Today's Saint (February 24): Matthias the Apostle

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Matthias filled the place of the twelfth apostle, following the suicide of the traitor Judas (Acts 1:15-25).

The conditions necessary for becoming one of the twelve apostles (related in the day's epistle reading from Acts of the Apostles) was to have been a disciple of Our Lord from the time of His Baptism to His Ascension. Consequently, the person must have been a witness to the Resurrected Christ.

The eleven apostles prayed to God to have it known whether Joseph Barsabas or Matthias should be chosen. After drawing lots, Matthias was chosen, and was numbered with the eleven Apostles.

May Holy Mother Church always be preserved from false Apostles and be ordered and guided by faithful and true pastors. (The day's collect, page E 32, The People's Anglican Missal)

The accompanying picture is the statue of Saint Matthias which is located at the Saint Matthias Abbey in Trier, Germany, where the relics of the Apostle are kept.

Vigil Propers
Prayer book propers
Catholic Encyclopedia Article

Books Worth Considering
The Twelve : The Lives of the Apostles After Calvary
The Inner Circle : Studying the Lives of 13 Apostles
The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church
The Oxford Dictionary of Saints (Oxford Paperback Reference)
The Penguin Dictionary of Saints: Third Edition (Dictionary, Penguin)

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