St. Bartholomew

St. Bartholomew the Apostle is generally identified with Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, whom Philip brought to Jesus. When told the Messiah came from Nazareth, he asked, "Can anything good come from Nazareth?", yet upon meeting the Lord, who declared him "an Israelite in whom there is no guile," he confessed at once, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God, you are the King of Israel." He is numbered among the Twelve in the lists of the Gospels.

Ancient tradition holds that after Pentecost he carried the Gospel far afield, to regions variously named as India, Armenia, and Mesopotamia. The oldest accounts relate that he was martyred in Armenia, by tradition flayed alive, and for this reason Christian art often depicts him holding his own skin, as in Michelangelo's Last Judgment. Honored in East and West alike, he is celebrated on 24 August and is regarded as a patron of Armenia and of those who work with leather.