Santiago in legend

Santiago is the Spanish name for St James, brother of John and one of Jesus ‘ closest disciples, though—or because—he was a bit of a screwup at times.

In yesterday’s post, I looked at what the New Testament had to say about him. His life in legend is even weirder.

Somehow this Palestinian Jewish fisherman wound up as the patron saint of Spain, which is about as likely as me becoming the patron saint of the moon.

The legend goes that after the Resurrection, James undertook missionary work in the Iberian peninsula, possibly with the miraculous help of the Virgin Mary. Being a bit of a grump, he only got a few converts before deciding to return to Palestine, where he was martyred.

His remains were then miraculously conveyed back to Spain, where they had another miraculous escape from hostile pagans. They were eventually buried at what is now Santiago, where they were “discovered” by a pious hermit in the 8th century.

Once the Catholic Church signed on, it was game on. Over the ages, millions of pilgrims have made their trek to pay respect to the holy (if occasional screwup) apostle.
It was probably the most effective tourism/public relations coup in history, still paying dividends today.

There may be a lesson for West Virginia in this. Maybe we should “discover” some sacred relics there, like maybe St Peter’s laptop or Mary Magdalene’s yoga mat, and do likewise.

Hey, it worked in Spain—and I’m living proof.