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 James of
Jerusalem is referred to in the New Testament as the brother of Our Lord
Jesus Christ.
He was for many years the leader of the Christian congregation in Jerusalem,
and is generally supposed to be the author of the Epistle of James, although
the Epistle itself does not state this explicitly.
James is mentioned briefly in connection with Jesus' visit to Nazareth
(Matt. 13:55; Mark 6:3).
We are told that Jesus' brothers did not believe in Him (John 7:2-5), and
from this, and from references in early Christian writers, it is inferred
that James was not a disciple of the Lord until after the Resurrection.
Paul, listing appearances of the Risen Lord (1 Cor 15:3-8), includes an
appearance to James.
Peter, about to leave Jerusalem after escaping from Herod, leaves a message
for James and the Apostles (Acts 12:17). When a council meets at Jerusalem
to consider what rules Gentile Christians should be required to keep, James
formulates the final consensus (Acts 15:13-21).
Paul speaks of going to Jerusalem three years after his conversion and
conferring there with Peter and James (Gal. 1:18-19), and speaks again of a
later visit (perhaps the one described in Acts 15) on which Peter, James,
and John, "the pillars," placed their stamp of approval on the mission to
the Gentiles (Gal. 2:9).
A few verses later (Gal. 2:11-14), he says that messengers from James coming
to Antioch discouraged Jewish Christians there from eating with Gentile
Christians. (If this is refers to the same event as Acts 15:1-2, then Paul
takes a step back chronologically in his narration at Gal. 2:11, which is
not improbable, since he is dictating and mentioning arguments and events
that count as evidence for his side as they occur to him.)
On his last recorded visit to Jerusalem, Paul visits James (others are
present, but no other names are given) and speaks of his ministry to the
Gentiles (Acts 21:18).
Outside the New Testament, James is mentioned by the Jewish historian
Josephus, who calls him "the brother of Jesus the so-called Christ," and
reports that he was much respected even by the Pharisees for his piety and
strict observance of the Law, but that his enemies took advantage of an
interval between Roman governors in 62 AD to have him put to death. His
death is also reported by the second-century Christian writer Hegesippus.
Numerous references in early Christian documents show the esteem in which he
was held in the early Church.
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