Saint Matthias replaced Judas as the twelfth Apostle, as described in the Acts of the Apostles.
Saint Matthias is the patron saint of carpenters, tailors, those with smallpox, and in prayers for perseverance and for hope.
His feast was originally celebrated on February 24 (or February 25 in leap years) but in 1969 was moved to May 14 so as to be celebrated outside of Lent. He is often seen pictured with an axe; this is because it is believed that he was beheaded by an axe.
St. Matthias was born at Bethlehem of the Tribe of Judah. From his early childhood he studied the Law of God under the guidance of St. Simeon.
When our Lord Jesus Christ revealed Himself to the world, St Matthias believed in Him, and followed Him constantly, and was numbered among the Seventy-two Apostles, whom the Lord “sent them two by two before Him ….” (Luke 10:1).
After the Ascension of the Saviour, St Matthias was chosen by lots to replace Judas Iscariot as one of the Twelve Apostles (Acts 1:15-26). After the Descent of the Holy Spirit, the Apostle Matthias preached the Gospel at Jerusalem and in Judea together with the other Apostles (Acts 6:2, 8:14). From Jerusalem he went with the Apostles Peter and Andrew to Syrian Antioch and was in Cappadocian city of Tianum and Sinope. Here the Apostle Matthias was locked into prison, from which he was miraculously freed by St Andrew the First disciple.
Once, pagans forced the saint to drink a poison potion. He drank it, and not only did he himself remain unharmed, but he also healed other prisoners who had been blinded by the potion. When St Matthias left the prison, the pagans searched for him in vain, for he had become invisible to them. Another time, when the pagans had become enraged intending to kill the Apostle, the earth opened up and engulfed them.
The Apostle Matthias journeyed after this to Amasea, a city on the shore of the sea. According to Church Tradition, he preached at Pontine Ethiopia (presently Western Georgia) and Macedonia. He was frequently subjectedto deadly peril, but the Lord preserved him to preach the Gospel. The Apostle Matthias returned to Judea and did not cease to enlighten his countrymen with the light of Christ’s teachings. He worked great miracles in the Name of Lord Jesus and converted a great many to have faith in Christ.
The Jewish High Priest Ananias hated Christ and earlier had commanded the Apostle James, Brother of the Lord, to be flung down from the heights of the Temple, and now he ordered that the Apostle Matthias be arrested and brought for judgement before the Sanhedrin at Jerusalem.
The impious Ananias uttered a speech in which he blasphemously slandered the Lord. Using the prophecies of the Old Testament, the Apostle Matthias demonstrated that Jesus Christ is the True God, the promised Messiah, the Son of God, Consubstantial and Coeternal with God the Father. After these words the Apostle Matthias was sentenced to death by the Sanhedrin and stoned.
But the death of St. Matthias is shrouded in some uncertainty, with different traditions outlining the details of his martyrdom. One tradition suggests he was crucified at Colchis, while another indicates he was stoned at Jerusalem and then beheaded. Additionally, some sources mention him dying in Sebastopolis and being buried there. However The Apostle Matthias received the martyr’s crown of glory in the year 63.
As we celebrate the feast of St. Matthias let us be mindful of this saint and seek his intercession.
– By Gladys Da Silva