James of Jerusalem 		October 23
Brother of the Lord, Martyr
In the New Testament, James is regularly identified as Jesus’ “brother”, and his parents may be presumed to be Mary and Joseph. Only the later dogma of Mary’s perpetual virginity leads to other hypotheses. Since he is listed first among the brothers of Jesus, he was presumably the eldest (Matthew 13:55; Mark 6:3). James of Jerusalem is not to be confused with James the Great, brother of John and son of Zebedee (see 25 July), nor with James the Less, son of Alphaeus (see 1 May).
At some stage during Jesus’ ministry, his brothers did not believe in him (John 7:5), but James was one of those who saw the risen Christ (1 Corinthians 15:7). This appearance could have been the occasion of his conversion, but more probably he, like his mother, had joined Jesus at some point before the crucifixion.
Paul found James to be one of the reputed pillars of the church in Jerusalem (Galatians 2:9). These pillars, including Peter, James and John, reserved to themselves the mission to the Jews, while Paul and Barnabas were to go to the Gentiles. It would seem to be after Peter’s departure from the city that James gathered around himself a college of presbyters (elders), whose spokesman he was at the Jerusalem Council (Acts 15:13-21). James’ leadership of the Jerusalem church was now established. At the council, James adopted a mediating position between those who wished complete observance of the ceremonial requirements of the Mosaic Law, and those Gentile Christians who sought exemption from them. James appears to have offered the compromise position that made table fellowship between Jewish and Gentile Christians easier. 
Some time after that in Galatia Paul was challenged by a group of strict Judaizers, who claimed the backing of James (Galatians 2:12). Whether this accurately portrays James’s opinion is not clear, but James did advise Paul to join in a Temple ceremony when he was in Jerusalem (Acts 21:17-26). James seems, then, to have wanted to uphold traditional Jewish piety; though how that related to his Christian faith is uncertain. He was in any case sufficiently liberal in his views to be put to death for them, which contrasts with a view of James, found especially in Jewish Christian circles, that he was a staunch upholder of the Mosaic tradition and piety. In 62 CE, during the interregnum between two governors, who would otherwise have tried the case, the high priest brought charges against James and others of violating the Mosaic Law and had them stoned to death. Josephus reports that most fair-minded citizens were offended at this action.
The letter of James in the New Testament is traditionally ascribed to the Lord’s brother, but the text gives no clear support to this. The apocryphal Infancy Gospel of James, also attributed to James, comes from the second century and has no historical value.
For Liturgical Use
There is no good reason to doubt that James was the son of Mary and Joseph. He came to believe in his brother soon after the resurrection at the latest. One of the reputed pillars of the church in Jerusalem, he became the leader of a college of presbyters there. He upheld the principle that Jewish Christian believers should continue to observe the Jewish Law, but his views were sufficiently liberal that in 62 CE he was stoned to death on a charge brought by the high priest of violating the Mosaic Law.
Sentence, Prayers and Readings as in A New Zealand Prayer Book - He Karakia Mihinare o Aotearoa, page 668