Apostle St. James the less by El Greco
PAUL DESCRIBED THE APOSTLE JAMES THE LESS IN THIS MANNER:
“But other of the apostles saw I none, save James the Lord’s brother.” (Gal 1:19, KJV)
Q & A:
1. Did Paul say James was the uterine brother of the Lord Jesus? Nah!
2. Did Paul say Joseph was the father of James? Nah!
3. Did Paul say Jesus’ mother Mary was the mother of James? Nah!
4. Did Paul say Mary was no longer a virgin? Nah!
5. Did the Bible say elsewhere that James was the uterine brother of the Lord Jesus? Nah!
6. Did the Bible say elsewhere that Joseph was the father of James? Nah!
7. Did the Bible say elsewhere that Jesus’ mother Mary was the mother of James? Nah!
8. Did the Bible say elsewhere that Mary was no longer a virgin? Nah!
9. WAS JAMES THE UTERINE BROTHER OF THE LORD JESUS? NAH!
[UTERINE MEANS: BORN OF THE SAME MOTHER BUT BY A DIFFERENT FATHER.]
HOW MANY JAMES DID PAUL MENTIONED IN HIS EPISTLES?
After scanning “James” thoroughly in the works of Paul, the result yields only the following four passages bearing that name:
1. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve: After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep. After that, he was seen of James; then of all the apostles. And last of all he was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time. (1 Cor 15:3-8)
2. Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter, and abode with him fifteen days. But other of the apostles saw I none, save James the Lord’s brother. (Gal 1:18-19)
3. And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision. (Gal 2:9)
There was no mistaking that the aforementioned Apostle James above was the Lord’s kin because by that time, the other Apostle James, the son of Zebedee was murdered long ago by King Herod. Here’s Evangelist Luke’s account of the incident:
“About that time King Herod laid hands upon some members of the church to harm them. He had James, the brother of John, killed by the sword, and when he saw that this was pleasing to the Jews he proceeded to arrest Peter also. (It was (the) feast of Unleavened Bread.) He had him taken into custody and put in prison under the guard of four squads of four soldiers each. He intended to bring him before the people after Passover.” (Act 12:1-4)
While in prison, the early Church was fervently praying to God on Peter’s behalf. Then the angel of the Lord came to rescue him and helped him made good his escape and he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John who is called Mark, where there were many people gathered in prayer, and where he knocked on the gateway door. Luke’s account continued:
“But Peter continued to knock, and when they opened it, they saw him and were astounded. He motioned to them with his hand to be quiet and explained (to them) how the Lord had led him out of the prison, and said, “Report this to James and the brothers.” Then he left and went to another place.” (Act 12:16-17)
Note that James the Lord’s kin was given prominence not only by Peter but also by Paul in all his epistles, because he was the first Bishop of the Church in Jerusalem.
4. For before that certain came from James, he did eat with the Gentiles: but when they were come, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing them which were of the circumcision. (Gal 2:12)
THEREFORE, TO THE QUESTION: HOW MANY JAMES DID PAUL MENTIONED IN HIS EPISTLES?
ANSWER: ONLY ONE JAMES – THE LORD’S KIN AND APOSTLE, AND THE BISHOP OF THE CHURCH IN JERUSALEM.
WHY DID PAUL CALL THE APOSTLE JAMES, THE LORD’S BROTHER?
Answer:
First, as it was the style in the Lord’s time on earth, as well as in the more ancient Hebraic times, the Israelite custom of calling kins or relatives as brothers was still generic and prevalent. Paul came to know that James was a son of the sister of Jesus’ mother Mary, thus, he perceived that the Lord and the Apostle James were relatives:
“Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene.” (Jn 19:25)
“Among which was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee’s children.” (Mt 27:56)
Note that Mary the wife of Cleophas and Mary the mother of James and Joses is one and the same person as explained later below.
Second, Paul call the Apostle James the Lord’s brother to distinguish him from the other Apostle James, the son of Zebedee (cf Mt 4:21). On his part, the Evangelist Mark call the Apostle James the less or James the younger to distinguish him from the other Apostle James the greater, the son of Zebedee, as in this verse:
“There were also women looking on afar off: among whom was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the less and of Joses, and Salome (Mk 15:40).”
WHO WAS THE FATHER OF THE APOSTLE JAMES?
The three authors of the Synoptic Gospels were unanimous in identifying the Apostle as JAMES THE SON OF ALPHAEUS:
Now the names of the twelve apostles are these; The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; JAMES THE SON OF ALPHAEUS, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him. (Mt 10:2-4)
And he ordained twelve, that they should be with him, and that he might send them forth to preach, And to have power to heal sicknesses, and to cast out devils: And Simon he surnamed Peter; And James the son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James; and he surnamed them Boanerges, which is, The sons of thunder: And Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and JAMES THE SON OF ALPHAEUS, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Canaanite, And Judas Iscariot, which also betrayed him: and they went into an house. (Mk 3:14-19)
And when it was day, he called unto him his disciples: and of them he chose twelve, whom also he named apostles; Simon, (whom he also named Peter,) and Andrew his brother, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew, Matthew and Thomas, JAMES THE SON OF ALPHAEUS, and Simon called Zelotes, And Judas the brother of James, and Judas Iscariot, which also was the traitor. (Lk 6:13-16)
And when they were come in, they went up into an upper room, where abode both Peter, and James, and John, and Andrew, Philip, and Thomas, Bartholomew, and Matthew, JAMES THE SON OF ALPHAEUS, and Simon Zelotes, and Judas the brother of James. (Act 1:13)
Note that in the passages above, the two Apostles named James were mentioned with their respective fathers. The older James and his brother John were the sons of Zebedee, while the younger James and his brother Jude (aka Judas aka Thaddeus) were the sons of Alphaeus.
NOTICEABLY, THERE WAS NEVER A MENTION OF AN APOSTLE JAMES THE SON OF JOSEPH!
WHO WAS THE MOTHER OF THE APOSTLE JAMES?
Again, the three authors of the Synoptic Gospels were unanimous in identifying the mother of the Apostle James as MARY THE MOTHER OF JAMES:
“Among which was Mary Magdalene, and MARY THE MOTHER OF JAMES and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee’s children.” (Mt 27:56)
“There were also women looking on afar off: among whom was Mary Magdalene, and MARY THE MOTHER OF JAMES THE LESS and of Joses, and Salome.” (Mk 15:40)
“And when the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and MARY THE MOTHER OF JAMES, and Salome, had bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint him.” (Mk 16:1)
“It was Mary Magdalene, and Joanna, and MARY THE MOTHER OF JAMES, and other women that were with them, which told these things unto the apostles.” (Lk 24:10)
The MARY THE MOTHER OF JAMES was not the MARY THE MOTHER OF JESUS. If MARY THE MOTHER OF JAMES was one and the same MARY THE MOTHER OF JESUS, then why was she identified as the MOTHER OF JAMES instead of positively identifying her as the MOTHER OF JESUS? Jesus, not James, was the principal character in the unfolding passion of the crucifixion and resurrection. Thus, if the three authors wanted to identify Mary as the mother of the principal character which is Jesus, then by all means they should have had identified her as MARY THE MOTHER OF JESUS. But since the SUBJECT MARY WAS NOT THE MOTHER OF JESUS, then the three authors were overtly justified in identifying her as MARY THE MOTHER OF JAMES.
Another obvious proof that MARY THE MOTHER OF JAMES was not MARY THE MOTHER OF JESUS was that her name was never given prominence by the three authors. MARY THE MOTHER OF JAMES was always mentioned after MARY MAGDALENE. The best and most appropriate way of identifying MARY THE MOTHER OF JESUS was exemplified by John where she was positively described as Jesus’ mother and was given precedence over her companions:
“Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene.” (Jn 19:25)
WHO WAS THE OTHER MARY?
In order to distinguish MARY THE MOTHER OF JAMES from MARY THE MOTHER OF JESUS, Matthew aptly called the former as THE OTHER MARY. Matthew mentioned in his Gospel, MARY THE MOTHER OF JAMES aka THE OTHER MARY in three verses only:
Among which was Mary Magdalene, and MARY THE MOTHER OF JAMES and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee’s children. (Mt 27:56)
And there was Mary Magdalene, and THE OTHER MARY, sitting over against the sepulchre. (Mt 27:61)
In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and THE OTHER MARY to see the sepulchre. (Mt 28:1)
It would be highly unbecoming of the Apostle Matthew had he addressed THE MOTHER OF JESUS as THE MOTHER OF JAMES or THE OTHER MARY!
WHO WERE THE PARENTS OF THE APOSTLE JAMES?
As discussed above, the father of James was Alphaeus and his mother was Mary aka the other Mary.
Alphaeus was an Aramaic name and its Greek transliteration was Cleophas (or Clopas). Alphaeus was a brother of Joseph, the Lord’s putative father (cf Lk 3:23).
Of all the four Evangelists, only John used the Greek name Cleophas (or Clopas) of Alphaeus.
According to John’s account below, the sister of Jesus’ mother Mary, also named Mary, was the wife of Cleophas or Clopas, which is Alphaeus in Aramaic (the native dialect of Jesus and His Apostles):
Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene. (Jn 19:25)
It was highly improbable that the two Mary’s were uterine sisters as their identical names will only be a cause of confusion to everybody. Remember that Alphaeus (Cleophas) and Joseph were brothers, ergo, their respective wives, both named Mary, were sister-in-law or for short: sister.
Therefore, if the Apostle James was the son of the sister (or sister-in-law) of Jesus’ mother Mary, then the Lord Jesus and His Apostle James were indeed relatives in the eyes of the Jewish law.
DID THE APOSTLE JAMES EVER CALL JESUS HIS BROTHER?
If James was truly the uterine brother of the Lord Jesus Christ, he would have easily bolstered his credibility among the Jews and the Gentiles had he identified himself as the Lord’s brother. But since lies and deceptions were a no-no among the disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ, James introduced himself in his own book as to who he really was to the Lord, in this wise:
“James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad, greeting.” (Jas 1:1)
ONE MORE THING: BEFORE BREATHING HIS LAST, THE DYING JESUS DID NOT BEQUEATH THE CARE OF HIS WIDOWED MOTHER TO HIS KIN, THE APOSTLE JAMES, BECAUSE HE WAS NOT MARY’S CHILD! INSTEAD, HE ENDORSED HIS BELOVED MOTHER UNDER THE CARE OF THE OTHER APOSTLE WHOM HE LOVED:
“When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son! Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother! And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home.” (Jn 19:26-27)
The Blessed Virgin Mary was truly a widow as Joseph, her husband, was never heard of when her only Son Jesus was past twelve years old, thus, the following Rules for Widows was completely applicable to her:
“Honor widows who are truly widows. But if a widow has children or grandchildren, let these first learn to perform their religious duty to their own family and to make recompense to their parents, for this is pleasing to God. The real widow, who is all alone, has set her hope on God and continues in supplications and prayers night and day.” (1 Tim 5:3-5, NAB )
If James was the uterine brother of Jesus, and the Latter did not endorsed their widowed mother to the former, then the Lord Jesus Christ was guilty of violating their Rules for Widows above and their ancient Hebraic law that says:
‘Cursed be he who violates the rights of the alien, the orphan or the widow!’ And all the people shall answer, ‘Amen!’ (Dt 27:19)
THEREFORE, THE APOSTLE JAMES WAS TRULY THE LORD’S KIN AND NOT THE LORD’S UTERINE BROTHER!
Source: splendorofthechurch.com.ph
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