The calling of the twelve Apostles

St Mark Chapter III : Verses 13-19

The calling of the twelve Apostles. J-J Tissot.

[13] And going up into a mountain, he called unto him whom he would himself: and they came to him. [14] And he made that twelve should be with him, and that he might send them to preach. 

[15] And he gave them power to heal sicknesses, and to cast out devils.
[16] And to Simon he gave the name Peter: 

[17] And James the son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James; and he named them Boanerges, which is, The sons of thunder: 

[18] And Andrew and Philip, and Bartholomew and Matthew, and Thomas and James of Alpheus, and Thaddeus, and Simon the Cananean: 

[19] And Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.

[13] Et ascendens in montem vocavit ad se quos voluit ipse : et venerunt ad eum. [14] Et fecit ut essent duodecim cum illo : et ut mitteret eos prædicare. [15] Et dedit illis potestatem curandi infirmitates et ejiciendi dæmonia. [16] Et imposuit Simoni nomen Petrus : [17] et Jacobum Zebedæi, et Joannem fratrem Jacobi, et imposuit eis nomina Boanerges, quod est, Filii tonitrui : [18] et Andræam, et Philippum, et Bartholomæum, et Matthæum, et Thomam, et Jacobum Alphæi, et Thaddæum, et Simonem Cananæum, [19] et Judas Iscariotem, qui et tradidit illum.

Notes

13. going up. St Luke tells us that Jesus went up in the evening, since He passed the whole night in the prayer of God. And when day was come He called unto Him His disciples (vi. 12-13). Jesus habitually prayed before performing any important action.
into a mountain. A local tradition points to the “ Horns of Hattin,” the highest hill on the western side of the Sea of Galilee. There are two peaks at its summit joined by a small plateau.

14. He made that, etc. “ He called unto him his disciples.” He chose His apostles from among the numerous disciples referred to in Acts i. 21, as men who had companied with the apostles. "
twelve. There were twelve apostles, as there had been twelve sons of Jacob, the patriarchs of the Old Testament.
should he with him , etc. Jesus trained His apostles for their present and future work, to this end : —

(1) They were eye-witnesses of His miracles.

(2) They received special instructions from Him during His public life, and during the forty days after His resurrection, when He spoke of the Kingdom of God (Acts i. 3), — i.e. the establishment of the Catholic Church.

(3) They were sent out on apostolic missions.

(4) Jesus Himself raised them to the priesthood.

(5) They received the fulness of the gifts of the Holy Ghost at Pentecost.

send them to preach. Their preaching during our Lord’s lifetime had for object, to prepare their hearers for the preaching of Christ Himself, even as the precursor had done.

15. He gave them power, etc. They could even raise the dead, but all their miracles were worked in the name of Jesus, not authoritatively, as Jesus Himself worked miracles.

16. to Simon he gave the name Peter. Not necessarily at this moment, though the Evangelist mentions the fact here. The name was really changed when St Peter was brought to our Lord by St Andrew (see St John i. 42).
17-19. Names of the Apostles. These are enumerated four times in Holy Scripture.

We observe, when comparing these four lists, that the names fall naturally in three groups of four. We notice that in all four —

(a) Simon Peter stands first.

(b) Philip comes fifth.

(c) James (son of Alpheus) stands ninth.

(d) Judas Iscariot is named last.

The same names always occur in their own groups, though the order may vary within the divisions, excepting for the four mentioned above.
The word “apostle” signifies one sent forth. St John and St Mark only employ the word once, St Luke frequently uses it.

Additional Notes

The number of the Apostles. There were only twelve chosen by Christ, though others were added later on. By the death of Judas, the Apostolic College was reduced to eleven, but St Matthias took his place. St Paul and St Barnabas are also called apostles.

The Twelve Apostles are by some writers thought to have been typified in the Old Testament by —

(1) The twelve sons of Jacob, prefiguring their authority.

(2)   "         "    fountains of Elim, prefiguring their preaching.

(3)   "         "    stones on the high-priest’s breastplate, prefiguring their example.

(4)   "         "    loaves of proposition, prefiguring spiritual nourishment given by the Apostles.

(5)   "         "    stones taken by Josue from the Jordan, prefiguring their constancy and fortitude.

(6)   "         "    oxen upholding the brazen sea, prefiguring their strength of character.

In the New Testament the Twelve Apostles are supposed to be signified —

(1) By the twelve stars crowning the Spouse of Christ.

(2)    "           "      foundation stones of Jerusalem.

(3)    "           "      gates of pearl of Jerusalem.

 

13. he called unto him whom he would. The Apostles had a special vocation or call from our Lord. Not all who desired to follow Him closely were allowed to do so, while the rich young man, when bidden to follow our Lord, “ went away sad.” So now, men must have a special vocation for the priesthood, for none can- “ take the honour to himself, but he that is called of God, as Aaron was ” (Heb. v. 4).

15. power to heal sicknesses, and to cast out devils. We do not know if our Lord communicated these powers by any exterior ceremony, as when “ he breathed on them and said to them: Receive ye the Holy Ghost” (St John xx. 22). These powers were given as a proof that the Apostles were sent by the Messias on a divine mission. The other gospels give the conditions under which they were to go forth, “ Preach saying,” etc. (St Matt. x. 7, 10). As followers of Him who had not where to lay His head, the Apostles were to practise the strictest poverty and austerity. Their mission “ was to the lost sheep of the house of Israel,” and they were forbidden to preach to the Samaritans or to the Gentiles.

Totus tuus ego sum

Et omnia mea tua sunt;

Tecum semper tutus sum:

Ad Jesum per Mariam.