St. James is the Patron Saint of our parish here in Ballinora.
His name is quite familiar to us as one of the Apostles.  There doesn't seem to much to inspire devotion.  He said little that the Gospels recorded and none of his writing were left behind.
However over time St. James has inspired a huge devotion that has drawn millions of people from every corner of the globe to his shrine in Spain where many miracles have been attributed to his powerful intercession.  James was one of the first Apostles to be called by Jesus along with his brother John.  The Gospels tell us that James and John along with Peter were the most trusted Apostles of Jesus.
James was the first Apostle to be martyred for Christ in Jerusalem in 44AD.
Legend tells us that James travelled to Spain in the early years of his ministry and it was when he returned to Jerusalem that he was executed at the hands of Herod.  It is believed that disciples stole his body and went in rudderless boat that drifted to Northern Spain and that is where he is buried.
The Camino de Santiago (The Way of St. James) is one of the most important Christian Pilgrimages.  It is a network of walks all leading to the shrine of St. James in the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela.  The scallop shell is the symbol of St. James and can be seen in our Church both outside over the main door and inside on the wall on the right hand side as you enter the main body of the Church.