Our Lady of Guadalupe

Date: May, 3

The Church celebrates the Feast of Sts. Philip and James to honor two early disciples of Jesus, who were among the original Twelve Apostles.

The St. James of this feast day is James the Less, or Lesser, who was the brother of the Apostle Jude Thaddeus; both being sons of Alphaeus and of one of the “Three Marys” at the Cross.

Saint James the Less, the author of the first Catholic Epistle, was the son of Alphaeus of Cleophas. His mother Mary was either a sister or a close relative of the Blessed Virgin, and for that reason, according to Jewish custom, he was sometimes called the brother of the Lord.

The Apostle held a distinguished position in the early Christian community of Jerusalem. Saint Paul tells us that Saint James was a witness of the Resurrection of Christ; he is also a “pillar” of the Church, whom Saint Paul consulted about the Gospel.

Saint Philip was born in Bethsaida, Galilee. He may have been a disciple of John the Baptist and is mentioned as one of the Apostles in the lists of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and in Acts.

Aside from the lists, he is mentioned only in John in the New Testament. He was called by Jesus Himself and brought Nathanael to Christ.

Philip was present at the miracle of the loaves and fishes, when he engaged in a brief dialogue with the Lord, and was the Apostle approached by the Hellenistic Jews from Bethsaida to introduce them to Jesus.

• “What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him?ⁱ… So also faith of itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” (James 2:14,17)

PRAYER: 

Saints Philip and James, you were both highly blessed to be companions of the Lord Jesus, listening to Him preach, witnessing His miracles, and receiving from Him a commission to continue His work. Please pray for me, that I will also come to know our Lord and Savior through prayer and the Holy Scriptures, so that I will be prepared for the mission that God has for me. Saints Philip and James, pray for me. Jesus, I trust in You.