Saint Simon and Saint Jude, apostles (1st century)

The four lists of the New Testament

In the four lists, the two names are side by side, in the final group of the Twelve. This is a textual fact, which Christian reading has always read as a sign: these two apostles are linked by Scripture itself, even before the tradition that will associate them.^[6][7][8]

The order of the lists varies from one evangelist to another, but the pairing of Simon and Jude is stable. The New Testament canon moreover preserves a letter attributed to Jude Thaddaeus, which places them both at the heart of the faith of the early Churches.^[9]

Simon: the Canaanite or the Zealot

Simon's epithet varies in the four lists: Matthew and Mark call him “Canaanite”, Luke defines him as “Zealot”. Pope Benedict XVI, in the catechesis of 11 October 2006, gives the received explanation:

“In reality, the two names mean the same thing: in the Jewish language, the verb qana' means: ‘to be jealous, impassioned’ and can be used both of God, as jealous of the people he has chosen (cf. Ex 20, 5), and of men who burn with zeal in serving the one God with total dedication, such as Elijah (cf. 1 Kgs 19, 10).” Benedict XVI, general audience of 11 October 2006^[10]

Thus “Canaanite” is not a geographical origin (the land of Canaan): it is the Aramaic rendering of “the zealous one”. Received tradition sees in him a man of ardent zeal for God, for his people and for the Law. It is possible, Benedict XVI adds, that this Simon did not belong precisely to the nationalist movement of the Zealots in the political sense of the term, but that he was at least characterized by this zeal.^[11]

The exact identification of the surname is discussed by modern exegesis. For the historian Simon Claude Mimouni, the designation “Simon the Zealot” does not refer to the movement of the Zealots, which would not have existed in the time of Jesus, but simply means “Simon the zealous one”.^[12] The apologist and the historian are not compelled to settle the question here: the lesson the Church receives from the lists is the same in either case, and it is the one Benedict XVI draws from it.

Jude: Thaddaeus, son of James

Jude is called by tradition “Thaddaeus”, a joining of two different names. Matthew and Mark call him “Thaddaeus” (Mt 10, 3; Mk 3, 18); Luke calls him “Jude son of James” (Lk 6, 16; Acts 1, 13). The surname of Thaddaeus is of uncertain origin: it is explained either as coming from the Aramaic taddà, “breast”, thus meaning “magnanimous”, or as the abbreviation of a Greek name such as Theodore or Theodote.^[13][14]

The name of Jude (or Judas) became established in the form “Jude” to avoid confusion with Judas Iscariot, whose name often follows that of Thaddaeus in the lists. The Gospel of John itself takes care to write “Judas, not Iscariot” (Jn 14, 22). Jerome of Stridon called him the trinomus, the one who bears three names.^[15]

The Latin tradition of the West often distinguishes Jude son of James (Lk 6, 16) from the “brother of the Lord” named Jude in the lists of the brothers of Jesus; the tradition of the Eastern Churches readily identifies them. The question has been debated since antiquity; the New Testament gives the form “Jude son of James”, which the Latin liturgy has received.^[16]

Simon: a name in the lists

Apart from the apostolic lists and his surname, the canonical Gospels report no episode proper to Simon. He has neither word nor scene of his own in the four Gospel narratives. This sobriety is a fact, not a lack: the group of the Twelve is known by its leaders (Peter, James, John), and several apostles enter Gospel history only by their name.^[17]

This silence is instructive. Benedict XVI draws an ecclesial lesson from it: Simon, the man of zeal, rubs shoulders with Matthew, the tax collector, whose activity was judged impure. “It is the obvious sign that Jesus calls his disciples and collaborators from the most diverse social and religious backgrounds, without any prejudice.”^[18]

Jude: a question at the Last Supper

Only John reports a word of Jude Thaddaeus. During the Last Supper, he dares to ask the Lord a question that has become famous:

“Lord, how is it that you will manifest yourself to us, and not to the world?” Jude Thaddaeus to Jesus, according to John 14, 22^[19][20]

It is a question of great timeliness, Benedict XVI remarks: why did the Risen One not manifest himself in all his glory to his adversaries, to show that the victor is God? Why did he manifest himself only to his disciples? Jesus' answer is mysterious and profound:

“If someone loves me, he will remain faithful to my word; my Father will love him, we will come to him, we will go and dwell with him.” Jesus Christ, according to John 14, 23^[21][22]

In other words, the Risen One must be seen and perceived also with the heart, so that God can dwell in us. The Lord does not appear as a thing; he wants to enter into our life, and his manifestation presupposes an open heart. “Only thus do we see the Risen One”, the pope concludes.^[23]

This is all that the canonical Gospels say of Jude: a name, a place in the lists, a question and an answer. The apostle who questions the meaning of the manifestation of Christ receives the answer on love as the place of the encounter with God.

A canonical letter

To the name of Jude Thaddaeus is attributed one of the letters of the New Testament called “catholic”, because they are not addressed to a particular local Church but to a very wide circle of recipients. It opens thus: “to those who are called, beloved in God the Father and kept for Jesus Christ” (Jude 1).^[24]

The canonical reception of this letter is ancient and stable. It figures in the canon of the New Testament; the Decretum Gelasianum (6th century) declares it canonical and titles it “Iudae Zelotis apostoli”, “of the apostle Jude the Zealot”.^[25] The ecclesial tradition has always read it as the work of the apostle Jude Thaddaeus, and it is in this reception that liturgy and magisterium have transmitted it.

“Glory to God, who has the power to keep you from falling and to present you blameless and full of joy, to stand before his glory: to the only God, our Saviour, through our Lord Jesus Christ, glory, majesty, might and power, before all ages, now and for all ages. Amen.” Epistle of Jude, verses 24-25^[26][27]

The fight for the faith

The central concern of the writing is to warn Christians against those who take the pretext of God's grace to excuse their debauchery and to lead their brothers astray by unacceptable teachings, introducing divisions within the Church “in their dreamings” (v. 8). Jude compares them to the fallen angels and writes that they “have gone the way of Cain” (v. 11).^[28]

The vocabulary is strong, assumed, prophetic: “waterless clouds blown about by the winds; autumn trees without fruit, twice dead and uprooted; wild waves of the sea, casting up the foam of their own shame; wandering stars, for whom the deepest darkness has been reserved for ever” (vv. 12-13).^[29]

Benedict XVI draws a lesson for today from it:

“Amid all the temptations that exist, with all the currents of modern life, we must preserve the identity of our faith. Certainly, the way of indulgence and dialogue, which the Second Vatican Council has successfully undertaken, must assuredly be pursued with firm constancy. But this way of dialogue, necessary as it is, must not make us forget the duty to rethink and to emphasize always with equal force the essential and non-negotiable lines of our Christian identity.” Benedict XVI, general audience of 11 October 2006^[30]

The letter concludes with an exhortation to trust: “build yourselves up on your most holy faith. Pray in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life. Have mercy on those who are hesitant” (vv. 20-22).^[31] The author of these lines, the pope notes, lives his own faith to the full: moral integrity, joy, trust and praise.

Received tradition: together, east of the Euphrates

What the Church receives from the most ancient tradition is simple: Simon and Jude preached together and died together. Nominis sums it up in one sentence: “In the list of the apostles, they are side by side and tradition has them die together in Persia.”^[32]

Eastern Christian sources, notably Syriac ones, speak abundantly of this preaching in the Parthian sphere and to the south of Armenia, that is, beyond the Euphrates, in the Parthian Empire.^[33] Some traditions have Simon set out first towards Egypt and the Berbers (the Barbaria of ancient accounts) before he joined Jude.^[34][35] The Armenian tradition regards Jude Thaddaeus, with the apostle Bartholomew, as the founder of its Church.^[36]

These data are ancient and convergent: very many Christian sources speak of this joint mission. They belong to received tradition, transmitted by the Churches of the East, without it being possible to reconstruct the precise itinerary.

The apocryphal accounts

Alongside this tradition, the apocryphal Acts of Simon and Jude (Passio SS. Apostolorum Simonis et Judæ, Actes de Simon et Jude, Actes de Thaddée) develop detailed accounts of miracles, conversions of kings, dialogues with magicians and tortures. These texts are literary compositions of a late period, often legendary; they do not belong to the canon and cannot be cited as historical facts.^[37][38]

The very existence of these Acts attests one real thing: the joint veneration of Simon and Jude is ancient, and the Churches felt the need to tell a mission of which the canonical Scriptures say almost nothing. Critical history sees legend in it; piety has found iconographic motifs in it. One must know what one holds in each case.

Received tradition: died together

Received tradition is that of a joint martyrdom in Persia. This is what Nominis reports, and what the Latin liturgy has kept by celebrating them on the same day.^[39]

The mode of death of each is known through iconography and the martyrologies: Simon is traditionally sawed in two (sometimes crucified), Jude is killed with a club. The Catholic Church receives this tradition, as does the Orthodox Church.^[40][41]

The geographical variants

The sources diverge on the precise place of the martyrdom, which is normal for missions of the 1st century beyond the Euphrates:

Moses of Chorene himself states that he is not sure of his information. The historian therefore cannot fix the place; the ecclesial tradition, for its part, holds to the fact of the joint martyrdom, without linking the cult to a precise place.^[42][43]

What can be said with certainty

In historical honesty, here is the line of demarcation:

• What the Scriptures establish: their place among the Twelve, Simon's surname, Jude's question at the Supper, the existence of a letter attributed to Jude.
• What received tradition transmits: their joint mission east of the Euphrates, their martyrdom in Persia, their joint cult from antiquity.
• What the apocryphal accounts add: precise places, speeches, miracles, detailed tortures.
• What modern exegesis discusses: the exact meaning of “Zealot”, the identification of Jude with the “brother of the Lord”, the attribution of the letter of Jude, the etymologies of Thaddaeus.

None of these discussions removes the received core: two apostles, linked by Scripture and by tradition, dead for Christ.

A joint memory from antiquity

The Catholic Church celebrates Saint Simon and Saint Jude on 28 October. Nominis carries, for this day, both notices: “Saint Jude Thaddaeus, apostle” and “Saint Simon the Canaanite, called Simon the Zealot, apostle”.^[44]

The reasons for this joint commemoration are multiple and reinforce one another: the place side by side in the apostolic lists, the joint mission according to tradition, the martyrdom together in Persia, and the keeping of their relics together in Rome.

In the Orthodox Churches, the two apostles are celebrated separately: Simon on 10 May, Jude on 19 June, with a commemoration of all the apostles on 30 June.^[45][46] The Latin West chose to keep them united, and this is the form received by the Roman calendar.

The relics of Rome

Saint Peter's Basilica in the Vatican holds relics of the apostle Simon the Zealot, venerated with those of the apostle Jude Thaddaeus since 27 October 1605, at the central altar of the left transept, an altar that bears their name. Since 1963, this altar has also been dedicated to Saint Joseph.^[47]

Other relics are kept in the Basilica of Saint-Sernin in Toulouse. At New Athos, in Abkhazia, near the presumed site of Simon's martyrdom, a 9th-century church is dedicated to him and preserves relics.^[48] A portion of Jude's relics is venerated at the Monastery of Saint Thaddaeus, in western Azerbaijan.^[49]

The invocation of difficult causes

Saint Jude Thaddaeus has become, in popular piety, the patron of painful and difficult causes. This devotion, ancient and universal, rests on the evangelical smallness of his figure: the apostle who has only one word in the Scriptures, and who asks the question of the hidden manifestation of God, is invoked by those who are in trial and who no longer expect a dazzling answer.^[50]

Saint Simon is invoked, in popular traditions, for marriage, newlyweds and sawyers, in reference to the instrument of his martyrdom.^[51]

The iconography of Simon and Jude is one of the most stable in Christian art, precisely because they are almost always represented together.

The attributes of each

Saint Simon is traditionally represented with a saw, the instrument of his martyrdom, for having been cut in two with the saw, according to a very ancient tradition continuous in the Churches of the East. The Catholic Church receives this same tradition. He is also seen holding a book or a scroll, in reference to the Gospel proclamation.^[52]

Saint Jude Thaddaeus holds a club (sometimes a halberd or an axe), in reference to the way he was killed. He is also given the medallion with the image of Jesus, in remembrance of his question about the manifestation of Christ, as well as the palm of the martyr and sometimes a flame above his head.^[53][54]

The art that unites them

The two apostles are often in one another's company, as they are in the lists. Among the best-known works:

The miniature of the Book of hours of Simon de Varye (1455) shows the joint martyrdom, a scene dear to medieval art. Modern paintings, from Barocci to La Tour, prefer the portrait: the two apostles, one beside the other, in the peace of the faith they preached.^[55][56]

• Saint Andrew the Apostle (1st century): another of the Twelve, brother of Simon Peter, whose mission too is attested by tradition.
• Saint James the Less (about 62): apostle of Jerusalem, whom tradition has also made a “brother” of the Lord.
• Saint Philip the Apostle (1st century): the apostle who leads others to Jesus, by his word “Come and see”.
• The Acts of the Apostles: the book that tells the life of the nascent Church after Pentecost.
• The Epistle to the Hebrews: another of the great letters of the New Testament, to deepen the faith of the early Churches.