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Statue of St. Bartholomew
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Bartholomew
was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus, and is usually identified with Nathanael, alternatively
Nathaniel. Jesus immediately
characterizes him as "Here is a man
in whom there is no deception."
Eusebius of Caesarea's
Ecclesiastical History (v §10) states that after the Ascension, Bartholomew
went on a missionary tour to India, where he left behind a copy of the Gospel
of Matthew. Along with his fellow apostle
Jude, Bartholomew
is reputed to have brought Christianity
to Armenia in the 1st century. Thus both saints are
considered the patron saints of the
Armenian Apostolic Church. In the course of time Bartholomew's name to became associated with medicine and hospitals.
