He is “the Greater” because he was called to the apostolate earlier than St. James the Less. St. James the Greater belonged to the close circle of disciples privileged to be an eyewitness at the Transfiguration along with other important events in Jesus' life. St. James the Greater was also the first Apostle to give his life as a martyr.  A tradition in late antiquity held that the apostles divided up the world into territories to be evangelized, with Spain falling to St. James. In the ninth century a Galician monk announced that a star had led him to a field where he found the remains of the saint. This “field of the star” became the city of Compostela, one of the most important medieval pilgrimage destinations.

The scallop shell is a symbol of St. James, the Greater, our patron saint.

Various legends surround the origins of this symbol and its association with St. James. Most likely though the scallop shell was something pilgrims used on their journey to the final resting place of St. James in Compostela- pilgrims would eat with, drink with and even bathe with a scallop shell. The scallop represents our own journeys of faith which begin at Baptism and which end when we will see Christ face to face.