St. Bartholomew is the disciple introduced to our Lord by Philip under the name of Nathanael, whom He praised in the words: “That is a true Israelite in whom there is no guile.” St. Like mentions him among the twelve whom Christ, after a night of prayer, chose to be witnesses of His life, His teaching and His miracles, and after His Resurrection, preachers of the Gospel. It is difficult to say where the field of his apostolate was. There is a tradition that he was flayed alive, as Cibo’s magnificent white marble statue in Milan cathedral shows him. His relics were brought from Benevento to his church on an island in the Tiber at Rome. His name occurs among the Apostles in the Canon of the Mass.