Feast of St. James - Brother of the Lord

As the first leader of the Christian congregation of Jerusalem, Apostle James the Just, brother of Jesus, is the patron saint of the Church of Jerusalem and the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate.

Highlights of the feast

Jerusalem, Saint James’s Cathedral near the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and the Greek Patriarchate - In the morning the Orthodox Patriarchate celebrates St. James’s feast day with a solemn Eucharist and a procession from the Saint James Cathedral (”Mar Yaqub”) to the Greek Patriarchate. On this day, round loaves of bread - symbolizing St. James’s blessing – are given to all pilgrims.

Related sites worth visiting:

• The Armenian Cathedral in Jerusalem, in the Armenian Quarter, where Saint James is buried.