Hieromartyr Symeon Kinsman

Hieromartyr Simeon, Kinsman of the Lord, Apostle of the Seventy, was the son of Cleopas, brother of the righteous Joseph the Betrothed, making him a cousin of the Lord Jesus Christ in the flesh. In his mature years he witnessed the Savior's miracles, came to believe in Him, and was numbered among the Seventy lesser apostles. After the martyrdom of St. James, the Lord's brother and first bishop of Jerusalem, the apostles, disciples, and relatives of the Savior unanimously chose Simeon as his successor to the see of Jerusalem. For about forty years Bishop Simeon wisely governed the Jerusalem Church, guiding it through the harrowing years of the Jewish-Roman wars and the destruction of Jerusalem. During the reign of Emperor Trajan, he was denounced to the proconsul Atticus as a descendant of King David and a confessor of the Christian faith. Despite his advanced age of about 120 years, Bishop Simeon endured savage torture and was crucified around the year 107, following the example of his Lord and Master. The Church commemorates him on April 27/May 10.