The Gospels report that Yeshua had siblings... at least four brothers (James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon), and He also had sisters.
James was a pious Jewish beleiver.
Paul wrote:
[Gal 2:11-14 LSB] But when Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. [12] For prior to the coming of certain men from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles, but when they came, he began to shrink back and separate himself, fearing the party of the circumcision. [13] And the rest of the Jews joined him in hypocrisy, with the result that even Barnabas was carried away by their hypocrisy. [14] But when I saw that they were not straightforward about the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas before everyone, “If you, being a Jew, live like the Gentiles and not like the Jews, how is it that you compel the Gentiles to live like Jews?
To resolve this issue, Peter, Paul, and Barnabas spoke before a church council in Jerusalem. James, apparently the leader of the council at the time, made the following pronouncement:
[Act 15:19-20 LSB] “Therefore I judge that we do not trouble those who are turning to God from among the Gentiles, [20] but that we write to them that they abstain from things contaminated by idols and from sexual immorality and from what is strangled and from blood.
In the second century, Hegesippus reported that James was a pious Jew who strictly followed the Jewish law: "James, the brother of the Lord, succeeded to the government of the Church in conjunction with the apostles. He has been called the Just by all from the time of our Savior to the present day; for there were many that bore the name of James. He was holy from his mother's womb; and he drank no wine nor strong drink, nor did he eat flesh. No razor came upon his head; he did not anoint himself with oil, and he did not use the [public] bath. He alone was permitted to enter into the holy place; for he wore not woolen but linen garments. And he was in the habit of entering alone into the temple, and was frequently found upon his knees begging forgiveness for the people, so that his knees became hard like those of a camel, in consequence of his constantly bending them in his worship of God, and asking forgiveness for the people. Because of his exceeding great justice he was called the Just, and Oblias, which signifies in Greek, 'Bulwark of the people' and 'Justice,' in accordance with what the prophets declare concerning him."
After the event of Yeshua's resurrection, James, the brother of Yeshua, became a convert to Christianity because he believed the risen Yeshua appeared to him. This conclusion is arrived at because:
[1] Yeshua's brothers were unbelievers (including James) during the time of Yeshua earthly ministry ((Mark 3:21, 31; 6:3–4; John 7:5).
[2] The ancient creedal material in 1 Cor 15:3–7 that we discussed earlier lists an appearance of the risen Yeshua to James: "then He appeared to James".
[3] Subsequent to the event of Yeshua's resurrection, James is identified as a leader of the Jerusalem church (Acts 15:12-21; Gal 1:19).
[4] Not only did James convert to Christianity, his beliefs in Yeshua and his resurrection were so strong that he died as a martyr because of them. James's martyrdom is attested by Josephus, Hegesippus, and Clement of Alexandria. We no longer have any of the works of Hegesippus or the writings of Clement where the event is mentioned. However, sections have been preserved by Eusebius. Therefore, his martyrdom is attested by both Christian and non-Christian sources.
James was a converted skeptic... much like Paul.
So, now we have eye-witnesses that included the disciples and at least two well-known skeptics... Paul and Yeshua's brother - James.
Again, why is this important?
Because you would expect the disciples to claim the risen Messiah.
You would not expect a skeptic to do so unless they believed it to be true.
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