When we think of Jesus and his apostles going from one town to the next, we don't always think about the material needs they would have had traveling on foot.
Jesus would have needed food, money, and places to stay along the way. These details are often skipped in the accounts of the four Gospel writers, but there is at least one mention of the people who provided for these needs.
St. Joanna
St. Luke is the one who takes a few verses to mention those who offered what they could to Jesus and his apostles:
And the twelve were with him, and also some women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, and Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s steward, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them out of their means.
(Luke 8:1-3)
It's a small detail, but one that did not go unnoticed by the early followers of Jesus. They were grateful for their support and so St. Luke was able to record the names of a few of these donors.
This is not the last time we hear about St. Joanna, as she is included in the group of women who approach the tomb on Easter Sunday:
Now it was Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James and the other women with them who told this to the apostles; but these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them. But Peter rose and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen cloths by themselves; and he went home wondering at what had happened.
(Luke 24:10-12)
While she is not included on the general calendar of the Roman Rite, her name is in the Roman Martyrology on May 24, which lists all the saints who are recognized by the Catholic Church:
Commemoration of Blessed Joanna, wife of Chuza, procurator of Herod, who together with other women served Jesus and the Apostles with their own goods, and on the day of the Lord’s Resurrection found the stone of the tomb overturned and announced it to the disciples.
Little is known about St. Joanna's activities in the early Church, but tradition claims that she recovered the head of St. John the Baptist.
St. Joanna had a small role in Jesus' ministry, but was among those privileged to see the tomb rolled back and was one of the first to proclaim Jesus' resurrection to the apostles.
