FRIDAY, MAY 03, 2024
Alvarinho Luis
On August 24, the Catholic Church observes feast of St Bartholomew. He is the Jewish man from Cana in Galilee whom Jesus chose as one of his apostles. His name appears sixth in the lists of the three Gospels (Matthew 10:3, Mark 3:18, and Luke 6:14), and seventh in the Acts list (1:13). The name Bartholomaios, which is an old Hebrew name for a ploughman, meaning "son of Tolmai." Bartholomew is referred to in St John's Gospel as Nathaniel.
The Gospel passage read at Mass on the feast of Saint Bartholomew on August 24 is the passage from Jn 1:45-50 where Nathaniel is introduced to Jesus by his friend Phillip and Jesus says of him “Here is a true child of Israel. There is no duplicity in him (1:47).”
The Apostle’s character is presented to us in this brief and beautiful dialogue with the Lord Jesus. He is a good Jew, honest and innocent, a just man, who devotes much time to quiet reflection and prayer. Jesus’ mention that “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you (1:48),” Nathaniel responded “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel (1:49)!”
He was one of the chosen few apostles there when Jesus appeared on the Sea of Galilee following his resurrection (Jn. 21:2). Tradition says that Bartholomew travelled to India as a missionary, shortly after the Ascension. He landed on Kallianpur, coastal Karnataka, which was an international port with an ancient Jewish settlement. Then, over the course of seven years, he travelled the length and breadth of the Konkan coast, preaching and founding Christian communities in coastal Karnataka, Goa, and the coastal regions of Maharashtra (including Sindhudurg, Ratnagiri, Raigad, Mumbai, Kalyan, and Thane). Everywhere along the Konkan shore, there were Jewish colonies.
He, along with apostle Jude Thaddeus, carried out missionary activities in other countries and he was martyred in 62 AD. His relics are thought by some to be preserved in the church of St Bartholomew at Rome. St Bartholomew is credited with many other miracles related to weight of objects. He is revered by cobblers, leather workers, plasterers, tanners, trappers, cheese and salt merchants in Florence, butchers, bookbinders, and butchers. He is also honored as the protector against twitching and neurological disorders.
According to historians, names of places were derived from the saint. The saint's name "Bar" plus "Tolmai" plus "Ooru" may have inspired the name "Barthuru" or subsequently "Barkuru" of the town of Barkur in Udupi, Karnataka. St Bartholomew's Church has two churches in Goa, one each in Chorao and Chicalim. In Chorao, Igreja de São Bartolomeu was constructed in 1569. The Goa-based Jesuit Society founded the Chicalim church in 1625, and it was later restored in 1747. Originally known as St Bartholomew church, it was eventually changed to honour St Francis Xavier.
The feast of Novidade on August 24 in Tiswadi is invariably homage to the saint with regards to farming traditions.
