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Saint James, the Greater, Apostle and Martyr :
Feast day : 25 July
After the Ascension of Jesus, the apostles dispersed to nations around the world and preached the Gospel. Saint James is believed to have travelled to Spain and preached the Gospel in Zaragoza. According to tradition, he was disheartened with his attempts and one day when he and his disciples were deep in prayer on the banks of Ergo river, they had a vision of the Blessed Virgin, Mother of Christ. She was living in Jerusalem at that time. They heard the sweet voices of angels and saw them carrying a throne on which was seated the Blessed Virgin. She asked Saint James to build a sanctuary to glorify and honor God and gave him a pillar with her image on it that was to be placed in the sanctuary. She also told him that the sanctuary would remain until the end of times and that she would bless all the prayers that were devoutly offered at the sanctuary. At the end of the vision, Our Lady told Saint James that when the sanctuary was completed, he would return to Jerusalem and die. Saint James built a small Church on the site which was later rebuilt and today is the Cathedral-Basilica of Our Lady of the Pillar in the city of Zaragoza, Aragon (Spain). The pillar and the image of Our Lady are kept in the Cathedral. The Basilica venerates the Blessed Virgin Mary, under her title Our Lady of the Pillar. It is reputed to be the first church dedicated to Our Lady and is also the only reported apparition of the Blessed Virgin to have occurred before her Assumption. 
Today the Church celebrates the Feast of St. James, the Greater, son of Zebedee, brother of St John the Evangelist and the first Apostle to be martyred. The Gospels bear witness that he was one of the closest to Jesus and was present at some of the most significant events of His ministerial life on earth. He is believed to have preached the Gospel in Spain for several years till he was martyred in the year 44 in Jerusalem. His sacred remains were discovered in Spain in the 9th century. The Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela was built on the site of his relics and is today a famous pilgrim centre. Several miracles continue to be through his intercession and through his apparitions he is believed to have helped the Christian army defeat the Moors. According to tradition, when he was preaching in Zaragoza, Spain, the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to him in a vision and asked for a sanctuary to be built on the site. She gave him a pillar with an image of her to be kept in the sanctuary. Saint James built a small church on the site where today stands the Cathedral-Basilica of Our Lady of the Pillar in the city of Zaragoza, Spain. The Basilica venerates the Blessed Virgin Mary, under her title Our Lady of the Pillar and is reputed to be the first church dedicated to Our Lady and also the only reported apparition of Our Lady to have occurred before her Assumption.
Scriptures:
Saint James was a Galilean and a fisherman, a close relative of Jesus, son of Zebedee and Salome and brother of Saint John the Evangelist. Jesus called the two brothers when they were mending their nets on the shore along-with their father. They responded to their Divine calling by immediately dropping their nets and leaving their father and all that they had to follow Him. Throughout the three years of His ministerial life on earth, they followed Him zealously and were chosen by Jesus to be present at several important events such as at the miracle of the raising of the daughter of Jairus, His Transfiguration and His Agony at Gethsmane. The brothers were called by Jesus as ‘Sons of Thunder’ indicating their zeal and fury at times (Luke 9:54). However, though they followed Jesus and listened to His teachings, they believed that His kingdom was from this world. In the Gospel of St. Matthew 20:20-28 we read that they came along-with their mother who asked Jesus to give her sons the privilege to sit at His right and left when he would ascend His throne. They were yet to understand that His kingdom was not from this world and the only way to enter it was through suffering. Knowing that they knew not what they were asking Jesus asked them “Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?” and they answered “We are able”. Jesus then said “You will indeed drink my cup” which they indeed did. Saint James was the first Apostle to be martyred.
Tradition:
After building the Church, Saint James returned to Jerusalem where he was arrested, subjected to trial and condemned to death under the orders of King Herod Agrippa in the year 44. During his trial, his accuser was so touched by his courage and constancy in his faith that he too converted to Christianity. They were beheaded together. His disciples carried his body to Spain and safely kept them at Iria Flavia, near the borders of Gallicia.
In the 9th century, during the reign of Alphonsus the Chaste, the sacred relics were discovered after it was revealed to a hermit in a vision. The Bishop of Iria Flavia, after necessary investigation declared that the remains were of St. James. The Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela was built at the site and today is a famous pilgrim center. In 1884, Pope Leo XIII, in a Papal Bull officially declared that the remains of Saint James were at Compostela. Several miracles continue to be through the intercession of Saint James. It is also believed that in an apparition, Saint James miraculously appeared on a white horse and helped the Christian army win against the Moors during the legendary battle of Clavijo and was henceforth called Santiago Matamoros (Saint James the Moor-slayer). He is the patron saint of Spain.