Directors . Only two of their deaths are recorded in the Bible (James and Judas Iscariot). With Jim Caviezel, James Faulkner, Olivier Martinez, Joanne Whalley. And maybe not. First we . Another that he was stoned by Jews in Jerusalem and then beheaded. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. Many wonder how the 12 apostles died, but The New Testament tells of the fate of only two of the apostles: Judas, who betrayed Jesus and then went out and hanged himself, and James, the son of Zebedee, who was executed by Herod about 44 AD (Acts 12:2). Ever wonder how Christianity was spread to the nations? But neither will this utterance be found to be spoken universally; for all the saved have confessed with the confession made by the voice, and departed. He was probably most active in the area east of Syria. They are barely mentioned in passing in the New Testament. Use the links below to skip ahead: Lets begin with a quick look at all the ways the apostles may have died according to Scripture, tradition, and legend. James the Greater and Thaddaeus were crucified; James the Lesser was beaten to death while praying for his assailants; Bartholomew was flayed alive and then crucified; Thomas and Matthew were speared; Matthias was stoned to death, and Simon was either crucified or sawed in two. But most people only know a handful of their. This essay will cover the issue of scoffers and the Parousia. They were all real people who lived and died in the first century AD. For the blessed Dorotheus saith that he was crucified, and saith also: Bartholomew preached to men of India, and delivered to them the gospel after Matthew in their proper tongue. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you. James, the Less, was thrown from a lofty pinnacle of the . These two men were probably technically oriented. Here are the respective missionary locations for the Apostles as found in Book 3 of the Church History of Eusebius: Meanwhile the holy apostles and disciples of our Saviour were dispersed throughout the world. It is said that he preached while hanging on the cross. The circumstances of the deaths of the other apostles are related through church tradition, so we should not put too much weight on any of the other accounts. Considered a documentary, this 2-hour History Channel special recreates the lives of the Twelve Apostles from their first meeting of Jesus until after His ascension, to Saint John's martyrdom. It is amazing that we know so little about the men who turned the world upside down. Jesus had prepared them and God used them in a powerful way to alert the world to His good news that Jesus Christ had come into the world to save sinners. It appears from John 1:35-51 that Philip and Bartholomew believed in Jesus Christ as their Messiah on the same day that Peter, Andrew, James, and John did. All the other early records of Matthews death claim he was martyred, but they disagree about how and where it happened. The young Saul, who would soon become Paul in his famous conversion on the road to Damascus, saw Stephens death while keeping an eye on the cloaks of those who stoned him. Polycrates of Ephesus wrote in a letter to Pope Victor, I speak of Philip, one of the twelve apostles, who is laid to rest at Hierapolis. Syrian Christian tradition specifies Thomas was martyred in Mylapore on July 3, 72 AD, noting that he was killed with a spear. Simon, also known as Peter, was one of the most prominent disciples of Jesus Christ, and one of the most important leaders of the early Christian church (Catholic tradition even claims he was the first pope), so it shouldnt come as a surprise that he suffered a fate similar to Jesus. These 12 men were unlike ordinary disciples since they did not just follow Jesus from one location to another. Tradition says that Peter died in A.D. 64-68 during Neros persecution of the Christians. Then what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled: They took the thirty pieces of silver, the price set on him by the people of Israel, and they used them to buy the potters field, as the Lord commanded me. Matthew 27:610. . The Apostles inner circle is comprised of Peter, James the Elder, and John. Jude was killed by arrows when he refused to deny his faith in Christ. But there are other records of his death, too. These were known as disciples, and there were either 70 or 72 of them, depending on whose version of the book you believe. One record says he died of natural causes. Ellwood Keiser, C.S.P. Ancient tradition says that Thomas died near Madras, India in A.D. 70. He was the first martyr from among the twelve apostles. Reza Aslan wrote in the Washington Post, explaining why the notion that Jesus had 12 disciples was a hoax. The Apostle's inner circle is comprised of Peter, James the Elder, and John. King Herod had James "put to death with the sword," likely a reference to beheading. Explores beyond the Bible, building new biographies of the Apostles from 2,000 years of history strewn across the globe. Therefore, we must depend upon historical information for the other apostles in order to answer the question, How did the Twelve Apostles die? The following chart provides a list of the apostles as presented in three of the gospels and the book of Acts. JUDE - The Apostle was also known as Thaddeus. In this instance of Paul, he claimed to be an apostle after seeing the Lord and receiving a spiritual commission from him. Paul, Apostle of Christ: Directed by Andrew Hyatt. . Jesus asked them to follow Him three times. Simon the Cananaean was also called Simon the Zealot. Pretty gross, right? They saw several of Jesus miracles. Following Jesus crucifixion, John was busy converting people to Jerusalem. In the fifth century, Moses of Chorene wrote that Simon the Zealot was martyred in the Kingdom of Iberia. He was killed with a spear. But biblical accounts of their lives stop there. Foxes Book of Martyrs claims that in India, He was at length cruelly beaten and then crucified by the impatient idolaters.. Another tradition claims he was beaten unconscious and drowned in the ocean. But that still leaves us with the question of who bought the fieldJudas, or the chief priests? While hanging there, Philip preached, and the crowd was moved to release them. . Tradition says that James was crucified in Lower Egypt and then sawed in pieces (A.D. 62). Not only the 14 apostles were called to become the apostles of Christ but we are called to discipleship in the course of our earthly life to help spread the gospel to this present generation. And they prayed and said, You, Lord, who know the hearts of all, show which one of these two you have chosen to take the place in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas turned aside to go to his own place. And they cast lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthias, and he was numbered with the eleven apostles. And when it was day, he summoned his disciples to him, and he picked twelve. We know very little about the third group of four apostles. Barnabas, Pauls traveling companion, and Saint Luke, the author of one of the Gospels, have also been given the title Apostle. Matthew suffered martyrdom by being slain with a sword at a distant city of Ethiopia. James, the Greater, was beheaded at Jerusalem. Although there is little evidence to support the claim, some individuals think that James the Elder visited Spain, St. Thomas visited India, Saint Matthew visited Ethiopia, and Saint Bartholomew visited Armenia. John, the last of the Twelve, most likely died peacefully, perhaps at Ephesus about the year 100. All rights reserved. After the death of the apostles, we do not find as significant missionary figures of the stature of Paul. When Mary died, John allegedly went to Ephesus, where he wrote his three epistles. Peter was crucified at Rome with his head downward. The Twelve Apostles were Jesus followers who were sent forth after Christs crucifixion to proclaim the news of the new religion. One famous apostle, John, the author of the fourth Gospel, the Book of John, is known to be the only apostle to die of old age. They suffered greatly for their faith and, in most cases, met violent deaths because of their bold witness and faith in Christ. The arrival of the Holy Spirit at a meeting of the disciples after Jesus death and resurrection is described in the Acts of the Apostles: Suddenly there came from heaven a sound as if it were a violent wind and there appeared to them tongues as of fire, which separated and came to rest on the head of each of them.. It also deals with the relationships between between the Twelve and Saints Mary Magdalene and Paul of Tarsus. Peters brother Andrew allegedly suffered a similar death, but the origin of this tradition isnt as reliable. The Bibles Book of Acts recounts the Apostle Andrews presence at Pentecost, and Peter as the leader of the nascent Christian faith. We explore the apostles in greater detail in Who Were the 12 Apostles? The apostles are grouped by fours. In other words, they were the primary missionaries of the Jesus movement. He went to the "land of the man-eaters" in what is now the Soviet Union. Matthias is the most obscure apostle, so it shouldnt be a surprise that we cant be very sure what he did or how he died. Disciple whom Jesus loved (John 19:26; 20:2; 21:7, 20). The titles apostle and apostolic were eventually given to others who disseminated the gospel. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. Matthew was a tax collector or a "publican." He has forsaken his career to follow Jesus Christ, and became popularly known as the writer of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. Clement of Rome, an early church father who personally knew the apostles, wrote in his famous letter known as 1 Clement, Let us take the noble examples of our own generation. This is the complete story of Paul the Apostle to the Gentiles. He was crucified upside down on a cross. According to tradition, 11 of the Twelve Apostles were martyred. All content falls under fair use: any copying of copyrighted material is done for a limited, educational and transformative purpose, such as to comment upon, criticize, or parody a copyrighted work. Basically, we dont know how Philip died. The second time occurred when they were fishing (Mark 1:14-20) and the third time occurred after another time of fishing (Luke 5:1-11). The apostles were not the kind of group you might have expected Jesus to send forth on his mission to reach the world. We will now examine the historical evidence of how these men died. The other 11 original disciples who became Apostles were: Judas Iscariot, the original 12th, committed himself after his treachery during the Last Supper. Traditionally, each apostle has been portrayed in art holding or wearing an icon associated with their death (Bartholomews is pretty creepy by the way). Tradition has him preaching as far east as India, where the ancient Marthoma Christians revere him as their founder. What do we need to say concerning Paul, who preached the Gospel of Christ from Jerusalem to Illyricum, and afterwards suffered martyrdom in Rome under Nero? His death is the second one that is recorded in the Bible. The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes. Does the Bible Mention What to Give Up for Lent? I come to you, therefore, confident and joyful, so that you too may receive me exultant as a disciple of the One who was hung upon you. Jeremiah 9:23-24. After choosing the twelve, the apostle's creed is given. But their dedication to a prophetic Jewish preacher in the backwaters of the Roman Empire transformed them into revolutionaries and, in the process, changed the world itself in ways that would reverberate across time for two thousand years. Christian Holiday Timeline and Dates. He was the first martyr from among the twelve apostles. Where did the Apostles die? This video will inform you how the apostles died, from Judas Iscariot to Paul. The Twelve Apostles (Full Documentary) 89,076 views Sep 5, 2017 776 Dislike Share deni rene 1.41K subscribers THE 12 APOSTLES The word disciple " refers to a "learner" or "follower" The word. It is believed that he ministered together with Thaddaeus. There are reports that James the Younger was stoned to death, reportedly for evangelizing among Jews, and that Bartholomew was tortured and crucified while on a missionary tour in India. . It should be noted that James and John had the same father, Zebedee (Matthew 10:2) and Peter and Andrew were brothers (Matthew 10:2). Thaddaeus was also called Lebbaeus and was known as Judas, the son of James. Grant. This is considered the founding day of the Christian church. Of course, we know where Paul went (as is recorded up to the end of the book of The Acts of the Apostles). Thomas, sometimes known as Doubting Thomas, was one of the Twelve Apostles. 15 Bible Verses Every Christian Should Know By Heart HERE, California - Do Not Sell My Personal Information. 1) Peter (originally known as Simon and Simon Peter); 3) James the Elder (the disciple that Jesus loved); 8) James the Less (or James the Younger, possibly Jesuss brother); The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.