James of Zebedee, (5 B.C.,Bethsaida 44 A.D. Jerusalem) was one of the closest apostles of Jesus of Nazareth and his feast day is celebrated on July 25. His nickname was the Elder and his occupation was fisherman and missionary. In Spain he is considered his protector and consequently his patron saint since in 1630 Pope Urban VIII issued a decree ratifying this event. Being one of the first apostles that Jesus would choose along with the brother of James, called John (St. John the Evangelist) and consequently those who witnessed more miracles and were next to Jesus much longer.

The apostle Santiago proclaimed in the messages he propagated that people in their way of communicating with others should be respectful, thus reflecting being a child of God and demonstrating to their environment the importance of manners and respect as an added value. He also recommended to the faithful to keep in mind that in the hard times of the

that in the hard moments of affliction they should entrust themselves with true faith and without any doubt because God would always respond with deeds.

One of the maxims of Jesus was to spread the gospel throughout the world, hence the apostle Santiago traveled to Hispania, it is believed, crossing the Strait of Gibraltar to Galicia. Tradition has it that in his travels through Spain, when he arrived to the city of Zaragoza, the Virgin Mary appeared to him and that is why they built a small chapel on the banks of the Ebro River, where later the imposing Basilica of Zaragoza was built and which is a meeting point for the faithful from Spain and all over the world who make pilgrimages to meet with God.

Santiago finally ended his days and died in the Christian persecutions ordered by the King of Judea, Herod of Agrippa I, dying beheaded and being at that moment when his disciples collected his mortal remains and according to tradition moved him to the Galician lands of Iria Flavia, where he was buried in the forest of Liberum Donum.

Later the tradition tells that the relics arrived to our days thanks to that Alfeo the Minor, picked up the head of the apostle Santiago. At present they are under the main altar of the Cathedral of St. James itself, but his head is nevertheless in the Cathedral of St. James in Jerusalem.

On the other hand the Catholic tradition is contradictory as it holds that there are two places where the head of St. James of Zebedee is allegedly found and in both it is highly venerated. These places are:

The Cathedral of St. James of Jerusalem which is a holy Armenian monastery built in the 12th century in pure Armenian style and currently belongs to the diocese of the Armenian patriarchate of Jerusalem being located in the Armenian quarter of Jerusalem itself (Palestinian Territories). The cathedral was dedicated to the cult of two Saints, one St. James the Greater and the other St. James the Lesser. According to Reverend Fr. Koryoun Baghdasaryan, Chancellor of the Armenian Patriarchate in Jerusalem after statements to the Christian Media Center: " Here in this small chapel you can see the precise place where the head of St. James the Apostle of Zebedee was buried." Place where the same is presented inside a sun-shaped room and through the glass you can see the relic.

The Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Spain is a temple of Catholic worship built in the year 1211 and located as its name indicates in Santiago, province of La Coruña, its style is Romanesque, Gothic and Baroque.

According to tradition, the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela houses and jealously guards the head (skull) of St. James the Greater. Being this relic inside the bust of polychrome wood that was attributed to the master sculptor Rodrigo Eans, who is the one who carves it and gives it polychrome and proceeds to set the stones in his cloak in the year 1.322. The necklace of the Saint would be a later donation that was made in the year 1415 and delivered by the Leonese knight, Suero de Quiñones (1409-1456). According to tradition, this relic was brought from the cathedral of Armenia in Jerusalem and is located inside the cathedral building, which is the object of great devotion and pilgrimage and to which many faithful entrust themselves in the hope of receiving the grace entrusted to them.

At present there is still the religious and military order of the Knights of Santiago, whose name is a tribute to the apostle Santiago himself. In its origins in the year 1170 its function was to protect all those pilgrims who made the way avoiding looting and offering them spiritual help, food and shelter. During those years its King was Leon Fernando II. Its founder and first Master Pedro Fernandez was a significant and influential character as he was a noble descendant of the kings of Navarre by paternal line and of the counts of Barcelona by maternal line. The success of this Order was not long in coming and soon knights of the nobility, who came from the different kingdoms of the peninsula, joined it. Ferdinand II himself became a patron of the order, giving them economic support and social prestige, much social prestige.

Author: Dr. José Daniel Barquero Cabrero. Professor and Professor of Economics and Business and CEO of SER, Strategic Economic Relations.

Copyright 2023 RACEF. Royal Academy of Economic and Financial Sciences.