In the scene of the Lord's Supper, James was apparently the most prominent character. His removal from the list of the twelve apostles in the canonical gospels is significant.
"And when the Lord had given his shroud to the servant of the priest, he went to James and appeared to him.
"For James had sworn that he would not eat bread from the hour wherein he had drunk the cup of the Lord until he saw him rising again from the dead.
"And the Lord said, Bring a table and bread.
"And he took the bread, and blessed and broke, and afterwards gave it to James the Just, and said, My brother, eat thy bread, for the Son of Man is risen from them that sleep."
Now, the suppression of all this in the orthodox gospels is, as Renan shows, of immense importance. ("Les Evangiles," ch. vi.)
"Then was he seen by James," says St. Paul (1. Cor. xv. 7), "then by all the Apostles."
This shows that the incident was known to the very earliest Church.