24 August 2022 Saint Bartholemew, Apostle
And in the spirit he carried me away to a great, high mountain and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God…And the wall of the city has twelve foundations, and on them are the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
Apocalypse 21:9-14, NRSV
In today’s reading, the writer of Apocalypse gives us a glorious vision of the holy city, Jerusalem, coming from heaven as the bride of the Lord. The glittering beauty and solidity of this city, the glorious dwelling place of God with his people, is an image of joy and hope. The writer has used the best visual imagery possible to describe a spiritual perfection that no words can fully do justice to. Amongst the details he describes is a reference to the city walls having twelve foundations on which are inscribed the names of the twelve apostles. The right place for God’s people is a place built of the secure foundation given by the apostles. Today we celebrate the Feast of Saint Bartholomew – one of the twelve. He is perhaps one of the least mentioned in the gospels although the little that we do know shows us how he contributed to giving a firm foundation to the church. It is thought that he is the apostle whom Jesus referred to as being “incapable of deceit”. Tradition holds that after witnessing Jesus’ Ascension, Bartholomew went on a missionary journey to India and then to Armenia where he died a martyr’s death.
- Why do you think the apostles are likened to the foundations of a city?
- How do you envisage the life of eternity?
You may like to read and reflect on the whole reading from which the above extract is taken and reflect on the images given by the writer.
