James the Great, the son of Zebedee, was most likely born and raised in Bethsaida, Galilee and followed in his father's footsteps by becoming a fisherman. It is also known from the Scriptures that he was brother to John.
Considered to be one of the inner circle of the Apostles, James the Great was present at three important occasions during Jesus' life. Along with John and Peter he witnessed the raising from the dead the daughter of Jairus, attended the Transfiguration and was with Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane.
The New Testament records that Jesus gave James the Great the Greek name of "Boanerges" which translates as "Sons of Thunder." Theologians and writers understand that Jesus gave him this name because of his zeal and fanaticism for the new teachings.
Although James the Great was present at the Pentecost we hear nothing of him until his death a decade later. It is not known where he based himself or what he did; the Spanish believe that he introduced the Christian faith to that country.
Biblical scholars believe that because he is not mentioned in Acts until his death, it is likely that he was not based in Jerusalem. All that is known is that James was put to death during the reign of Herod Agrippa around AD42.
Luke states that "King Herod started to harass some of the members of the church. He beheaded James, the brother of John, and when he saw this pleased certain of the Jews, he took Peter into custody too." ( Acts 12:1-3)
James the Great is represented by a Scallop shell, pilgrim's staff or a gourd bottle because he is known as the patron saint of pilgrims.
According to tradition, James the Great is buried in St Jago de Compostella in Spain, one of the great pilgrimage sites of the Middle Ages and the site of hundreds of reported miracles.
The armies who drove the Moslems out of Spain invoked James the Great and subsequently James became the patron saint of Spain.
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