Saint James, the Brother of the Lord, and the “Brothers of the Lord”

On October 23, the Orthodox Church commemorates the Holy Apostle James, the Brother of the Lord, the first Bishop of Jerusalem and a martyr of the Church. His feast offers an opportunity to become better acquainted with him and to examine the question of those referred to in the New Testament as the “brothers of the Lord.” According to the prevailing Orthodox tradition, James was a son of Joseph from a previous marriage. His family relationship with Jesus is therefore understood through Joseph, the betrothed of the Theotokos and the man regarded as Jesus’ father under Jewish Law, rather than through a shared biological mother in the Virgin Mary.

The “Brothers of the Lord” and Church Tradition

The Gospels name four “brothers” of Jesus: James, Joses or Joseph, Simon, and Jude. They also mention His “sisters,” without recording their names (Matt. 13:55–56; Mark 6:3). These passages do not provide detailed genealogies of the individuals concerned; interpretations of their relationship with the Lord thus became associated with different traditions concerning His family background.

Relevant testimony appears in the Protoevangelium of James , an apocryphal text that does not…