August 24apostolicUniversal

Bartholomew the Apostle

Apostle and Martyr

Sanctified Life

1st century AD — ca. 70–80 AD

Cana, Galilee

Also Known As

Nathaniel of CanaSon of TolmaiApostle of Armenia

Patronage

Bookbinders,Butchers,Leather workers

"O Almighty and everlasting God, who didst give to thine Apostle Bartholomew grace truly to believe and to preach thy Word. (Traditional novena prayer attributed to St. Bartholomew)"

Bartholomew the Apostle carried the Gospel to Armenia, where he converted a king before being flayed alive for his faith. Tradition identifies him with Nathaniel, the skeptic who asked 'Can anything good come from Nazareth?' — only to be stunned into belief when Jesus revealed: 'Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.' In Michelangelo's Last Judgment, Bartholomew stands holding his own skin, the artist's own face staring back from it.

Historical Legacy

Historical Journey

Life Locations

Historical Context

Bartholomew was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ and is identified in some traditions with Nathanael mentioned in the Gospel of John. His name derives from Aramaic meaning "son of Tolmai" or "son of the furrows." According to Catholic tradition, Bartholomew traveled extensively as a missionary, preaching Christianity throughout Armenia, Ethiopia, Mesopotamia, and Parthia. Along with Jude Thaddeus, he is venerated as a primary evangelist to Armenia. Bartholomew's most significant recorded missionary work involved converting King Polymius of Armenia and King Astyages's brother, accomplishments attributed to him in numerous hagiographies. During his apostolic mission, he reportedly performed numerous miracles including raising a man from the dead and casting out demons. According to tradition, he also silenced an idol that the local people believed had healing powers, with the demon within it confessing that the supposed healings were illusions. Bartholomew was martyred in Armenia, though the exact manner of his death remains uncertain in historical records. The most prominent tradition records that he was flayed alive by order of King Astyages as punishment for his Christian missionary work. Alternative accounts suggest he was crucified or beheaded. His feast day is celebrated on August 24 throughout the Catholic Church. His relics were brought to Rome during the reign of Emperor Otto III in 983 and are venerated in the Church of Saint Bartholomew on Tiber Island. He became the patron of numerous professions including bookbinders, tanners, and leather workers, as well as protector against nervous and neurological diseases.

Canonization: saint

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Historical Depiction

Wikimedia Commons Source

Tradition

ApostlesEarly Christian Missionaries

Titles & Roles

• Apostle• Missionary• Martyr

Prayers

"A traditional intercessory prayer honoring the apostle's steadfast faith and his willingness to preach the Word to the ends of the earth at the cost of his own skin."

O Almighty and everlasting God, who didst give to thine Apostle Bartholomew grace truly to believe and to preach thy Word: grant, we beseech thee, unto thy Church to love what he believed and to preach what he taught. Saint Bartholomew, you came to Jesus as a skeptic and left as one of the Twelve. You carried the Gospel beyond every boundary the Roman world had drawn, into the highlands of Armenia, to kings and commoners alike. When they put the knife to your body, you did not yield what they sought — and so what they could not take from you has endured for two thousand years. Intercede for us who also doubt before we believe, who also need to be seen before we can see. May we have the courage of your witness and the fidelity of your death. Amen.

Gallery

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Bartholomew the Apostle. Detail of the mosaic in the Basilica of San Vitale. ...

Richard Mortel • Taken on 4 July 2019, 12:11:42

CC BY 2.0

Bartholomew the Apostle, detail of the mosaic in the Basilica of San Vitale, Ravenna, 6th century

Sacred Symbols

Flaying Knife

The instrument of Bartholomew's martyrdom in Armenia — the blade that removed his skin by royal decree — which became his defining iconographic attribute and the origin of his patronage over all who work with hides and leather

Flayed Skin

The most visceral martyrdom symbol in Christian art: Bartholomew holding his own skin, rendered unforgettably by Michelangelo in the Sistine Chapel's Last Judgment with the artist's own face staring from the flayed skin's features

Book of the Gospels

The scripture Bartholomew carried to Armenia — the Word he preached to king and commoner alike, the text for which he refused to recant even under the executioner's knife

Life Journey

Early Life

Born in Cana of Galilee, Bartholomew is likely the Nathaniel who sat under a fig tree when Philip came running with news that upended everything he thought he knew about Nazareth.

Turning Point

Bartholomew scoffed: 'Can anything good come from Nazareth?' Then Jesus greeted him: 'Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.' His skepticism collapsed on the spot.

Legacy

Carried the Gospel to Armenia, where he converted King Polymius before being flayed alive on King Astyages's order. His remains arrived in Rome in 983 AD and rest on Tiber Island.

Key Moments

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1st century AD

Born in Cana of Galilee

Bartholomew is born in Cana of Lower Galilee, the same town where Jesus would perform his first miracle — a village whose name echoes through the Gospels while its most famous apostle remained, in the Synoptics, almost entirely anonymous.

ca. 27–30 AD

Come and See

Philip brings the skeptic from Cana to Jesus, who greets him with unsettling intimacy — 'I saw you under the fig tree' — and Bartholomew's doubt becomes belief before the first word of argument can be spoken.

ca. 30–50 AD

The Road to Armenia

Following Pentecost, Bartholomew sets out on the eastern mission with Jude Thaddeus, carrying the Gospel through Mesopotamia, Parthia, and into the highlands of Armenia — a mission to peoples Rome had never fully subdued.

ca. 50–70 AD

The Conversion of a King

In Armenia, Bartholomew converts King Polymius and his household — a royal breakthrough accomplished through miracles including raising a man from the dead and exposing a healing idol whose demon confessed its deceptions aloud.

ca. 70–80 AD

Flayed Alive

King Astyages orders Bartholomew arrested for converting his brother; the apostle is flayed alive — his skin removed while he still breathes — then crucified or beheaded, becoming the most graphically depicted martyrdom in centuries of Christian art.

983 AD

The Relics Reach Rome

Emperor Otto III transfers Bartholomew's relics from their centuries-long journey — Albanopolis to Lipari to Benevento — to Rome, where they are enshrined in the Church of Saint Bartholomew on Tiber Island.

1969

Feast Day Confirmed

The Catholic Church officially confirms August 24 as the universal feast day of Bartholomew — a date observed for centuries across both East and West, one of the few apostolic feasts with near-universal agreement across Christian traditions.

1st century AD