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Bartholomew the Apostle

Bartholomew[a] was one of the twelve apostles of Jesus according to the New Testament. Most scholars today identify Bartholomew as Nathanael or Nathaniel,[6] who appears in the Gospel of John (1:45–51; cf. 21:2).[7][8][9]


Bartholomew the Apostle
St Bartholomew by Rubens, c. 1611
Apostle and Martyr
Born1st century AD
Cana, Galilee, Roman Empire
Diedc. 69/71 AD
Albanopolis, Kingdom of Armenia[1][2][3][4]
Venerated inAll Christian denominations which venerate saints
Major shrine
Feast
Attributes
Patronage
Bartholomew the Apostle, detail of the mosaic in the Basilica of San Vitale, Ravenna, 6th century

New Testament references edit

The name Bartholomew (Greek: Βαρθολομαῖος, transliterated "Bartholomaios") comes from the Imperial Aramaic: בר-תולמי bar-Tolmay "son of Talmai"[10] or "son of the furrows".[10] Bartholomew is listed in the New Testament among the Twelve Apostles of Jesus in the three Synoptic Gospels: Matthew,[11] Mark,[12] and Luke,[13] and in Acts of the Apostles.[14]

Tradition edit

Eusebius of Caesarea's Ecclesiastical History (5:10) states that after the Ascension, Bartholomew went on a missionary tour to India, where he left behind a copy of the Gospel of Matthew. Tradition narrates that he served as a missionary in Mesopotamia and Parthia, as well as Lycaonia and Ethiopia in other accounts.[15] Popular traditions say that Bartholomew preached the Gospel in India and then went to Greater Armenia.[10]

Mission to India edit

Two ancient testimonies exist about the mission of Saint Bartholomew in India. These are by Eusebius of Caesarea (early 4th century) and by Saint Jerome (late 4th century). Both of these refer to this tradition while speaking of the reported visit of Saint Pantaenus to India in the 2nd century.[16] The studies of Fr A.C. Perumalil SJ and Moraes hold that the Bombay region on the Konkan coast, a region which may have been known as the ancient city Kalyan, was the field of Saint Bartholomew's missionary activities. Previously the consensus among scholars was at least skeptical about an apostolate of Saint Bartholomew in India. Stallings (1703), Neander (1853), Hunter (1886), Rae (1892), Zaleski (1915) supported it, while scholars such as Sollerius (1669), Carpentier (1822), Harnack (1903), Medlycott (1905), Mingana (1926), Thurston (1933), Attwater (1935), etc. do not. The main argument is that the India that Eusebius and Jerome refer to should be identified as Ethiopia or Arabia Felix.[16]

In Armenia edit

 
Saint Bartholomew Monastery at the site of the Apostle's martyrdom in historical Armenia, now ruinous

Along with his fellow apostle Jude "Thaddeus", Bartholomew is reputed to have brought Christianity to Armenia in the 1st century. Thus, both saints are considered the patron saints of the Armenian Apostolic Church. According to these traditions, Bartholomew is the second Catholicos-Patriarch of the Armenian Apostolic Church.[17]

Christian tradition offers three accounts of Bartholomew's death: "One speaks of his being kidnapped, beaten unconscious, and cast into the sea to drown. Another account states that he was crucified upside down, and another says that he was skinned alive and beheaded in Albac or Albanopolis, near Baku, Azerbaijan[18] or Başkale, Turkey."[19]

In the Hellenic tradition, Bartholomew was executed in Albanopolis in Armenia, where he was martyred for having converted Polymius, the local king, to Christianity. Enraged by the monarch's conversion, and fearing a Roman backlash, King Polymius's brother, Prince Astyages, ordered Bartholomew's torture and execution. However, this version of the story appears ahistorical, as there are no records of any Armenian king of the Arsacid dynasty of Armenia with the name "Polymius". Other accounts of his martyrdom name the king as either Agrippa (identified with Tigranes VI), or Sanatruk, king of Armenia.[20]

The 13th-century Saint Bartholomew Monastery was a prominent Armenian monastery constructed at the presumed site of Bartholomew's martyrdom in Vaspurakan, Greater Armenia (now in southeastern Turkey).[21]

In Present-Day Azerbaijan edit

 
Saint Bartholomew Church (Baku) before the destruction

Saint Bartholomew Church (Baku) was built in 1892 with donations from the local Christian population on the site where the Apostle Bartholomew was believed to have been martyred.[22] It is believed that in this area near the Maiden Tower, the apostle Bartholomew was crucified and killed by pagans around 71 AD.[23] The church continued to operate until 1936, when it was demolished as a part of the Soviet campaign against religion.

Veneration edit

The Armenian Apostolic Church honours Saint Bartholomew and Saint Thaddeus as its patron saints.

The Eastern Orthodox Church venerates Bartholomew on June 11.[24] Bartholomew is also venerated on August 25 in commemoration of the transfer of Bartholomew's relics.[25] He is also venerated as one of the twelve apostles on June 30.[26]

Hence, the Russian Orthodox Eparchy of Baku and Azerbaijan[27] honour Saint Bartholomew as the Patron Saint of Azerbaijan and regards him as the bringer of Christianity to the region of Caucasian Albania, modern-day Azerbaijan. The feast day of the Apostle is solemnly celebrated there on 24 August by the Christian laity and the Church officials alike.[28]

In the Synaxarium of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, Bartholomew's martyrdom is commemorated on the first day of the Coptic calendar (i.e., the first day of the month of Thout), which currently falls on 11 September (corresponding to 29 August in the Julian calendar).

In the current Roman General Calendar Saint Bartholomew's feast occurs on 24 August. Accordingly, the Catholic Church of Azerbaijan.[29]

Bartholomew the Apostle is remembered in the Church of England with a Festival on 24 August.[30][31]

Relics edit

 
Altar of San Bartolomeo Basilica in Benevento, containing the relics of Bartholomew

The 6th-century writer Theodorus Lector averred that in about 507, the Byzantine emperor Anastasius I Dicorus gave the body of Bartholomew to the city of Daras, in Mesopotamia, which he had recently refounded.[32] The existence of relics at Lipari, a small island off the coast of Sicily, in the part of Italy controlled from Constantinople, was explained by Gregory of Tours[33] by his body having miraculously washed up there. A large piece of his skin and many bones that were kept in the Cathedral of St. Bartholomew in Lipari, were translated to Benevento in 838, where they are still kept now in the Basilica San Bartolomeo. A portion of the relics was given in 983 by Otto II, Holy Roman Emperor, to Rome, where it is conserved at San Bartolomeo all'Isola, which was founded on the site of the temple of Asclepius, in pagan times an important Roman medical centre. This association with medicine caused Bartholomew's name to become associated in course of time with hospitals.[34] A part of Bartholomew's alleged skull was transferred to the Frankfurt Cathedral, while an arm was venerated in Canterbury Cathedral.[citation needed] In 2003, Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople brought some of the remains of St. Bartholomew to Baku as a gift to Azerbaijani Christians, and these remains are now kept in the Holy Myrrhbearers Cathedral.[35]

Saint Bartholomew has been credited with several miracles.[36]

Art and literature edit

In artistic depictions, Bartholomew is most commonly depicted holding his flayed skin and the knife with which he was skinned.[37] Of this a well known example is featured in Michelangelo's Last Judgement.

Not rarely, Bartholomew is shown draping his own skin around his body.[38] Moreover, representations of Bartholomew with a chained demon are common in Spanish painting.[38]

 
St Bartholomew Manuscript Leaf with the Martyrdom of Saint Bartholomew, from a 'Laudario', by Pacino di Bonaguida c. 1340 Florence
 
The Martyrdom of Saint Bartholomew by Jusepe de Ribera (1634)

St. Bartholomew is the most prominent flayed Christian martyr;[39] During the 16th century, images of the flaying of Bartholomew were popular and this detail came to become a virtual constant of iconography.[38] [37] An echo of concentration on these details is found in medieval heraldry regarding Bartholomew, which depicts "flaying knives with silver blades and gold handles, on a red field."[40]

Saint Bartholomew is often depicted in lavish medieval manuscripts.[41] Bearing in mind that manuscripts are in fact made from flayed and manipulated skin, they hold a strong visual and cognitive association with the saint during the medieval period.[41]

Florentine artist Pacino di Bonaguida, depicts his martyrdom in a complex and striking composition in his Laudario of Sant'Agnese, a book of Italian Hymns produced for the Compagnia di Sant'Agnese c. 1340.[39] In the five-scene, narrative-based image, three torturers flay Bartholomew's legs and arms as he is immobilised and chained to a gate. On the right, the saint wears his own skin tied around his neck while he kneels in prayer before a rock, his severed head lying on the ground.

A further depiction is that of the Flaying of St. Bartholomew in the Luttrell Psalter c. 1325–1340. There, Bartholomew is depicted lying on a surgical table, surrounded by tormentors while he is flayed with golden knives.[42]

 
Reliquary shutters with the Martyrdoms of St. Francis, St. Claire, St. Bartholomew, and St. Catherine of Alexandria by Guido da Siena

Due to the nature of his martyrdom, Bartholomew is the patron saint of tanners, plasterers, tailors, leatherworkers, bookbinders, farmers, housepainters, butchers, and glove makers.[43][38] In works of art the saint has been depicted being skinned by tanners, as in Guido da Siena's reliquary shutters with the Martyrdoms of St. Francis, St. Claire, St. Bartholomew, and St. Catherine of Alexandria.[44] Popular in Florence and other areas in Tuscany, the saint also came to be associated with salt, oil, and cheese merchants.[45]

The Martyrdom of Saint Bartholomew (1634) by Jusepe de Ribera depicts Bartholomew's final moments before being flayed alive. The viewer is meant to empathize with Bartholomew, whose body seemingly bursts through the surface of the canvas, and whose outstretched arms embrace a mystical light that illuminates his flesh. His piercing eyes, open mouth, and petitioning left hand bespeak an intense communion with the divine; yet this same hand draws our attention to the instruments of his torture, symbolically positioned in the shape of a cross. Transfixed by Bartholomew's active faith, the executioner seems to have stopped short in his actions, and his furrowed brow and partially illuminated face suggest a moment of doubt, with the possibility of conversion.[46] The representation of Bartholomew's demise in the National Gallery painting differs significantly from all other depictions by Ribera. By limiting the number of participants to the main protagonists of the story (the saint, his executioner, one of the priests who condemned him, and one of the soldiers who captured him), and presenting them half-length and filling the picture space, the artist rejected an active, movemented composition for one of intense psychological drama. The cusping along all four edges shows that the painting has not been cut down: Ribera intended the composition to be just such a tight, restricted presentation, with the figures cut off and pressed together.[47]

Although Bartholomew's death is commonly depicted in artworks of a religious nature, his story has also been used to represent anatomical depictions of the human body devoid of flesh. An example of this can be seen in Marco d'Agrate's St Bartholomew Flayed (1562) where Bartholomew is depicted wrapped in his own skin with every muscle, vein and tendon clearly visible, acting as a clear description of the muscles and structure of the human body.[48]

This idea has influenced some contemporary artists to create an artwork depicting an anatomical study of a human body is found amongst with Gunther Von Hagens's The Skin Man (2002) and Damien Hirst's Exquisite Pain (2006). Within Gunther Von Hagens's body of work called Body Worlds a figure reminiscent of Bartholomew holds up his skin. This figure is depicted in actual human tissues (made possible by Hagens's plastination process) to educate the public about the inner workings of the human body and to show the effects of healthy and unhealthy lifestyles.[49] In Exquisite Pain 2006, Damien Hirst depicts St Bartholomew with a high level of anatomical detail with his flayed skin draped over his right arm, a scalpel in one hand and a pair of scissors in the other. The inclusion of scissors was inspired by Tim Burton's film Edward Scissorhands (1990).[50]

Bartholomew plays a part in Francis Bacon's Utopian tale New Atlantis, about a mythical isolated land, Bensalem, populated by a people dedicated to reason and natural philosophy. Some twenty years after the ascension of Christ the people of Bensalem find an ark floating off their shore. The ark contains a letter as well as the books of the Old and New Testaments. The letter is from Bartholomew the Apostle and declares that an angel told him to set the ark and its contents afloat. Thus the scientists of Bensalem receive the revelation of the Word of God.[51]

Culture edit

The festival in August has been a traditional occasion for markets and fairs, such as the Bartholomew Fair which was held in Smithfield, London, from the Middle Ages,[52] and which served as the scene for Ben Jonson's 1614 homonymous comedy.

St Bartholomew's Street Fair is held in Crewkerne, Somerset, annually at the start of September.[53] The fair dates back to Saxon times and the major traders' market was recorded in the Domesday Book. St Bartholomew's Street Fair, Crewkerne is reputed to have been granted its charter in the time of Henry III (1207–1272). The earliest surviving court record was made in 1280, which can be found in the British Library.[citation needed]

In Islam edit

The Qur'anic account of the disciples of Jesus does not include their names, numbers, or any detailed accounts of their lives. Muslim exegesis, however, more or less agrees with the New Testament list and holds that the disciples included Peter, Philip, Thomas, Bartholomew, Matthew, Andrew, James, Jude, James the Less, John and Simon the Zealot.[54]

See also edit

References edit

Notes edit

  1. ^ Aramaic: ܒܪ ܬܘܠܡܝ; Ancient Greek: Βαρθολομαῖος, romanizedBartholomaîos; Latin: Bartholomaeus; Armenian: Բարթողիմէոս; Coptic: ⲃⲁⲣⲑⲟⲗⲟⲙⲉⲟⲥ; Hebrew: בר-תולמי, romanizedbar-Tôlmay; Arabic: بَرثُولَماوُس, romanizedBarthulmāwus

Citations edit

  1. ^ "Saint Bartholomew | Christian Apostle | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 30 November 2022.
  2. ^ Sacred Lives, Batholomew
  3. ^ Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible by David Noel Freedman, Allen C. Myers, and Astrid B. Beck ,2000,page 152: "... Bartholomew preached to the Indians and died at Albanopolis in Armenia). It was condemned in the Gelasian decree, referred ..."
  4. ^ The Untold Story of the New Testament Church: An Extraordinary Guide to Understanding the New Testament by Frank Viola,page 170: "... one of the Twelve, is beaten and crucified in Albanopolis, Armenia. ..."
  5. ^ Curtin, D. P. (July 2015). Jacobite Arab Synaxarium- Volume I. Dalcassian Publishing Company. ISBN 9781088061237.
  6. ^ Green, McKnight & Marshall 1992, p. 180.
  7. ^ What Do We Know about Nathanael – the Disciple without Deceit? - Bible Study Tools
  8. ^ Meet Nathanael in the Bible, the 'True Israelite' - Learn Religions
  9. ^ Raymond F. Collins, "Nathanael 3," in The Anchor Bible Dictionary, vol. 4 (New York: Doubleday), p. 1031.
  10. ^ a b c Butler & Burns 1998, p. 232.
  11. ^ 10:1–4
  12. ^ 3:13–19
  13. ^ 6:12–16
  14. ^ 1:13
  15. ^ Encyclopædia Britannica, Micropædia. vol. 1, p. 924. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 1998. ISBN 0-85229-633-9.
  16. ^ a b "Mission of Saint Bartholomew, the Apostle in India". Nasranis. 10 October 2014. Retrieved 24 August 2020.
  17. ^ Gilman, Ian; Klimkeit, Hans-Joachim (11 January 2013). Christians in Asia before 1500. Routledge. ISBN 9781136109782.
  18. ^ In the Life of the Apostle Bartholomew Baku is identified as Alban. Some historians assume that Baku during the existence of Caucasian Albania was called Albanopolis.
  19. ^ Teunis 2003, p. 306.
  20. ^ Curtin, D. P. (January 2014). The Martyrdom of St. Bartholomew: Greek, Arabic, and Armenian Versions. Dalcassian Publishing Company. ISBN 9798868951473.
  21. ^ "The Condition of the Armenian Historical Monuments in Turkey". raa.am. Retrieved 24 August 2020.
  22. ^ "Bakıda məzarı tapılan İsa peyğəmbərin apostolu Varfolomey". qaynarinfo.az. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  23. ^ "Проповедь Святого Апостола Варфоломея". udi.az. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  24. ^ "Apostle Bartholomew of the Twelve". Orthodox Church in America. from the original on 11 June 2023. Retrieved 21 July 2023.
  25. ^ "Return of the Relics of the Apostle Bartholomew from Anastasiopolis to Lipari". Orthodox Church in America. from the original on 21 July 2023. Retrieved 21 July 2023.
  26. ^ "Synaxis of the Holy, Glorious and All-Praised Twelve Apostles". Orthodox Church in America. from the original on 30 June 2023. Retrieved 21 July 2023.
  27. ^ "24 iyun – Bakı şəhərinin səmavi qoruyucusu Həvari Varfolomeyin Xatirə Günü". pravoslavie.az.
  28. ^ "Azərbaycanda yaşayan pravoslavlar Müqəddəs Varfolomeyi anıblar". interfax.az.
  29. ^ "24 AVQUST – MÜQƏDDƏS HƏVARİ BARTALMAYIN BAYRAMI". catholic.az.
  30. ^ "The Calendar". The Church of England. Retrieved 27 March 2021.
  31. ^ Damo-Santiago 2014.
  32. ^ Smith & Cheetham 1875, p. 179.
  33. ^ Gregory, De Gloria Martyrum, i.33.
  34. ^ Attwater & John 1995.
  35. ^ "KONSTANTİNOPOL PATRİARXI I VARFOLOMEY AZƏRBAYCANA GƏLMİŞDİR". azertag.az. 16 April 2003. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  36. ^ "Golden Legend: Life of St. Bartholomew the Apostle". www.christianiconography.info. Retrieved 21 December 2021.
  37. ^ a b Crane 2014, p. 5.
  38. ^ a b c d Giorgi 2003, p. 51.
  39. ^ a b Mittman & Sciacca 2017, pp. viii, 141.
  40. ^ Post 2018, p. 12.
  41. ^ a b Kay 2006, pp. 35–74.
  42. ^ Mittman & Sciacca 2017, pp. 42.
  43. ^ Bissell 2016.
  44. ^ Decker & Kirkland-Ives 2017, p. ii.
  45. ^ West 1996.
  46. ^ "The Martyrdom of Saint Bartholomew". nga.gov. Retrieved 24 August 2020.
  47. ^ DeGrazia & Garberson 1996, p. 410.
  48. ^ . Duomo di Milano. 29 June 2018. Archived from the original on 31 October 2018. Retrieved 30 October 2018.
  49. ^ . Body Worlds. Archived from the original on 9 June 2019. Retrieved 30 October 2018.
  50. ^ Dorkin 2003.
  51. ^ Bacon 1942.
  52. ^ Cavendish 2005.
  53. ^ "About the Fair". Crewkerne Charter Fair, Somerset – (Formerly St.Bartholomew's Street Fair). Retrieved 24 August 2020.
  54. ^ Noegel & Wheeler 2002, p. 86: Muslim exegesis identifies the disciples of Jesus as Peter, Andrew, Matthew, Thomas, Philip, John, James, Bartholomew, and Simon

Sources edit

  • Attwater, Donald; John, Catherine Rachel (1995). The Penguin Dictionary of Saints. Penguin. ISBN 978-0-14-051312-7.
  • Bacon, Francis (1942). New Atlantis. New York: W. J. Black.
  • Benedict XVI (4 October 2006). "General Audience". vatican.va. Retrieved 24 August 2020.
  • Bissell, Tom (1 March 2016). "A Most Violent Martyrdom". Lapham's Quarterly. Retrieved 24 August 2020.
  • Butler, Alban; Burns, Paul (1998). Butler's Lives of the Saints: August. A&C Black. ISBN 978-0-86012-257-9.
  • Cavendish, Richard (9 September 2005). "London's Last Bartholomew Fair". History Today. Vol. 55, no. 9.
  • Crane, Thomas Frederick (2014). Tales from Italy: When Christianity Met Italy. M&J. ISBN 979-11-951749-4-2.
  • Damo-Santiago, Corazon (28 August 2014). "Saint Bartholomew the Apostle skinned alive for spreading his faith". BusinessMirror. Retrieved 24 August 2020.
  • Decker, John R.; Kirkland-Ives, Mitzi (2017). "Death, Torture and the Broken Body in European Art, 1300–1650 ". Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-1-351-57009-1.
  • DeGrazia, Diane; Garberson, Eric (1996). Italian Paintings of the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries. Edgar Peters Bowron, Peter Lukehart, Mitchell Merling. National Gallery of Art. ISBN 978-0-89468-241-4.
  • de Voragine, Jacobus; Duffy, Eamon (2012). The Golden Legend: Readings on the Saints. Translated by William Granger Ryan. Princeton University Press. ISBN 978-1-4008-4205-6.
  • Dorkin, Molly (2003), "Sotheby's", Oxford Art Online, Oxford University Press, doi:10.1093/gao/9781884446054.article.t079852
  • Fabricius, Johann Albert (1703). Codex Apocryphus Novi Testamenti: collectus, castigatus testimoniisque, censuris & animadversionibus illustratus. sumptib. B. Schiller.
  • Fenlon, John Francis (1907). "St. Bartholomew" . In Herbermann, Charles (ed.). Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 2. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
  • Giorgi, Rosa (2003). Saints in Art. Getty Publications. ISBN 978-0-89236-717-7. OCLC 50982363.
  • Green, Joel B.; McKnight, Scot; Marshall, I. Howard (1992). Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels: A Compendium of Contemporary Biblical Scholarship. InterVarsity Press. ISBN 978-0-8308-1777-1.
  • Kay, S. (2006). "Original Skin: Flaying, Reading, and Thinking in the Legend of Saint Bartholomew and Other Works". Journal of Medieval and Early Modern Studies. 36 (1): 35–74. doi:10.1215/10829636-36-1-35. ISSN 1082-9636.
  • Lillich, Meredith Parsons (2011). The Gothic Stained Glass of Reims Cathedral. Penn State Press. ISBN 978-0-271-03777-6.
  • Meier, John P. (1991). A Marginal Jew: Companions and competitors. Doubleday. ISBN 978-0-385-46993-7.
  • Mittman, Asa Simon; Sciacca, Christine (2017). Tracy, Larissa (ed.). Flaying in the Pre-modern World: Practice and Representation. Boydell & Brewer. ISBN 978-1-84384-452-5.
  • Noegel, Scott B.; Wheeler, Brannon M. (2002). Historical Dictionary of Prophets in Islam and Judaism. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow. ISBN 978-0-8108-4305-9.
  • Post, W. Ellwood (2018). Saints, Signs, and Symbols. Papamoa Press. ISBN 978-1-78720-972-5.
  • Smith, Dwight Moody (1999). Abingdon New Testament Commentaries. Vol. 4: John. Abingdon Press. ISBN 978-0-687-05812-9.
  • Smith, William; Cheetham, Samuel (1875). A Dictionary of Christian Antiquities: A-Juv. J. Murray.
  • Spilman, Frances (2017). The Twelve: Lives and Legends of The Apostles. Lulu.com. ISBN 978-1-365-64043-8.
  • Teunis, D. A. (2003). Satan's Secret: Exposing the Master of Deception and the Father of Lies. AuthorHouse. ISBN 978-1-4107-3580-5.
  • West, Shearer (1996). The Bloomsbury Guide to Art. Bloomsbury. OCLC 246967494.

Further reading edit

  • Hanks, Patrick; Hodges, Flavia; Hardcastle, Kate (2016). A Dictionary of First Names. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-880051-4.
  • Perumalil, A. C. (1971). The Apostles in India. Jaipur: Xavier Teachers' Training Institute.

External links edit

  • The Martyrdom of the Holy and Glorious Apostle Bartholomew, attributed to Pseudo-Abdias, one of the minor Church Fathers
  • St. Bartholomew's Connections in India
  • St. Bartholomew at the Christian Iconography web site.'
  • "The Life of St. Bartholomew the Apostle" in the Caxton translation of the Golden Legend

bartholomew, apostle, bartholomew, redirects, here, other, uses, bartholomew, disambiguation, bartholomew, twelve, apostles, jesus, according, testament, most, scholars, today, identify, bartholomew, nathanael, nathaniel, appears, gospel, john, saintst, bartho. Bartholomew redirects here For other uses see Bartholomew disambiguation Bartholomew a was one of the twelve apostles of Jesus according to the New Testament Most scholars today identify Bartholomew as Nathanael or Nathaniel 6 who appears in the Gospel of John 1 45 51 cf 21 2 7 8 9 SaintBartholomew the ApostleSt Bartholomew by Rubens c 1611Apostle and MartyrBorn1st century ADCana Galilee Roman EmpireDiedc 69 71 AD Albanopolis Kingdom of Armenia 1 2 3 4 Venerated inAll Christian denominations which venerate saintsMajor shrineSaint Bartholomew Monastery in historical ArmeniaSaint Bartholomew Church in Bakurelics at Basilica of San Bartolomeo in Benevento ItalyHoly Myrrhbearers Cathedral in Baku AzerbaijanSaint Bartholomew on the Tiber Church RomeCanterbury Cathedralthe cathedrals in Frankfurt and PlzenSan Bartolomeo Cathedral in LipariFeast24 August Western Christianity 11 June with St Barnabas Eastern Christianity 25 August translation of relics with Saint Titus Eastern Christianity 29 August Syriac Orthodox 5 AttributesKnife and his flayed skinRed MartyrdomPatronageArmeniaAzerbaijanbookbindersbutchersFlorentine cheese and salt merchantsGambatesa ItalyCatbalogan SamarMagalang PampangaMalabon Metro ManilaNagcarlan LagunaSan Leonardo Nueva Ecija PhilippinesGħargħur Maltaleather workersneurological diseasesskin diseasesdermatologyplasterersshoemakerscurrierstannerstrapperstwitchingwhitenersLos Cerricos SpainBarva Costa RicaBartholomew the Apostle detail of the mosaic in the Basilica of San Vitale Ravenna 6th centuryContents 1 New Testament references 2 Tradition 2 1 Mission to India 2 2 In Armenia 2 3 In Present Day Azerbaijan 3 Veneration 4 Relics 5 Art and literature 6 Culture 7 In Islam 8 See also 9 References 9 1 Notes 9 2 Citations 9 3 Sources 9 4 Further reading 10 External linksNew Testament references editThe name Bartholomew Greek Bar8olomaῖos transliterated Bartholomaios comes from the Imperial Aramaic בר תולמי bar Tolmay son of Talmai 10 or son of the furrows 10 Bartholomew is listed in the New Testament among the Twelve Apostles of Jesus in the three Synoptic Gospels Matthew 11 Mark 12 and Luke 13 and in Acts of the Apostles 14 Tradition editEusebius of Caesarea s Ecclesiastical History 5 10 states that after the Ascension Bartholomew went on a missionary tour to India where he left behind a copy of the Gospel of Matthew Tradition narrates that he served as a missionary in Mesopotamia and Parthia as well as Lycaonia and Ethiopia in other accounts 15 Popular traditions say that Bartholomew preached the Gospel in India and then went to Greater Armenia 10 Mission to India edit Two ancient testimonies exist about the mission of Saint Bartholomew in India These are by Eusebius of Caesarea early 4th century and by Saint Jerome late 4th century Both of these refer to this tradition while speaking of the reported visit of Saint Pantaenus to India in the 2nd century 16 The studies of Fr A C Perumalil SJ and Moraes hold that the Bombay region on the Konkan coast a region which may have been known as the ancient city Kalyan was the field of Saint Bartholomew s missionary activities Previously the consensus among scholars was at least skeptical about an apostolate of Saint Bartholomew in India Stallings 1703 Neander 1853 Hunter 1886 Rae 1892 Zaleski 1915 supported it while scholars such as Sollerius 1669 Carpentier 1822 Harnack 1903 Medlycott 1905 Mingana 1926 Thurston 1933 Attwater 1935 etc do not The main argument is that the India that Eusebius and Jerome refer to should be identified as Ethiopia or Arabia Felix 16 In Armenia edit nbsp Saint Bartholomew Monastery at the site of the Apostle s martyrdom in historical Armenia now ruinousAlong with his fellow apostle Jude Thaddeus Bartholomew is reputed to have brought Christianity to Armenia in the 1st century Thus both saints are considered the patron saints of the Armenian Apostolic Church According to these traditions Bartholomew is the second Catholicos Patriarch of the Armenian Apostolic Church 17 Christian tradition offers three accounts of Bartholomew s death One speaks of his being kidnapped beaten unconscious and cast into the sea to drown Another account states that he was crucified upside down and another says that he was skinned alive and beheaded in Albac or Albanopolis near Baku Azerbaijan 18 or Baskale Turkey 19 In the Hellenic tradition Bartholomew was executed in Albanopolis in Armenia where he was martyred for having converted Polymius the local king to Christianity Enraged by the monarch s conversion and fearing a Roman backlash King Polymius s brother Prince Astyages ordered Bartholomew s torture and execution However this version of the story appears ahistorical as there are no records of any Armenian king of the Arsacid dynasty of Armenia with the name Polymius Other accounts of his martyrdom name the king as either Agrippa identified with Tigranes VI or Sanatruk king of Armenia 20 The 13th century Saint Bartholomew Monastery was a prominent Armenian monastery constructed at the presumed site of Bartholomew s martyrdom in Vaspurakan Greater Armenia now in southeastern Turkey 21 In Present Day Azerbaijan edit nbsp Saint Bartholomew Church Baku before the destructionSaint Bartholomew Church Baku was built in 1892 with donations from the local Christian population on the site where the Apostle Bartholomew was believed to have been martyred 22 It is believed that in this area near the Maiden Tower the apostle Bartholomew was crucified and killed by pagans around 71 AD 23 The church continued to operate until 1936 when it was demolished as a part of the Soviet campaign against religion Veneration editThe Armenian Apostolic Church honours Saint Bartholomew and Saint Thaddeus as its patron saints The Eastern Orthodox Church venerates Bartholomew on June 11 24 Bartholomew is also venerated on August 25 in commemoration of the transfer of Bartholomew s relics 25 He is also venerated as one of the twelve apostles on June 30 26 Hence the Russian Orthodox Eparchy of Baku and Azerbaijan 27 honour Saint Bartholomew as the Patron Saint of Azerbaijan and regards him as the bringer of Christianity to the region of Caucasian Albania modern day Azerbaijan The feast day of the Apostle is solemnly celebrated there on 24 August by the Christian laity and the Church officials alike 28 In the Synaxarium of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria Bartholomew s martyrdom is commemorated on the first day of the Coptic calendar i e the first day of the month of Thout which currently falls on 11 September corresponding to 29 August in the Julian calendar In the current Roman General Calendar Saint Bartholomew s feast occurs on 24 August Accordingly the Catholic Church of Azerbaijan 29 Bartholomew the Apostle is remembered in the Church of England with a Festival on 24 August 30 31 Relics edit nbsp Altar of San Bartolomeo Basilica in Benevento containing the relics of BartholomewThe 6th century writer Theodorus Lector averred that in about 507 the Byzantine emperor Anastasius I Dicorus gave the body of Bartholomew to the city of Daras in Mesopotamia which he had recently refounded 32 The existence of relics at Lipari a small island off the coast of Sicily in the part of Italy controlled from Constantinople was explained by Gregory of Tours 33 by his body having miraculously washed up there A large piece of his skin and many bones that were kept in the Cathedral of St Bartholomew in Lipari were translated to Benevento in 838 where they are still kept now in the Basilica San Bartolomeo A portion of the relics was given in 983 by Otto II Holy Roman Emperor to Rome where it is conserved at San Bartolomeo all Isola which was founded on the site of the temple of Asclepius in pagan times an important Roman medical centre This association with medicine caused Bartholomew s name to become associated in course of time with hospitals 34 A part of Bartholomew s alleged skull was transferred to the Frankfurt Cathedral while an arm was venerated in Canterbury Cathedral citation needed In 2003 Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople brought some of the remains of St Bartholomew to Baku as a gift to Azerbaijani Christians and these remains are now kept in the Holy Myrrhbearers Cathedral 35 Saint Bartholomew has been credited with several miracles 36 Art and literature editIn artistic depictions Bartholomew is most commonly depicted holding his flayed skin and the knife with which he was skinned 37 Of this a well known example is featured in Michelangelo s Last Judgement Not rarely Bartholomew is shown draping his own skin around his body 38 Moreover representations of Bartholomew with a chained demon are common in Spanish painting 38 nbsp St Bartholomew Manuscript Leaf with the Martyrdom of Saint Bartholomew from a Laudario by Pacino di Bonaguida c 1340 Florence nbsp The Martyrdom of Saint Bartholomew by Jusepe de Ribera 1634 St Bartholomew is the most prominent flayed Christian martyr 39 During the 16th century images of the flaying of Bartholomew were popular and this detail came to become a virtual constant of iconography 38 37 An echo of concentration on these details is found in medieval heraldry regarding Bartholomew which depicts flaying knives with silver blades and gold handles on a red field 40 Saint Bartholomew is often depicted in lavish medieval manuscripts 41 Bearing in mind that manuscripts are in fact made from flayed and manipulated skin they hold a strong visual and cognitive association with the saint during the medieval period 41 Florentine artist Pacino di Bonaguida depicts his martyrdom in a complex and striking composition in his Laudario of Sant Agnese a book of Italian Hymns produced for the Compagnia di Sant Agnese c 1340 39 In the five scene narrative based image three torturers flay Bartholomew s legs and arms as he is immobilised and chained to a gate On the right the saint wears his own skin tied around his neck while he kneels in prayer before a rock his severed head lying on the ground A further depiction is that of the Flaying of St Bartholomew in the Luttrell Psalter c 1325 1340 There Bartholomew is depicted lying on a surgical table surrounded by tormentors while he is flayed with golden knives 42 nbsp Reliquary shutters with the Martyrdoms of St Francis St Claire St Bartholomew and St Catherine of Alexandria by Guido da SienaDue to the nature of his martyrdom Bartholomew is the patron saint of tanners plasterers tailors leatherworkers bookbinders farmers housepainters butchers and glove makers 43 38 In works of art the saint has been depicted being skinned by tanners as in Guido da Siena s reliquary shutters with the Martyrdoms of St Francis St Claire St Bartholomew and St Catherine of Alexandria 44 Popular in Florence and other areas in Tuscany the saint also came to be associated with salt oil and cheese merchants 45 The Martyrdom of Saint Bartholomew 1634 by Jusepe de Ribera depicts Bartholomew s final moments before being flayed alive The viewer is meant to empathize with Bartholomew whose body seemingly bursts through the surface of the canvas and whose outstretched arms embrace a mystical light that illuminates his flesh His piercing eyes open mouth and petitioning left hand bespeak an intense communion with the divine yet this same hand draws our attention to the instruments of his torture symbolically positioned in the shape of a cross Transfixed by Bartholomew s active faith the executioner seems to have stopped short in his actions and his furrowed brow and partially illuminated face suggest a moment of doubt with the possibility of conversion 46 The representation of Bartholomew s demise in the National Gallery painting differs significantly from all other depictions by Ribera By limiting the number of participants to the main protagonists of the story the saint his executioner one of the priests who condemned him and one of the soldiers who captured him and presenting them half length and filling the picture space the artist rejected an active movemented composition for one of intense psychological drama The cusping along all four edges shows that the painting has not been cut down Ribera intended the composition to be just such a tight restricted presentation with the figures cut off and pressed together 47 Although Bartholomew s death is commonly depicted in artworks of a religious nature his story has also been used to represent anatomical depictions of the human body devoid of flesh An example of this can be seen in Marco d Agrate s St Bartholomew Flayed 1562 where Bartholomew is depicted wrapped in his own skin with every muscle vein and tendon clearly visible acting as a clear description of the muscles and structure of the human body 48 This idea has influenced some contemporary artists to create an artwork depicting an anatomical study of a human body is found amongst with Gunther Von Hagens s The Skin Man 2002 and Damien Hirst s Exquisite Pain 2006 Within Gunther Von Hagens s body of work called Body Worlds a figure reminiscent of Bartholomew holds up his skin This figure is depicted in actual human tissues made possible by Hagens s plastination process to educate the public about the inner workings of the human body and to show the effects of healthy and unhealthy lifestyles 49 In Exquisite Pain 2006 Damien Hirst depicts St Bartholomew with a high level of anatomical detail with his flayed skin draped over his right arm a scalpel in one hand and a pair of scissors in the other The inclusion of scissors was inspired by Tim Burton s film Edward Scissorhands 1990 50 Bartholomew plays a part in Francis Bacon s Utopian tale New Atlantis about a mythical isolated land Bensalem populated by a people dedicated to reason and natural philosophy Some twenty years after the ascension of Christ the people of Bensalem find an ark floating off their shore The ark contains a letter as well as the books of the Old and New Testaments The letter is from Bartholomew the Apostle and declares that an angel told him to set the ark and its contents afloat Thus the scientists of Bensalem receive the revelation of the Word of God 51 nbsp Michelangelo s Sistine Chapel depiction nbsp Statue of Bartholomew at the Archbasilica of St John Lateran by Pierre Le Gros the Younger nbsp Statue of Saint Bartholomew by August Wredow at the roof of the Helsinki Cathedral nbsp St Bartholomew Flayed by Marco d Agrate 1562 Duomo di Milano nbsp The Martyrdom of St Bartolomew or the Double Martydom Aris Kalaizis 2015 nbsp Shield showing three flaying knives symbol of St Bartholomew at the Church of the Good Shepherd Rosemont Pennsylvania nbsp St Bartholomew pictured in the coat of arms of PertteliCulture editThe festival in August has been a traditional occasion for markets and fairs such as the Bartholomew Fair which was held in Smithfield London from the Middle Ages 52 and which served as the scene for Ben Jonson s 1614 homonymous comedy St Bartholomew s Street Fair is held in Crewkerne Somerset annually at the start of September 53 The fair dates back to Saxon times and the major traders market was recorded in the Domesday Book St Bartholomew s Street Fair Crewkerne is reputed to have been granted its charter in the time of Henry III 1207 1272 The earliest surviving court record was made in 1280 which can be found in the British Library citation needed In Islam editThe Qur anic account of the disciples of Jesus does not include their names numbers or any detailed accounts of their lives Muslim exegesis however more or less agrees with the New Testament list and holds that the disciples included Peter Philip Thomas Bartholomew Matthew Andrew James Jude James the Less John and Simon the Zealot 54 See also edit nbsp Saints portalGospel of Bartholomew Questions of Bartholomew Acts of Andrew and Bartholomew St Bartholomew s Day massacre St Bartholomew s Hospital Bertil Saint Bartholomew the Apostle patron saint archiveReferences editNotes edit Aramaic ܒܪ ܬܘܠܡܝ Ancient Greek Bar8olomaῖos romanized Bartholomaios Latin Bartholomaeus Armenian Բարթողիմէոս Coptic ⲃⲁⲣⲑⲟⲗⲟⲙⲉⲟⲥ Hebrew בר תולמי romanized bar Tolmay Arabic ب رث ول ماو س romanized Barthulmawus Citations edit Saint Bartholomew Christian Apostle Britannica www britannica com Retrieved 30 November 2022 Sacred Lives Batholomew Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible by David Noel Freedman Allen C Myers and Astrid B Beck 2000 page 152 Bartholomew preached to the Indians and died at Albanopolis in Armenia It was condemned in the Gelasian decree referred The Untold Story of the New Testament Church An Extraordinary Guide to Understanding the New Testament by Frank Viola page 170 one of the Twelve is beaten and crucified in Albanopolis Armenia Curtin D P July 2015 Jacobite Arab Synaxarium Volume I Dalcassian Publishing Company ISBN 9781088061237 Green McKnight amp Marshall 1992 p 180 What Do We Know about Nathanael the Disciple without Deceit Bible Study Tools Meet Nathanael in the Bible the True Israelite Learn Religions Raymond F Collins Nathanael 3 in The Anchor Bible Dictionary vol 4 New York Doubleday p 1031 a b c Butler amp Burns 1998 p 232 10 1 4 3 13 19 6 12 16 1 13 Encyclopaedia Britannica Micropaedia vol 1 p 924 Chicago Encyclopaedia Britannica Inc 1998 ISBN 0 85229 633 9 a b Mission of Saint Bartholomew the Apostle in India Nasranis 10 October 2014 Retrieved 24 August 2020 Gilman Ian Klimkeit Hans Joachim 11 January 2013 Christians in Asia before 1500 Routledge ISBN 9781136109782 In the Life of the Apostle Bartholomew Baku is identified as Alban Some historians assume that Baku during the existence of Caucasian Albania was called Albanopolis Teunis 2003 p 306 Curtin D P January 2014 The Martyrdom of St Bartholomew Greek Arabic and Armenian Versions Dalcassian Publishing Company ISBN 9798868951473 The Condition of the Armenian Historical Monuments in Turkey raa am Retrieved 24 August 2020 Bakida mezari tapilan Isa peygemberin apostolu Varfolomey qaynarinfo az Retrieved 28 April 2021 Propoved Svyatogo Apostola Varfolomeya udi az Retrieved 28 April 2021 Apostle Bartholomew of the Twelve Orthodox Church in America Archived from the original on 11 June 2023 Retrieved 21 July 2023 Return of the Relics of the Apostle Bartholomew from Anastasiopolis to Lipari Orthodox Church in America Archived from the original on 21 July 2023 Retrieved 21 July 2023 Synaxis of the Holy Glorious and All Praised Twelve Apostles Orthodox Church in America Archived from the original on 30 June 2023 Retrieved 21 July 2023 24 iyun Baki seherinin semavi qoruyucusu Hevari Varfolomeyin Xatire Gunu pravoslavie az Azerbaycanda yasayan pravoslavlar Muqeddes Varfolomeyi aniblar interfax az 24 AVQUST MUQEDDES HEVARI BARTALMAYIN BAYRAMI catholic az The Calendar The Church of England Retrieved 27 March 2021 Damo Santiago 2014 Smith amp Cheetham 1875 p 179 Gregory De Gloria Martyrum i 33 Attwater amp John 1995 KONSTANTINOPOL PATRIARXI I VARFOLOMEY AZERBAYCANA GELMISDIR azertag az 16 April 2003 Retrieved 28 April 2021 Golden Legend Life of St Bartholomew the Apostle www christianiconography info Retrieved 21 December 2021 a b Crane 2014 p 5 a b c d Giorgi 2003 p 51 a b Mittman amp Sciacca 2017 pp viii 141 Post 2018 p 12 a b Kay 2006 pp 35 74 Mittman amp Sciacca 2017 pp 42 Bissell 2016 Decker amp Kirkland Ives 2017 p ii West 1996 The Martyrdom of Saint Bartholomew nga gov Retrieved 24 August 2020 DeGrazia amp Garberson 1996 p 410 The statue of St Bartholomew in the Milan Duomo Duomo di Milano 29 June 2018 Archived from the original on 31 October 2018 Retrieved 30 October 2018 Philosophy Body Worlds Archived from the original on 9 June 2019 Retrieved 30 October 2018 Dorkin 2003 Bacon 1942 Cavendish 2005 About the Fair Crewkerne Charter Fair Somerset Formerly St Bartholomew s Street Fair Retrieved 24 August 2020 Noegel amp Wheeler 2002 p 86 Muslim exegesis identifies the disciples of Jesus as Peter Andrew Matthew Thomas Philip John James Bartholomew and Simon Sources edit Attwater Donald John Catherine Rachel 1995 The Penguin Dictionary of Saints Penguin ISBN 978 0 14 051312 7 Bacon Francis 1942 New Atlantis New York W J Black Benedict XVI 4 October 2006 General Audience vatican va Retrieved 24 August 2020 Bissell Tom 1 March 2016 A Most Violent Martyrdom Lapham s Quarterly Retrieved 24 August 2020 Butler Alban Burns Paul 1998 Butler s Lives of the Saints August A amp C Black ISBN 978 0 86012 257 9 Cavendish Richard 9 September 2005 London s Last Bartholomew Fair History Today Vol 55 no 9 Crane Thomas Frederick 2014 Tales from Italy When Christianity Met Italy M amp J ISBN 979 11 951749 4 2 Damo Santiago Corazon 28 August 2014 Saint Bartholomew the Apostle skinned alive for spreading his faith BusinessMirror Retrieved 24 August 2020 Decker John R Kirkland Ives Mitzi 2017 Death Torture and the Broken Body in European Art 1300 1650 Taylor amp Francis ISBN 978 1 351 57009 1 DeGrazia Diane Garberson Eric 1996 Italian Paintings of the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries Edgar Peters Bowron Peter Lukehart Mitchell Merling National Gallery of Art ISBN 978 0 89468 241 4 de Voragine Jacobus Duffy Eamon 2012 The Golden Legend Readings on the Saints Translated by William Granger Ryan Princeton University Press ISBN 978 1 4008 4205 6 Dorkin Molly 2003 Sotheby s Oxford Art Online Oxford University Press doi 10 1093 gao 9781884446054 article t079852 Fabricius Johann Albert 1703 Codex Apocryphus Novi Testamenti collectus castigatus testimoniisque censuris amp animadversionibus illustratus sumptib B Schiller Fenlon John Francis 1907 St Bartholomew In Herbermann Charles ed Catholic Encyclopedia Vol 2 New York Robert Appleton Company Giorgi Rosa 2003 Saints in Art Getty Publications ISBN 978 0 89236 717 7 OCLC 50982363 Green Joel B McKnight Scot Marshall I Howard 1992 Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels A Compendium of Contemporary Biblical Scholarship InterVarsity Press ISBN 978 0 8308 1777 1 Kay S 2006 Original Skin Flaying Reading and Thinking in the Legend of Saint Bartholomew and Other Works Journal of Medieval and Early Modern Studies 36 1 35 74 doi 10 1215 10829636 36 1 35 ISSN 1082 9636 Lillich Meredith Parsons 2011 The Gothic Stained Glass of Reims Cathedral Penn State Press ISBN 978 0 271 03777 6 Meier John P 1991 A Marginal Jew Companions and competitors Doubleday ISBN 978 0 385 46993 7 Mittman Asa Simon Sciacca Christine 2017 Tracy Larissa ed Flaying in the Pre modern World Practice and Representation Boydell amp Brewer ISBN 978 1 84384 452 5 Noegel Scott B Wheeler Brannon M 2002 Historical Dictionary of Prophets in Islam and Judaism Lanham MD Scarecrow ISBN 978 0 8108 4305 9 Post W Ellwood 2018 Saints Signs and Symbols Papamoa Press ISBN 978 1 78720 972 5 Smith Dwight Moody 1999 Abingdon New Testament Commentaries Vol 4 John Abingdon Press ISBN 978 0 687 05812 9 Smith William Cheetham Samuel 1875 A Dictionary of Christian Antiquities A Juv J Murray Spilman Frances 2017 The Twelve Lives and Legends of The Apostles Lulu com ISBN 978 1 365 64043 8 Teunis D A 2003 Satan s Secret Exposing the Master of Deception and the Father of Lies AuthorHouse ISBN 978 1 4107 3580 5 West Shearer 1996 The Bloomsbury Guide to Art Bloomsbury OCLC 246967494 Further reading edit Hanks Patrick Hodges Flavia Hardcastle Kate 2016 A Dictionary of First Names Oxford University Press ISBN 978 0 19 880051 4 Perumalil A C 1971 The Apostles in India Jaipur Xavier Teachers Training Institute External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bartholomew the Apostle The Martyrdom of the Holy and Glorious Apostle Bartholomew attributed to Pseudo Abdias one of the minor Church Fathers St Bartholomew s Connections in India St Bartholomew at the Christian Iconography web site The Life of St Bartholomew the Apostle in the Caxton translation of the Golden Legend Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Bartholomew the Apostle amp oldid 1196270484, wikipedia, wiki, 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