Saint Lazarus of Bethany – also known as Lazarus the Four-Days Dead, Lazarus the Friend of Christ, or simply Lazarus of the Four Days – holds a distinctive place in Catholic tradition and hagiography as both a figure of the New Testament and as a revered saint in the early Church. His story is one of profound mystery, grace, and resurrection, which made him a powerful symbol of hope in eternal life and of the transformative power of Christ.
📖 Biblical Account
The primary account of Saint Lazarus is found in the Gospel according to Saint John, chapter 11. He was the brother of Martha and Mary (traditionally identified with Mary Magdalene), and the three siblings lived in Bethany, a small village near Jerusalem. The Gospel describes them as intimate friends of Jesus, and their home was a place of refuge for Him.
✝️ The Raising of Lazarus
“Lazarus, come forth!”
— John 11:43
Lazarus fell gravely ill, and his sisters sent word to Jesus. However, Our Lord delayed His arrival, and Lazarus died. By the time Jesus reached Bethany, Lazarus had been dead for four days—a detail the Gospel emphasizes to show the finality of his death. Despite the mourning, Jesus commanded the tombstone to be removed and called Lazarus forth. To the astonishment of all, Lazarus came out alive, still wrapped in burial cloths.
This miracle—raising a man who had been dead for four days—was so astonishing that it incited both awe and fear. Many believed in Jesus because of it, and the Jewish authorities intensified their plans to put Jesus to death. They also sought to kill Lazarus, as his very life was a testimony to Christ’s divinity (cf. John 12:10–11).
🕊️ Tradition after the Resurrection
The Gospel of John does not tell us what happened to Lazarus after his resurrection. But early Christian tradition and Eastern and Western hagiographies expand on his later life:
📜 According to Tradition:
After the Resurrection and Ascension of Our Lord, there was increasing hostility toward the disciples and those closely associated with Jesus. Lazarus, Martha, and Mary, along with others (including Maximin and Cedonius, according to some traditions), were set adrift in a boat without oars or sails. Through divine providence, they reached the southern coast of Gaul (modern-day France), specifically Marseilles.
Lazarus is said to have become the first bishop of Marseilles, evangelizing the region and converting many to the Faith.
He is sometimes conflated with a later Bishop Lazarus of Aix-en-Provence (4th century), though older traditions assert the Lazarus of Bethany lived and died in Gaul in the 1st century.
Alternatively, Eastern Orthodox tradition holds that Lazarus fled to Cyprus, where he lived for another thirty years and was consecrated by the Apostles as the first Bishop of Kition (modern-day Larnaca). There he preached the Gospel and died peacefully. A tomb was discovered in Larnaca in the 9th century with the inscription: “Lazarus, the friend of Christ.”