From the ancient Greek language, the name apostle is translated as "messenger, ambassador". The Christian Church distinguishes the apostles in a separate order of holiness. These people are considered the closest disciples of Jesus Christ.
In the matter of his public ministry, Jesus Christ chose his closest disciples. It is they who are called the Church of the Holy Apostles. Christ explained to the apostles the doctrine of God, revealed the basic moral truths of Christianity. The apostles were with Christ during his miracles, as well as in the main and most important moments of Christ's life (with the exception of the resurrection). Sometimes Christ took three disciples with him as witnesses to his great miracles. So, for example, Peter, James and John witnessed the transfiguration of Jesus Christ, the resurrection of the daughter of Jairus.
Among the apostles, 12 and 70 people are distinguished. The first to be called to the apostleship were Andrew the First-Called, Peter, John, James of Zebedee, Matthew, Philip, Bartholomew, Simon the Zealot, Thomas, Jacob Alfeyev, Thaddeus (Judas Jacob), Matthias. They are called apostles from 12.
Later, another 70 apostles were chosen by Christ.
The main task of the holy apostles was to spread the Christian faith on earth. The apostles were entrusted with the authority to absolve man from sins, as well as to baptize nations in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.
Some of the apostles wrote sacred texts that were included in the books of the New Testament. So the apostles Matthew, Luke, Mark and John wrote the Gospels, therefore they are called Evangelists. Luke and Mark were from the 70 apostles. In addition, in the New Testament you can find the epistles of the holy apostles Peter, James, John the Evangelist, Jude James and the Apostle Paul, as well as the book of the Acts of the Holy Apostles by the Evangelist Luke.
The Apostle Paul is a great individual. He was not a witness to the miracles of Christ. Initially he was a persecutor of Christianity. Only after his conversion did Saul (Paul) become one of the most zealous preachers of Christianity.
The holy apostles received the authority from God to heal people, cast out demons, and perform other miracles. Many of them ended their earthly lives with martyrdom. Of the 12 apostles, it is known that only John the Theologian and the Apostle Judas did not die as a result of torment. However, during their lives they also underwent persecution for confessing the Christian faith.
