Saint James the Less

James the Less (Ancient Greek: Ἰάκωβος ὁ μικρός Iakōbos ho mikros) is a figure of early Christianity. He is also called "the Minor", "the Little", "the Lesser", or "the Younger", according to translation; James is styled "the Less" to distinguish him from the Apostle James the Great (also called "James the Elder"), with "Less" meaning younger or shorter rather than less important. James the Great was the brother of John the Apostle. James the Less has traditionally been commemorated along with St. Philip in the Western Christian calendars. In the Roman Catholic Church their feast day was observed on 1 May until 1955, when it was moved to 11 May to accommodate the Feast of St Joseph the Worker on 1 May. A later revision of the calendar moved the feast to 3 May. In many other churches (for example, the Church of England) the feast has never moved from 1 May. He is identified by Jerome as the same person also called "James the Just" and "James, brother of Jesus" in the Bible, thought of by Jerome and others as really a cousin of Jesus, and by Papias of Hierapolis he is also identified with "James, son of Alphaeus", one of the Twelve Apostles. In the New Testament, the name "James" identifies multiple men. James the Less is named only in connection with his mother "Mary", who is also the mother of Joseph, who is called Joses by Mark (Joseph and Joses are variants of the same name). There are four mentions: This "Mary" may have been Mary of Clopas, mentioned only in John 19:25. It is unlikely to be Mary the mother of Jesus since she is not identified as Jesus' mother but only called the mother of James the Less and Joseph/Joses. In Matthew 27:56, she is clearly distinguished from the mother of James, son of Zebedee. According to Jerome, James the Less is identified with James the brother of Jesus and with James, the son of Alphaeus. Jerome first tells that James the Less must be identified with James, the son of Alphaeus.