Apostle, (from Greek apostolos, “person sent”), any of the 12 disciples chosen by Jesus Christ. The term is sometimes also applied to others, especially Paul, who was converted to Christianity a few years after Jesus' death.
According to the Gospel of Luke, the only gospel in which they appear, Jesus appointed them and sent them out in pairs on a specific mission which is detailed in the text. The number of those disciples varies between either 70 or 72 depending on the account.
In the Bible, Jesus Christ names 12 apostles to spread his gospel, and the early Christian church owes its rapid rise to their missionary zeal.
Who were the ancient Apostles and what we know about them? The Bible teaches us that the original apostles of Jesus were Peter; James; John; Andrew; Philip; Judas Iscariot; Matthew; Thomas; James, the son of Alpheus; Bartholomew; Judas Thaddeus; and Simon Zelotes.
The Gospel of John therefore portrays Mary Magdalene as the first apostle, the apostle sent to the apostles.
These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon (who is called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.
The apostles formed millions of years ago, but sadly over time, the number of stacks have dropped. With the continuous erosion of sea water and weather slowly cutting them away until these apostles will eventually cease to exist.
St. James the Greater was the first Apostle to be martyred for his faith. He willingly dropped everything at the seashore to follow Jesus as his first Apostle. He knew that Jesus was the Son of God, and knowingly walked with Jesus.
John (The Beloved) (son of Zebedee / brother of James) : Natural Death The only apostle who did not meet a martyrs death. Banished by Roman Emperor Domitian to Isle of Patmos where penned Revelation, the last book in the Bible.
The conventional number of disciples sent forth by Jesus in Luke 10 in some manuscripts (seventy in others). The number of names of God, according to Kabbalah (see names of God in Judaism).
Since the end of the first century, the beloved disciple has been commonly identified with John the Evangelist. Scholars have debated the authorship of Johannine literature (the Gospel of John, Epistles of John, and the Book of Revelation) since at least the third century, but especially since the Enlightenment.
An apostle is a "messenger" or "one who is sent" while a disciple is a "student" or "learner." Apostles were primarily people who had met and followed Jesus during his life and were called by him to spread the gospel. Disciples were simply any of Jesus' followers who devoted themselves to learning from him.
The Apostle John was most notably the only one of the twelve left with Jesus to witness the crucifixion. He continued to work to spread the gospel for many years after Jesus's death.
Mary Magdalene's life after the Gospel accounts. According to Eastern tradition, she accompanied St. John the Apostle to Ephesus, where she died and was buried. French tradition spuriously claims that she evangelized Provence (southeastern France) and spent her last 30 years in an Alpine cavern.
Narrator: After Jesus had given his speech, he sent out his 72 new disciples. They had traveled to the very ends of the earth, healing the sick, and preaching the Gospel Jesus had taught them.
According to Matthew 27:3–10, Judas felt remorse after seeing Jesus condemned to death, and he returned the silver and hanged himself.
Adelphoi (brethren) of Jesus
Mark 6:3. names James, Joses, Judas (conventionally known in English as Jude) and Simon as the brothers of Jesus, and Matthew 13:55, which probably used Mark as its source, gives the same names in different order, James, Joseph, Simon and Judas.
St. Matthias, (flourished 1st century ce, Judaea—died, traditionally Colchis, Armenia; Western feast day February 24, Eastern feast day August 9), in the New Testament, among the 12 Apostles, the disciple who, according to Acts of the Apostles 1:21–26, was chosen to replace Judas Iscariot after Judas betrayed Jesus.
The Twelve Apostles can be seen as seven limestone rock stacks. Six of them are visible in the classic view enjoyed by millions of people every the year, while the seventh is located several metres away from the corner of the main viewing platform.
Eight of the original nine stacks remain standing at the Twelve Apostles viewpoint, after one collapsed in July 2005. Though the view from the promontory by the Twelve Apostles never included twelve stacks, additional stacks—not considered part of the Apostles group—are located to the west within the national park.
It's interesting that Jesus tells both the Twelve and the Seventy to do the same thing. In Luke 9 he sends the twelve out to “proclaim the Kingdom of God and to heal.” In Luke 10 he sends the seventy out to “cure the sick…and say to them, 'The kingdom of God has come near to you.
Andrew the Apostle, the first disciple to be called by Jesus. Though we know more about his brother Peter, it was Andrew who first met Jesus.
Luke was a physician and possibly a Gentile. He was not one of the original 12 Apostles but may have been one of the 70 disciples appointed by Jesus (Luke 10). He also may have accompanied St. Paul on his missionary journeys.
From the age at which Jewish maidens became marriageable, it is possible that Mary gave birth to her son when she was about thirteen or fourteen years of age.