The Twelve Apostles of Christ: Names and Acts

Before you learn about who such twelve apostles are, hear about their names and deeds, it is worthwhile to understand the definition of the word "apostle".

Who were the twelve disciples, apostles of Jesus Christ?

Many contemporaries do not know that the word "apostle" means "sent." At the time when Jesus Christ walked on our sinful earth, twelve people from ordinary people were called His disciples. As eyewitnesses said, "twelve disciples followed Him and learned from Him." At the end of two days after his death, through the crucifixion, He sent disciples to become His witnesses. That's when they were called the twelve apostles. For reference: during the time of Jesus in society, the term "disciple" and "apostle" were similar and interchangeable.

Twelve Apostles: names

The Twelve Apostles are the closest disciples of Jesus Christ, chosen by Him for the blessing of the imminent Kingdom of God and for the dispensation of the Church. The names of the apostles should be known to all.

Andrew was nicknamed in the legend of the First-named, since he was previously a disciple of John the Baptist and was called by the Lord a little earlier than his brother in the Jordan. Andrew was the brother of Simon Peter.

Simon - son of Ionin, nicknamed Peter. The name Peter gave to Simon Jesus after confessing His Son of God in the city of Caesarea Philippi.

Simon the Canalite, or, as it is also called, the Zealot, a native of the Calean city of Galilee, according to legend, was the bridegroom at his wedding, on which Jesus was with his Mother, where, as everyone knew, He drew water into wine.

Jacob is the son of Zaveda and Salome, the brother of John, who, in turn, was an evangelist. The first martyr among the apostles, Herod himself betrayed his death through decapitation.

Jacob is the youngest son of Alfeyev. The Lord himself decided that Jacob and the twelve apostles would be together. After the resurrection of Christ spread faith first in Judea, then compiled a company in the wanderings of St. Apostle Andrew the First-Called in Edessa. He also preached the Gospel in Gaza, Elefaropol and other cities of the Mediterranean, after which he went to Egypt.

John is the brother of James the elder, nicknamed the Theologian, part-time author of the fourth Gospel and the last chapter of the Bible telling about the end of the world - the Apocalypse.

Philip is the apostle who brought to Nathanael 9 Bartholomew, according to one of the twelve, "one city with Andrew and Peter."

Bartholomew is an apostle about whom Jesus Christ very accurately put it, calling him a true Israelite, in which there is no guile.

Thomas - was famous for the fact that the Lord Himself proved to him his resurrection, offering to put his hand on Himself to the wounds.

Matthew - also known under the Hebrew name Levi. He is the direct author of the Gospel. Although the twelve apostles are also related to the writing of the Gospel, Matthew is considered the main author.

Judah is the brother of Jacob, the younger one, who betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver, committed suicide by hanging himself on a tree.

Paul and the Seventy Apostles

Also, the apostles include Paul, miraculously called by the Lord himself. In addition to all the above-mentioned apostles and Paul, they speak of the 70 disciples of the Lord. They were not permanent witnesses of the miracles of the Son of God, nothing is written about them in the Gospel, but their names sound on the day of the Seventy Apostles. Their mention is only symbolic, the people to whom the names belonged were only the first followers of the teachings of Christ, and also the first to bear the missionary burden by spreading His teachings.

Who wrote the Gospel

The Holy Apostles Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are known to worldly people as evangelists. These are the followers of Christ who wrote the Holy Scriptures. The Apostles Peter and Paul are called first-rate apostles. There is such practice as equating or enlisting the apostles of saints who spread and preached Christianity among pagans, such as Prince Vladimir, Emperor Constantine and his mother Elena.

Who were the apostles?

The Twelve Apostles of Christ, or simply His disciples, were ordinary people, among whom were people of completely different professions, and completely different from each other, well, except that they were all spiritually rich - this feature united them. The gospel very clearly shows the doubts of these twelve young men, their struggle with themselves, their thoughts. And they can be understood, because they actually had to look at the world from a completely different angle. But after the twelve apostles witnessed the ascension of Jesus to heaven after the crucifixion, their doubts immediately departed. The Holy Spirit, the realization of the existence of divine power, made of them pious, spirit-minded people. Collecting the will into a fist, the apostles were ready to anger the whole world.

The Apostle Thomas

The apostle Thomas is worthy of a separate mention. In the cozy town of Panzada, one of the fishermen, the future apostle, heard of Jesus, a man who tells everyone about the One God. Of course, curiosity and interest are forced to come and look at Him. After listening to His preaching, he is so excited that he begins to follow Him and His disciples. Jesus Christ, seeing such zeal, suggests the young man to follow him. So a simple fisherman became an apostle.

This young man, a young fisherman, was called Judas, he was later given a new name - Thomas. True, this is one of the versions. To whom Thomas was exactly like - it is reliably unknown, but they say that the very Son of God.

Character of Thomas

The Apostle Thomas was a determined guy, bold and impetuous. One day Jesus told Thomas that he was going to where the Romans would grab him. The apostles, naturally, began to dissuade their teacher, nobody wanted Jesus to be seized, the apostles understood that the venture was very risky. Then Thomas said to everyone: "Let's go and die with him." Something does not particularly apply to him the famous phrase "Thomas the unbeliever", as we see, he was still a kind of "believer".

Interesting facts about Thomas

The apostle Thomas refused to touch the wounds of Jesus Christ and put his fingers to them when He wanted to prove that he had risen from the dead. In horror from his insolence Thomas only exaggerates in astonishment: "My Lord is my God." It is worth noting that this is the only place in the Gospel, where Jesus is called God.

Lot

After the resurrection of Jesus, who atoned for all the earthly sins of mankind, the apostles decided to cast lots, which was to determine who and what land would preach and bring people love and faith in the Lord and the Kingdom of God. Thomas got to India. Many of the dangers and misadventures fell on Thomas's part in this country, many ancient legends remained about his adventures, which now can neither be refuted nor confirmed. The Church decided to give Foma a special day - the second Sunday after the celebration of the ascension of Christ. Now it's Thomas's memory day.

The Holy Apostle Andrew the First-Called

After John the Baptist began to preach on the banks of the Jordan, Andrew followed John with the prophet, hoping in his faith and spiritual strength to find answers to the unsettling minds of their questions. Many even believed that the Baptist John himself is the Messiah, but he patiently, over and over again refuted such assumptions of his flock. John said that he was sent to earth only to prepare the way for him. And when Jesus came to be baptized to John, the prophet said, "Behold the Lamb of God, who takes upon himself the sins of the world." Hearing these words, Andrew and John followed Jesus. The same day the future apostle Andrew the First-Called approached his brother Peter and said: "We found the Messiah."

Day of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul from Western Christians

Of particular honor, these two apostles were honored by the fact that after the ascension of Christ, His faith was preached throughout the world.
The celebration of the day of the holy apostles Peter and Paul was first legalized in Rome, the bishops of which, according to the Western Church, are considered the successors of Peter, and were then extended to other Christian countries.
Peter was engaged in fishing (as well as Thomas) and was called to the apostles with his brother. He received a mission, the most important in his life - he became the "founder" of the church of Christ, and only then he will be handed the keys to the heavenly Kingdom. Peter was the first apostle to whom Christ appeared after the resurrection. Like most of the brethren, the apostles Peter and Paul, after the ascension of Jesus, began preaching.

The result

All the deeds committed by Jesus were not accidental, and the choice of all these young talented young men is also not accidental, even the betrayal of Judah was a planned and integral part of redemption through the death of Christ. The faith of the apostles in the Messiah was sincere and unshakable, although many were tormented by doubt and fear. As a result, it is only through their work that we have the opportunity to learn about the prophet, the Son of God, Jesus Christ.