Vocation: Apostle

Attributes: Battle-axe and a book

Patronage: Invoked for assistance against alcoholism, and for support by recovered alcoholics.

Canonization: pre-congregation

Not much is known with certainty about St. Matthias, but he was chosen as the replacement for the apostle Judas. Matthias is mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles as one of the 72 disciples that Jesus sent out in the gospels. 

Since the betrayal and death of Judas, there was an incomplete number of apostles. The number twelve is extremely important in Jewish culture due to the twelve tribes of Israel. Peter proclaimed: “Therefore, it is necessary that one of the men who accompanied us the whole time the Lord Jesus came and went among us, beginning from the baptism of John until the day on which he was taken up from us, become with us a witness to his resurrection” (Acts 1:21-22).

There were two men who were eligible for the position: Matthias and Joseph, called Barsabbas. The apostles prayed to the Holy Spirit and, after casting lots, decided to choose Matthias.

Matthias is not mentioned anywhere else in the New Testament, but according to tradition, he preached in Cappadocia, Jerusalem, the shores of the Caspian Sea (in modern-day Turkey), and Ethiopia. He is said to have been crucified or stoned somewhere in Jerusalem. 

St. Matthias, pray for us.