On this day, June 30 according to the Julian Calendar (July 13 civil calendar), the Georgian Orthodox Church celebrates the Synaxis of the Holy Glorious and All-Praised Twelve Apostles.
The feast of the Synaxis of the Twelve Apostles is one of the most ancient celebrations of the Church. While the Church devotes a separate feast day to commemorate the individual struggles and labors of each of the holy Apostles, on the day following the feast of the Chief Apostles Peter and Paul (June 29 / July 12), the Church honors all twelve together.
The Holy Twelve Apostles are:
Peter (Simon), son of Jonah, brother of Andrew — first among the Apostles by his bold confession of faith, crucified upside down in Rome under Nero.
Andrew the First-Called, brother of Peter — the first to follow Christ; preached in Scythia, Byzantium, and Greece; crucified on an X-shaped cross in Patras.
James (Jacob), son of Zebedee, brother of John — the first of the Twelve to be martyred, beheaded by order of Herod Agrippa in Jerusalem (Acts 12:2).
John the Theologian, son of Zebedee — the Beloved Apostle; wrote the Gospel of John, three Epistles, and the Apocalypse; the only Apostle to die peacefully in old age, in Ephesus.
Philip — preached in Phrygia and was crucified at Hierapolis.
Bartholomew (Nathanael) — preached in India and Armenia; martyred by being flayed alive.
Thomas — evangelized Parthia, Persia, and India; martyred by a spear in India; patron of those in doubt who persevere to faith.
Matthew the Evangelist — former tax collector; wrote the first Gospel; preached in Ethiopia and Persia.
James, son of Alphaeus — preached in Judea and Egypt; martyred by stoning and clubbing in Jerusalem.
Thaddaeus (Judas, son of James) — preached in Edessa and Persia; martyred by arrows.
Simon the Zealot — preached in Egypt, Mauritania, and Britain; martyred in Persia.
Matthias — chosen by lot to replace Judas Iscariot; preached in Judea, Cappadocia, and Ethiopia; martyred by stoning.
The Church has kept information about this feast since the fourth century. By gathering the commemoration of all twelve Apostles into one day, the Church affirms that the mission of Christ, entrusted to these men, was accomplished in every corner of the known world, and that the witness of the Apostles forms the unbroken foundation of the holy Church.
May the intercessions of the Holy Glorious and All-Praised Twelve Apostles be with us all.