May 3, 2025
Feast of Saints Philip and James, Apostles
Lectionary: 561
Reading 1
I am reminding you, brothers and sisters,
of the Gospel I preached to you,
which you indeed received and in which you also stand.
Through it you are also being saved,
if you hold fast to the word I preached to you,
unless you believed in vain.
For I handed on to you as of first importance what I also received:
that Christ died for our sins
in accordance with the Scriptures;
that he was buried;
that he was raised on the third day
in accordance with the Scriptures;
that he appeared to Cephas, then to the Twelve.
After that, he appeared to more
than five hundred brothers and sisters at once,
most of whom are still living,
though some have fallen asleep.
After that he appeared to James,
then to all the Apostles.
Last of all, as to one born abnormally,
he appeared to me.
Responsorial Psalm
R. (5) Their message goes out through all the
earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
The heavens declare the glory of God;
and the firmament proclaims his handiwork.
Day pours out the word to day;
and night to night imparts knowledge.
R. Their message goes out through all the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Not a word nor a discourse
whose voice is not heard;
Through all the earth their voice resounds,
and to the ends of the world, their message.
R. Their message goes out through all the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I am the way, the truth, and the life, says the Lord;
Philip, whoever has seen me has seen the Father.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Jesus said to Thomas, "I am the way and the truth and
the life.
No one comes to the Father except through me.
If you know me, then you will also know my Father.
From now on you do know him and have seen him."
Philip said to him,
"Master, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us."
Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you for so long a time
and you still do not know me, Philip?
Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.
How can you say, 'Show us the Father'?
Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me?
The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my own.
The Father who dwells in me is doing his works.
Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me,
or else, believe because of the works themselves.
Amen, amen, I say to you,
whoever believes in me will do the works that I do,
and will do greater ones than these,
because I am going to the Father.
And whatever you ask in my name, I will do,
so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
If you ask anything of me in my name, I will do it."
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/050325.cfm
Saints Philip and
James, Apostles
Today we celebrate the feast of two of the Twelve
Apostles—James and Philip. James is known as the ‘son of Alphaeus’, and to be
honest, we know practically nothing about him beyond his name and that he was
chosen to be one of the inner circle of Jesus’ disciples—the Twelve. He is
known as ‘James the Less’ and is not to be confused with James, one of the two
sons of Zebedee, known as ‘James the Greater’. Nor is he to be confused with
James, son of Clopas in the Acts of the Apostles, who was a “brother” (cousin)
of Jesus, later ‘bishop’ of Jerusalem and the traditional author of the Letter
of James.
Philip came from the same town as Peter and Andrew,
Bethsaida in Galilee. In the first chapter of John’s Gospel we see Jesus
calling him directly, whereupon he went in search of Nathanael and told him:
We have found him about whom Moses in the Law and also
the Prophets wrote, Jesus son of Joseph from Nazareth.
(John 1:43-45)
Philip comes across as someone who is rather innocent and
naïve, and it takes him some time to acknowledge the full identity of Jesus.
The naivety of his character comes across in two incidents
in the Gospel, one of which is described in the Gospel reading. The other took
place when Jesus had crossed Lake Galilee in a boat with his disciples and was
faced by a huge crowd of people waiting for him (John 6:1). The people were
hungry in both body and spirit. Knowing how he was going to deal with the
situation, Jesus teasingly asked the unassuming Philip where they could get
bread to feed such a huge crowd. John comments that Jesus:
…said this to test him, for he himself knew what he was
going to do. (John 6:6)
Philip innocently replied:
Two hundred denarii would not buy enough bread for each
of them to get a little. (John 6:7)
In other words, there was no way it could be done. But
Philip would very soon find out how the problem would be solved, namely, when a
small boy generously gave away his lunch of five loaves and two fish.
Because Philip’s name was Greek (Philippos, meaning
‘lover of horses’), we are told that one day two ‘Greeks’, probably converts to
Judaism, approached him and his companion, Andrew (Andreos, also a Greek
name, meaning ‘manly’), and said they wanted to “see Jesus”. Jesus is in
Jerusalem and it is on the eve of his Passion. When told about this request,
Jesus replied enigmatically with the image of the seed having to fall into the
ground and die before it gave fruit. Clearly, it was a way of telling these men
that ‘seeing’ Jesus was much more than seeing his exterior; they would also
have to grasp the inner meaning of his sacrificial death as an essential part
of his identity.
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Saints
Philip and James, Apostles – Readings
Commentary on 1
Corinthians 15:1-8; Psalm 18; John 14:6-14
The Gospel reading features Philip’s final appearance in the
Gospel account. It happens during the long account of the Last Supper from
John, where Jesus speaks at length to his disciples. They must have been in
somewhat of a confused state, knowing that the enemies of Jesus were
practically outside the door waiting to destroy him. Even at this late date,
there were still many parts of Jesus’ teaching that they did not understand.
Jesus, who is soon about to leave them, has just told them
not to worry, as he is preparing a place where they and he will be together. He
tells them:
And you know the way to the place where I am going.
(John 14:4)
Thomas, the chronic grumbler, interjects:
Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know
the way? (John 14:5)
Now picking up from today’s Gospel, Jesus gently replies:
I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to
the Father except through me.
Perhaps we should be grateful to the cranky Thomas for
eliciting such a beautiful and meaningful answer from Jesus. He is not
just a way; he is the Way. There is no other
way to God except through him and with him—for the simple reason that he is the
Word of God; he is God expressed through human nature. To be like Jesus, then,
is to be like God through our humanity. This is something not just for
believing Christians; it is simply the Way for every human being who wants to
live a truly meaningful life.
Jesus then spells out the meaning of what he has just said:
If you know me, you will know my Father also. From now on
you do know him and have seen him.
But this is a bit too much for Philip who asks:
Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.
One can almost hear the sigh in Jesus’ voice as he replies:
Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and you still
do not know me? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show
us the Father’?
Jesus’ reply is simply another way of saying that he is the
Way. To know the inner meaning of Jesus’ life and to make it one’s own is to
know the Father because Jesus is the em-bodi-ment, the incarnation of the
Father in human form. Again, we are grateful to Philip for his question.
And that is the last appearance of Philip in the Gospel. Nor
does James, son of Alphaeus, appear again.
However, the example of these two men among the twelve
foundation stones on which Jesus’ work would be built and grow should be a
lesson to us as to how God can carry out his plans with what seem rather
inferior materials. By everywhere preaching the Gospel (see Mark 16:20), the
Apostles sowed the seed of what would be a worldwide community against which
the “gates of hell” would not prevail. It is a message to each one of us that,
no matter what our gifts or lack of them, we are called to show others the Way
that is Truth and Life.
Paul, too, who did so much to plant the Gospel in so many
places, was all too aware of his own weaknesses and even prayed to be rid of
them. He tells us his many prayers were answered by his becoming aware:
I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships,
persecutions, and calamities for the sake of Christ, for whenever I am weak,
then I am strong. (2 Cor 12:10)
In the First Reading from the First Letter to the
Corinthians, Paul speaks of his calling to be an Apostle. He wants the
Christians of Corinth to be mindful of the message he preached to them and on
which their Christian faith stands. It is a faith which will bring them
salvation and life unending. Paul emphasises strongly that it was not his own
message he was preaching, but what he received from Jesus Christ, the Word of
God.
The essence of that message was that Christ died for our
sinfulness, that he was buried and raised three days later and finally that,
after his resurrection, he appeared to Peter and all the Apostles. He then
appeared to 500 disciples, some of whom had already died, and then to James
(whose feast we are celebrating today) and all the rest of the Apostles.
Finally, says Paul, he appeared to Paul himself, as to one born unexpectedly.
After all, Paul had been a fierce persecutor of the followers of Christ and the
last person one expected to be an Apostle.
It is thanks to all of these people that the message of
Christ and his Gospel has reached us, and it reminds us that we, too, have the
same obligation to pass on the Good News of Christ to others if they are to
share the privileged experience we have had.
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https://livingspace.sacredspace.ie/f0503r/
Saturday,
May 3, 2025
Feast of Philip and James, Apostles
Opening Prayer
Lord our God, we praise and
thank You on the feast of Your apostles Philip and James.
Through them many have come to know that Jesus is alive and
risen.
May we too be good witnesses to
the risen Jesus by the way we live His risen life.
Even though we are flawed and weak, may people find through us
the way to the Father of Jesus our Lord.
Gospel Reading - John 14: 6-14
Jesus said to Thomas, "I am the way and
the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you
know me, then you will also know my Father. From now on you do know him and
have seen him." Philip said to him, "Master, show us the Father, and
that will be enough for us." Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you
for so long a time and you still do not know me, Philip?
Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How
can you say, 'Show us the Father'? Do you not believe that I am in the Father
and the Father is in me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my
own. The Father who dwells in me is doing his works. Believe me that I am in
the Father and the Father is in me, or else, believe because of the works
themselves. Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes in me will do the works
that I do, and will do greater ones than these, because I am going to the
Father. And whatever you ask in my name, I will do, so that the Father may be
glorified in the Son. If you ask anything of me in my name, I will do it."
Reflection
Today’s Gospel, the Feast of the Apostles Philip and James,
is the same one we meditated on during the 4th week of Easter. It narrates
Philip’s request to Jesus: “Show us the Father, and that is enough for us.”
•
John 14: 6: I am the Way, the Truth, and the
Life: Thomas had addressed a question to Jesus: “Lord, we do not know where You
are going. How can we know the way?” (Jn 14:5). Jesus answers, “I am the Way,
the Truth, and the Life. No one can come to the Father except through Me.”
Three important words. Without the way, we cannot walk. A “way” is not only a
path, but a method of performing or doing. In this case, His way is to be our
way. Without the truth one cannot make a good choice. In life, things are not
always what they seem to be. We can be easily deceived, especially with fake
news, flawed beliefs, and the evil that still inhabits the world. It is
important to focus on the Truth and not be deceived. He is the Truth. Without
life, there is only death! Jesus explains the meaning. He is the way, because
no one “comes to the Father except through Me.” And He is the gate through
which the sheep go in and out (Jn 10: 9). Jesus is the Truth because looking at
Him, we are seeing the image of the Father. “If you know Me, you will know My
Father also!” Jesus is Life, because walking like Jesus we will be united to
the Father and will have life in us!
•
John 14: 7: To know Jesus is to know the Father.
Thomas had asked, “Lord, we do not know where You are going. How can we know
the way?” Jesus answers, “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life! No one comes to
the Father except through Me.” And He adds, “If you know Me, you will know My
Father also. From this moment you have known Him and have seen Him.” This is
the first phrase of today’s Gospel. Jesus always speaks about the Father,
because it was the life of the Father that appeared in everything that Jesus
said and did. This continuous reference to the Father causes Philip to ask the
question.
•
John 14: 8-11: Philip asks, “Show us the Father
and then we will be satisfied!” It was the disciples’ desire, the desire of
many people within the communities of the Beloved Disciple, and it is the
desire of many people today. What do people do to see the Father whom Jesus
speaks of so much? Jesus’ answer is very beautiful, and it is valid even today:
“Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and you still do not know Me?
Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father!” People should not think that God
is far away from us, at a distance and unknown. Anyone who wants to know who
God the Father is, it suffices for him to look at Jesus. He has revealed Him in
the words and gestures of His life! “The Father is in Me and I am in the
Father!” Through His obedience, Jesus has fully identified Himself with the
Father. At every moment, He did what the Father told Him to do (Jn 5: 30; 8:
28-29, 38). This is why, in Jesus everything is the revelation of the Father!
The signs or works are the works of the Father! As people say, “The son is the
face of the father!” This is why in Jesus, and for Jesus, God is in our midst.
•
John 14: 12-14: The Promise of Jesus. Jesus says
that His intimacy with the Father is not a privilege only for Him, but it is
possible for all those who believe in Him. We also, through Jesus, are able to
do beautiful things for others as Jesus did for the people of His time. He
intercedes for us. Everything that people ask from Him, He asks the Father and
obtains it always, if it is to serve. Jesus is our defender. He leaves but He
does not leave us without defense. He promises that He will ask the Father and
the Father will send another defender and consoler, the Holy Spirit. Jesus even
said that it is necessary that He leave, because otherwise the Holy Spirit will
not come (Jn 16: 7). The Holy Spirit will fulfill the things of Jesus in us, if
we act in the name of Jesus and observe the great commandment of the practice
of love. In his recent encyclical Gaudete et exsultate, Pope Francis quotes
Lumen Gentium: The Holy Spirit bestows holiness in abundance among God’s holy
and faithful people, for “it has pleased God to make men and women holy and to
save them, not as individuals without any bond between them, but rather as a
people who might acknowledge him in truth and serve him in holiness”
For Personal Confrontation
•
Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life. How do
I define Jesus as the Way in my life? As a model of action, or a map, or
something else?
•
How can Jesus, as the Truth, be used in my daily
life to guide me through the deceptions in the world?
•
As Life, how do I use Jesus as a model for my
life and decision making?
•
As we read today’s Gospel, we are almost moved
to say “Philip! Haven’t you been listening?” Are there times when I don’t hear
what Jesus is really telling me in my own life as well? What are some of them?
Concluding Prayer
The heavens declare the glory of God, the
vault of Heaven proclaims His handiwork, day to day pours forth speech, night
to night hands on the knowledge. (Ps 19: 1-2)
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