Some theologians were opposed to the assignment of the foundation stones to the apostles, for they held that only Christ himself could be regarded as the foundation of his Church. Hence the symbolism of these stones was made to apply to Christ alone, the color of the stone often guiding the commentator in his choice of ideas denoted by the different gems. Thus, one writer, applying all the meanings to Christ, finds that the greenish Jasper denotes satisfaction; the sky-blue Sapphire, the soul; the bright-red Chalcedony, zeal for truth; the transparent green Emerald, kindness and goodness; the nail-colored Sardonyx, the strength of spiritual life; the red Sardius, readiness to shed His blood for the Church; the yellow Chrysolite, the excellence of His divine nature; the sea-green Beryl, moderation and the control of the passions; the glass-green Topaz (chrysolite?), uprightness; the harsh-colored Chrysoprase, sternness towards sinners; the violet or purple Jacinth, royal dignity, and, lastly, the purple Amethyst, with a touch of red, perfection.[432] Andreas of Cæsarea freely recognizes his indebtedness to the much more ancient source, St. Epiphanius, bishop of Constantia in Cyprus, who died in 402 A.D., and who wrote a short but very valuable treatise on the stones of the breastplate, noting in several cases the therapeutic and talismanic virtues of these stones and giving his opinion as to the order in which the names of the tribes were inscribed upon them.[433] As the foundation stones of Revelation are rightly called “apostolic stones,” so those of the breastplate merit the designation of “tribal stones,” as well as that of astral stones; indeed, the Jews of medieval times definitely associated the tribes with the zodiacal signs in the following order: Judah Aries Issachar Taurus Zebulun Gemini Reuben Cancer Simeon Leo Gad Virgo Ephraim Libra Manasseh Scorpio Benjamin Sagittarius Dan Capricorn Naphtali Aquarius Asher Pisces For Rabanus Maurus the nine gems of the king of Tyre named in Ezekiel xxxviii, 13, are types of the nine orders of angels, just as the twelve foundation stones of Revelation signify the twelve apostles.[434] It is evident, from early and later usage, that, at the place and time where and when these stones were first utilized for birth-stones, the year must have begun with the month of March. This will be apparent when we compare the following eight lists, carefully gathered from various sources: Isidore Bishop of Month Jews Romans Seville Arabians January Garnet Garnet Hyacinth Garnet February Amethyst Amethyst Amethyst Amethyst March Jasper Bloodstone Jasper Bloodstone April Sapphire Sapphire Sapphire Sapphire