If I was feeling mean and vindictive, I would conduct a little test. What do you know about St. Bartholomew?
But, I suspect, the test wouldn't last very long. You might get that he was one of the twelve disciples, mentioned in the Gospel list of the Twelve. You might also surmise that he's a friend of Philip, on the somewhat dubious grounds that his name appears immediately after Philip in all three lists, and you might even suggest, as a result of this link with Philip, that Bartholomew is called Nathaniel in John's gospel and that his first encounter with Jesus gets their friendship off to a shaky start, as a result of his utterance, 'Can anything good come out of Nazareth?' (John 1: 46). But we can't prove conclusively that Bartholomew and Nathaniel are one and the same.
But that, is it. There is no other information about Bartholomew. What he may have done, where he went after the Resurrection, we have no idea. It may seem strange to think that we know so little about some-one who is an Apostle – one of the Twelve. If he lived today, no doubt you would be able to read his memoirs, Jesus and Me: Three Years on the Road, as well his range of tourist booklets: Bartholomew's Guides.
But our lack of knowledge is true for most of the Apostles. Peter hits the headlines, and we know about James and John. Thomas was the doubter, and Matthew the tax collector, but as for the rest, we have no information. That may seem strange - surely, these Apostles are important people. They were the founders of the Church. But perhaps, even our lack of knowledge is significant. The Christian faith is not about the cult of personality. The importance fact is that we are drawn to faith in God, through the person of Jesus Christ. The true evangelist is the one who leads people to Christ and passes them into God's care. Evangelism is not about establishing our own personal cult following. Paul upbraids the Corinthians for having their own favourite leaders. 'It doesn't matter', he says, 'whether you have been converted through the ministry of Paul or Apollos'. 'It is not the gardeners who count, but God who makes it grow.'
The Apostles’ purpose in life is to point beyond themselves, to faith in Christ. The rapid spread of the church in its early years offers fitting testimony to their work. Such was their zeal that it’s right to pause and thank God for them, but we must never forget that their task, just as it is our task, is to lead people to faith in Christ, not to establish their own following.
We can learn from the example of these Apostles who are no more than just names in the pages of scripture. We too are called to be faithful to Christ, and to direct others to Him. Never should we seek for popularity or prestige by doing Christian work. We are not called to make disciples who follow us, to establish our own fan clubs. We must encourage our hearers to grow beyond us, to whatever it is that God is calling them to do.
As members of the body, we are called to be team players. The Epistles, and Paul in particular, go to great lengths to stress the importance of each member playing a full role. We have a joint responsibility for the work of proclaiming the gospel. The Apostles worked together for a common objective. Without that unity of purpose, we would never have seen the phenomenal growth of the early church. Let's pray that we may achieve that same team spirit as we seek to further the work of the gospel.
So Bartholomew: an Apostles about whom we know virtually nothing. In consequence, we cannot put him between ourselves and God. There's a saying that God has no grandchildren, only sons and daughters. We must discover faith for ourselves, and have a personal relationship with God. That makes all believers equal in the eyes of God.
Almighty and everlasting God, who gave to your apostle Bartholomew grace truly to believe and to preach your word: grant that your Church may love that word which he believed and may faithfully preach and receive the same; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord. Amen.
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