Blog Post #7-Discipleship

Sophia Bouzid's Discipleship Blogpost:)

I chose this image of a man climbing up a mountain because to me, it resembles the persistence, strength, and courage of the Apostles. It took courage to openly follow and love Jesus when he was alive to protect them, but it took immense strength to continue spreading Jesus' message after his death.

• What did you learn about the original disciples from the group projects?
• I learned that the original disciples share multiple commonalities and even some biological relations. For example, the apostles Paul and Andrew were brothers in real life. The apostles Jude, James the Lesser, and John were all supposedly related through the Virgin Mary, and were thought to be cousins. I also learned that all the apostles died violent deaths as martyrs except for John the Apostle, who died of old age in 100 A.D., in Patmos, Greece. Some of the ways that the Apostles died include stoning, crucifixion, decapitation, and being skinned alive. These methods were gruesome ways to die, which is why the Apostles are honored for their strong faiths and willingness to die in the name of Jesus Christ.
• Which disciple did you find most interesting and why?
• The disciple that stood out to me as particularly interesting was St. Jude. St. Jude was Jesus' cousin, and extremely close to the prophet. He was a simple farmer in Galilee before becoming a devout follower of Jesus. St. Jude is the patron saint of desperate cases, which is why St. Jude's Children's Hospital is named after the Saint. I find this so interesting that families who's children are dying of terminal illnesses such as cancer put their faith in one of Jesus' closest and most devout Apostles. He was martyred for his faith 65 AD in Beirut, in the Roman province of Syria with an ax blow to his head. Also, over intersession I am traveling to Italy with my dad and am planning on visiting St. Peter's Basilica, where St. Jude's remains are buried.
• Based on what you learned, what are the characteristics of people who follow Christ?
• The characteristics of Christ's followers include those that Jesus portrayed, but also human, imperfect characteristics as well. Numerous Apostles continued to preach God's word all over the Roman empire and to the far East. They were faithful, loyal, and courageous people who risked their own lives to defend Jesus' word even after His Crucifixion. Almost every Apostle of Jesus was martyred in a gruesome way while spreading the word of God. However, Jesus' followers were also imperfect. One notable example of this was when Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus for money. His greed serves as a reminder that no one is perfect but Christ, which is why no human has the right to judge another.
• Do you feel that you display any of these characteristics? Why or why not?
• Personally, I try to be a good person everyday. This means that I try to remain honest, mindful of other people's feelings, and kind. I am very loyal to my family, just as the Apostles were to Jesus. I feel that I could improve on speaking up for what I believe in, even though it may mean that people will judge me for it. This is a quality that I admire most about the apostles and would like to strengthen within myself. I also work everyday to strengthen my faith, which is a challenge because of how busy and stressful my is.

Sources:

Image:

“Mountain Climb.” Spiritualquotes.com, 2014, freespiritualquotes.com/spiritual-quotes-about-courage/.

<Information came from Group Presentations>