The friend of Jesus raised from the dead in the Gospel of John, brother of Martha and Mary, later honored in tradition as a bishop in southern France.

Saint Lazarus of Bethany is the man described in the Gospel of John as having been raised from the dead by Jesus after four days in the tomb, an event recorded as one of the most significant of Christ’s miracles. He was the brother of Martha and Mary of Bethany, both close friends of Jesus. Beyond the Gospel account, a later tradition, especially strong in Provence, France, holds that Lazarus traveled there and became the first bishop of Marseille, though this tradition rests on pious legend rather than documented first-century history.

Quick Facts

• Born: Bethany, Judea, 1st century
• Died: 1st century (tradition places his death in France)
• Venerated as: Friend of Jesus; traditionally first bishop of Marseille

Who Was Saint Lazarus of Bethany?

The Gospel of John presents Lazarus as a beloved friend of Jesus whose death and four days in the tomb became the occasion for one of the most dramatic miracles recorded in the Gospels, when Jesus called him forth from the tomb alive. He lived in Bethany, near Jerusalem, with his sisters Martha and Mary, both of whom also appear prominently in the Gospel narratives as close friends of Jesus.

Historical Setting

The biblical account of Lazarus is set firmly within the last period of Jesus’s public ministry in Judea, shortly before his own Passion, and John’s Gospel presents the raising of Lazarus as a direct catalyst for the growing determination of Jewish religious authorities to move against Jesus. The later tradition placing Lazarus in Provence reflects a broader pattern of medieval French devotion connecting various New Testament figures to the early evangelization of Gaul, a tradition honored liturgically and devotionally even though it cannot be verified as first-century history.

Why the Church Remembers Saint Lazarus of Bethany

The Church remembers Lazarus above all for what his own Gospel story reveals about Christ: a sign, in the words of the Gospel itself, meant to strengthen the faith of those who witnessed it, pointing toward Jesus’s own resurrection to come. The later legend of his episcopacy in Marseille, though devotionally significant in French tradition, is honestly distinct from the historically secure biblical account.

Canonization and Feast Day

No formal canonization process applies to Lazarus, whose veneration as a friend of Christ mentioned in Scripture predates any such process and is rooted directly in the Gospel text itself and the Church’s earliest liturgical memory.

What Catholics Can Learn Today

Lazarus’s story, restored to life by Christ only to face death again years later, speaks to the deeper hope the Gospel offers: that physical death is not the final word for those united to Christ. His account calls believers to trust in the resurrection promised to all who belong to him.

A Prayer to Saint Lazarus of Bethany

Saint Lazarus, friend whom Jesus called forth from the tomb, you experienced in your own body a foretaste of the resurrection Christ promises to all who believe. Strengthen our hope in eternal life, especially when we grieve those we love, and help us trust in the same voice that called you back to life. Amen.

Sources

• Gospel of John 11:1-44
• Roman Martyrology
• Butler’s Lives of the Saints
• Provençal tradition on Saint Lazarus of Marseille