THE 12 APOSTLES

PETER

• Originally Simon the fisherman but renamed Peter the Rock by Jesus
• First to invite non-Jews into the early church
• Went to preach in Rome with John Mark who was his translator
• Was crucified upside down in Rome because of the persecution brought on by Nero

ANDREW

• He and his brother peter were Jesus's first followers
• Later preached in Greece and the Ukraine
• Reported to have been crucified in Patrae

JAMES

• "Son of Alphaeus"
• Most obscure apostle
• Present in the upper room in Jerusalem when Jesus came

JOHN

• Brother of James
• "Son of Zebedee"
• In Jesus' inner circle
• Fourth gospel, three epistles, and books of Revelation attributed to John
• Nicknamed by Jesus "sons of thunder"

PHILLIP

• From Galilee
• May have martyred in Hierapolis
• Traveled into Scythia
• Crucified, the tomb can be found in Hierapolis
• Went with Bartolomew to Asia Minor

BARTHOLOMEW

• Some believed he was the one who questioned the messiahs small town origin
• Traveled with Phillip to Asia Minor
• Escaped crucifixion
• Said that he died near Azerbaijan

THOMAS

• Nickname doubting Thomas (Jesus had to prove it was him by showing his scares)
• Became a fervent missionary
• Went to India to convert people

MATTHEW

• Originally called Levi
• Was a tax collector
• Wrote the first gospel Matthew
• Traveled to Persia and Ethiopia in the years after Jesus's death
• There's a legend that he died as a martyr in Ethiopia

JAMES

• Fisherman with his brother John
• Believed to have preached in Spain
• Beheaded in Jerusalem
• May have been the first cousin of Jesus

THADDEUS

• Also named Jude
• From the tribe of Judah
• Believed to be the first apostle to witness to a gentile king
• Supposedly converted the city of Edessa
• Legend says he is buried in modern day Iran

SIMON

• Bible calls him Simon the zealot
• Reference to political affiliation
• Missionary to Persia
• He was a martyr
• He was present in the upper room in Jerusalem when Jesus came

MATTIAS

• Replaced Judas
• Postbiblical lore says he preached in the "land of the cannibals"
• Believed he is one of the seventy disciples sent out by Jesus
• Credited by Armenian tradition as one of the apostles who evangelized Armenia