy Evangelist Matthew. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. Updates? James (Iakovos) commemorated on October 9 is the second of these three, James the Less, son of Alphaeus. Just how important, though, depends on if he can be identified with any of the other Jameses. In all four lists of the Apostles (Mt 10.3; Mk 3.18; Lk 6.15; and Acts 1.13) he is mentioned in ninth place, before Thaddeus in Matthew and Mark, before Simon in Luke and Acts. One of the key arguments for why James the Less should be identified with James son of Alphaeus depends on whether or not you consider him an apostle, and how you define apostle. (Most likely, Levi either indicated Matthew was from the tribe of Levi, or Matthew was simply his Greek name.). But since the church has often assumed that James son of Alphaeus, James the Less, and James, brother of Jesus were all the same people, where James son of Alphaeus went gets a little fuzzy. “Levi” might be another name for “James.” (Some manuscripts read “James” instead of “Levi” here, but that is almost certainly a later reading.) Saint James the Less. ) of Alphaeus would be the same as James the Apostle Matthew s! 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