The Apostle
Simon the Zealot is the most obscure of all the apostles. He was an apostle—that much the Bible tells us. But that’s about all we know.
We also know he was a Zealot. A Zealot? Not familiar with the group? They we’re basically the Jewish mafia. You didn’t want to mess around with them. The group started as a way of getting the Roman Empire out of the Holy Land. The Jews had been ridiculously taxed. These weren’t the Bernie Sanders kind of fanatics who waved their hands in the air and rallied people up, but were ultimately peaceful; these were the stabby kind of fanatics—the kind that would stab anyone they thought to be a traitor.
So, Simon was a knife-carrying member of his local Zealot club? Possibly, but probably not. Not all Zealots were as radical as others. The main component of all Zealot’s was they wanted Rome out of their land.
When you look at all the disciples, you begin to see that they each had unique characteristics that made them a diverse—yet perfect—bunch. You had the leaders, the philosophers, and the caregivers. And you have Simon the Zealot—a man willing to carry his passions to the extreme. The Zealots were a violent bunch of revolutionaries; the disciples were peace-loving group of revolutionaries—the contrast here is hard to miss. One cannot say with certainty why Jesus picked the disciples he picked, but one cannot help but see how he turned a man who must have been full of fiery rage into a man who was full of fiery love.
There are lots of stories of what happened to Simon the Zealot—some say he traveled as far as England; most believe he was martyred—murdered, no doubt, by the souls full of the same rage he used to have
We also know he was a Zealot. A Zealot? Not familiar with the group? They we’re basically the Jewish mafia. You didn’t want to mess around with them. The group started as a way of getting the Roman Empire out of the Holy Land. The Jews had been ridiculously taxed. These weren’t the Bernie Sanders kind of fanatics who waved their hands in the air and rallied people up, but were ultimately peaceful; these were the stabby kind of fanatics—the kind that would stab anyone they thought to be a traitor.
So, Simon was a knife-carrying member of his local Zealot club? Possibly, but probably not. Not all Zealots were as radical as others. The main component of all Zealot’s was they wanted Rome out of their land.
When you look at all the disciples, you begin to see that they each had unique characteristics that made them a diverse—yet perfect—bunch. You had the leaders, the philosophers, and the caregivers. And you have Simon the Zealot—a man willing to carry his passions to the extreme. The Zealots were a violent bunch of revolutionaries; the disciples were peace-loving group of revolutionaries—the contrast here is hard to miss. One cannot say with certainty why Jesus picked the disciples he picked, but one cannot help but see how he turned a man who must have been full of fiery rage into a man who was full of fiery love.
There are lots of stories of what happened to Simon the Zealot—some say he traveled as far as England; most believe he was martyred—murdered, no doubt, by the souls full of the same rage he used to have
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