The other ones

His name was Simon, but he wasn’t THE Simon.

His name was Judas, but he wasn’t THE Judas.

They were each one of the twelve, specially chosen by Christ himself, and yet both of them shared names with colleagues who would be much more famous (or infamous).

They were the other ones.

Thus “other” Simon is often called Simon the Zealot, to distinguish him from Simon Peter, and the “other” Judas is called Judas the son of James or Jude or Jude Thaddeus.

But the only name that really mattered for them was the name of Jesus: a name that they exalted and spread everywhere they could, a name for which they both died.

The Feast of the Apostles Simon and Jude is celebrated on this day.