Simon was born around 1st century AD in Judea, Roman Empire. He was a close relative of Jesus and was called "Cananean" (Matthew 10:4), or "Zealot" (Luke 6:15), to distinguish him from Simon Peter. Both titles signify the same thing in two languages: Cananean, from the Hebbrew "qana," and Zealot, from the Greek "zelos," both mean "jealous and passionate."
Simon was previously affiliated with the Zealot Party, which was a fanatic religious and political group engaged in active resistance against Roman occupiers and their Jewish collaborators. They refused to pay taxes to Caesar and called for rebellion against the Roman Empire. Bands of hotheaded rebels would make the guerrilla raids against Roman camps in the countryside of Palestine. The actions of these insurgents resulted, not in getting rid of the Romans, but only in in increasing the Roman desire to crush the bad-tempered Jewish population. Although Simon was a fearless revolutionist, he gradually converted his flaming nature until he became an apostle of peace.
Simon was the very opposite of Matthew who, working as a tax collector on behalf of the Romans, was considered impure and a traitor of the Jewish people. Indeed, Jesus called his apostles from any situation and walk of life, making no discriminations or favoritism.
During the Last Supper, Simon showed Jesus and his disciples that he had or founded two swords in order to protect Jesus from his enemies. He gave one sword to Peter and one for himself. The sword that Peter used cut off the ear of the temple guard or soldier named Malchus.
After the death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus, the apostles preached the Gospel to the Jewish believers and built a Church in Jerusalem. They proclaimed Jesus, as the Messiah and the Son of the Living God.
According to the "Acts of Simon and Jude" and the "Golden Legend," after Pentecost he went to preach the Gospel in Samaria and in Suanis, Persia, where he suffered martyrdom by sawing him in half by his executioners while still alive. He died together with Jude Thaddeus in about 65 AD.
Simon the Zealot was venerated in Roman and Eastern Catholic Church, Oriental and Eastern Orthodox Church, Anglicanism Church, and Lutheran Church. Like Saint Jude Thaddeus, his feast day is on October 28 based on Western Christianity. Saint Simon, the Zealot is a patron saint of sawyers, tanners, and curriers.
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Book of Ancient Saints: Volume 1
No FicciónSaints are people, who are accepted as being holy, religious, and virtuous. In Christianity, more than thousands of saints gave up their life for God or died for Jesus Christ. This volume are true-to-life stories of saints who were born between BC...
