James, son of Alphaeus times that James son of Alphaeus is mentioned directly in the Bible (each time in the list of the Apostles) the only family relationship stated is that his father is Alphaeus. In two lists of the Apostles, the other James and John are listed as brothers and that their father is Zebedee. Mark the Evangelist is the earliest known source in the Bible to mention "James, son of Alphaeus" as one of the twelve Apostles. Mark the Evangelist mentions a "James, son of Alphaeus" only once and this is in his list of the 12 Apostles . At the beginning
Epistle of James John Calvin and others suggested that the author was the Apostle James, son of Alphaeus, who is referred to as James the Less. The Protestant reformer Martin Luther denied it was the work of an apostle and termed it an "epistle of straw" as compared to some other books in the New Testament, partly because of the conflict he thought it raised with Paul on the doctrine of justification (see below). The Holy Tradition of the Orthodox Church teaches that the Book of James was "written not by either of the apostles, but by the “brother of the Lord” who