The term catholic, meaning “general, universal,” came to be applied by the early church to James, 1–2 Peter, 1–3 John, and Jude, because these letters (with the exceptions of 2–3 John) lack indications of limited address to a single locality. They are titled according to their traditional authors, like the Gospels, but unlike Paul’s letters and Hebrews, which take their titles after the traditional addressees. The Letter of James is the least
Page 474