Catholicism Unveiled

What Hides Behind the Public Image?

Mary Ann Collins, A Former Catholic Nun

Chapter 10

We often hear the expression, “according to tradition.” But how reliable are these statements? The following illustrates that people’s confidence in these traditions can be disproportionate to the evidence supporting them.

According to tradition, around 40 A.D., the Apostle James (the Greater) was in Saragossa, Spain. He was discouraged, because his mission had failed. Mary appeared to him. She gave him a pillar (column) of jasper wood and a small wooden statue of herself. She also told him to build a church in her honor. This is considered to be the first apparition of Mary.[1] However, there are some problems with this story.

In the first place, this seems to be contradicted by Scripture. The Apostle Paul wrote the Book of Romans about 57 A.D.[2] This was about 17 years after Mary supposedly appeared to the Apostle James in Spain. Paul said that he wanted to go to Spain (Romans 15:24, 28). A few verses earlier, Paul said that he made a practice of only preaching the Gospel where it had not been preached before. He told the Roman Christians:

“Yea, so have I strived to preach the gospel, not where Christ was named, lest I should build upon another man’s foundation: But as it is written, To whom he was not spoken of, they shall see: and they that have not heard shall understand.” (Romans 15:20-21)

When Paul went to cities, he went to preach the Gospel, or to strengthen churches that he had already established. Why would Paul want to go to Spain, if the Apostle James was already ministering there? Paul said that he did not want to “build upon another man’s foundation.”

In the second place, in 40 A.D., Mary may well have been alive. (It was only a few years after Jesus was crucified.) If she was alive, then how could she “appear” to anybody?

In the third place, the early Christians didn’t have churches. They met in people’s homes. (See Acts 2:46; Acts 20:20; Romans 16:5; 1 Corinthians 16:19; Colossians 4:15; and Philemon 1:2. These verses all refer to churches that met in people’s homes.) The Book of Acts ends around 60 A.D., when Paul was in Rome. There is no record of any church buildings. (This is about 20 years after Mary supposedly appeared to James and told him to build a church in her honor.)

Furthermore, starting with the stoning of Stephen, Christians were killed for their faith. It is basic common sense that people who are being killed for their faith do not want to call attention to their religious gatherings. That is not a good time to build church buildings.

According to tradition, in the eighth century, a hermit “discovered” the body of the Apostle James (the Greater) in Saragossa, Spain.[3]

This discovery is questionable in view of the fact that the Catholic Church has a history of fraudulent relics. (Relics are bodies of saints, or portions of saints’ bodies. They can also be items that are closely associated with saints, such as clothing. They also include things such as pieces of the cross on which Jesus was crucified.)

Relics were important for raising money. A cathedral without a relic of a saint lacked an important source of revenue.[4] Therefore, cathedrals had a strong motive for finding some way to produce a relic of a well-known saint.

Fraudulent relics were sold. People dug up bodies from graveyards and pretended that the corpses were saints. This enabled them to sell the bodies as relics. Selling relics was a profitable business. They were highly valued, because they were believed to have spiritual power to protect people from demons, to give them victory in war, and to bless them in other ways. People wore small relics on chains around their necks, as charms for protection. Churches were built over the bodies of saints. Important relics drew pilgrims, which brought money. Bodies of saints were stolen, and portions of them were sold for money. Kings and bishops took great risks to steal the bodies of important saints. Towns that had relics prospered and expanded.[5]

A great cathedral was built in Saragossa, in honor of Our Lady of the Pillar. (It is in an area of Saragossa known as Campostella.) It is a major pilgrimage site. The wooden statue of Mary, and the pillar (the column of jasper wood), can be seen on special occasions.[6]

The cathedral in Saragossa has a statue of Mary that wears clothing. It wears a crown of gold and diamonds. It has a wardrobe of clothes that are embroidered with gold and studded with jewels.[7]

According to tradition, the head of the Apostle James (the Greater) is buried in Jerusalem, in the Cathedral of Saint James. This conflicts with the Saragossa tradition.[8] However, it seems to be consistent with Scripture. King Herod had James killed in Jerusalem. (Acts 12:1-2)