Witness in works

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary on the Feast of Saints James and Philip connect the lives of these men to witness to God in Christ today.

Way Truth and Life

In the reading from 1 Corinthians the Gospel Teaching of Jesus death and resurrection identifies James as an eyewitness.

* [15:3–7] The language by which Paul expresses the essence of the “gospel” (1 Cor 15:1) is not his own but is drawn from older credal formulas. This credo highlights Jesus’ death for our sins (confirmed by his burial) and Jesus’ resurrection (confirmed by his appearances) and presents both of them as fulfillment of prophecy. In accordance with the scriptures: conformity of Jesus’ passion with the scriptures is asserted in Mt 16:1; Lk 24:25–27, 32, 44–46. Application of some Old Testament texts (Ps 2:7; 16:8–11) to his resurrection is illustrated by Acts 2:27–31; 13:29–39; and Is 52:13–53:12 and Hos 6:2 may also have been envisaged.1 

The psalmist praises the Creator’s power and wisdom.

 * [19:4] No speech, no words: the regular functioning of the heavens and the alternation of day and night inform human beings without words of the creator’s power and wisdom.2

The Gospel from John is taken from the Last Supper Discourses wherein Jesus addresses Philip who seeks to see the Father.

* [14:8] Show us the Father: Philip is pictured asking for a theophany like Ex 24:9–10; 33:18.3

Steve Scholer confirms that asking for help can make us feel vulnerable. It takes courage. But it is a courage born from self-awareness.

There are benefits to having someone help us. Partnership, communication and collaboration are born from asking for and accepting help from another. When my wife and I ask for and render assistance to one another, it re-affirms the closeness and interdependence that we have cultivated over the years.
Today, as we spend our allotted time in reflection and examination of conscience, perhaps we should focus on the content of our prayer. Are our prayers filled with a multitude of shallow thank yous (maybe for the nice spring weather) or, do our prayers include an earnest request for God to step into our lives and to help us?
A genuine plea for God’s assistance in whatever is troubling us can bring us even closer to a grace-filled life for God is there, waiting to listen to our concerns.
Let’s not be afraid to invite him to help us.4 

Don Schwager quotes “All nature serves for our instruction,” by Leo the Great, 400-461 A.D.

 "All nature serves the Word of God for our instruction. Through all the turning points of the year, as if through the four Gospels, we learn from the unceasing trumpet both what we should preach and what we should do... What is there through which the truth does not speak to us? Its voice is heard in the day, it is heard in the night, and the beauty of all things, established by the work of one God, does not cease to put into the ears of our hearts a ruling order, to let us see the 'invisible things of God through those which have been made intelligible to us,' and it is subject not to the creatures but to the Creator of all things." (excerpt from Sermon 19,2)5

The Word Among Us Meditation on John 14:6-14 suggests that like Philip, we may have been following Jesus for a long time. What would we say if he were to ask us, “Do you know me?”

 But on another level, the answer for each of us is also no. We all can come to know Jesus more deeply. You may have a glimpse of his love today, but that vision can grow brighter tomorrow and the next day. You may have experienced his mercy yesterday, but doubts may linger over whether he can ever forgive that sin you committed years ago. You may believe that his Spirit is with you but underestimate his power to change you and guide you.6

Friar Jude Winkler highlights the kerygma in 1 Corinthians that declares who Jesus is. Paul may be making scripture references to Isaiah, Jonah, and Hosea. The Way for following Jesus, the Truth that stands in dualistic contrast to lies, and the Life that fills our being now and forever is proclaimed. Friar Jude reminds that asking in Jesus name, is the resonance that satisfies our needs through the Presence of God.

Franciscan Media shares insight into Saints Philip and James.

 As in the case of the other apostles, we see in James and Philip human men who became foundation stones of the Church, and we are reminded again that holiness and its consequent apostolate are entirely the gift of God, not a matter of human achieving. All power is God’s power, even the power of human freedom to accept his gifts. “You will be clothed with power from on high,” Jesus told Philip and the others. Their first commission had been to expel unclean spirits, heal diseases, announce the kingdom. They learned, gradually, that these externals were sacraments of an even greater miracle inside their persons—the divine power to love like God7

Cynthia Bourgeault agrees that Jesus’ physical form no longer walks the planet. But if we take him at his word, that poses no disruption to intimacy if we merely learn to recognize him at that other level, just as he has modeled for his disciples during those first forty days of Eastertide.

Nor has that intimacy subsided in two thousand years—at least according to the testimony of a long lineage of Christian mystics, who in a single voice proclaim that our whole universe is profoundly permeated with the presence of Christ. He surrounds, fills, holds together from top to bottom this human sphere in which we dwell. The entire cosmos has become his body, so to speak, and the blood flowing through it is his love. These are not statements that can be scientifically corroborated, but they do seem to ring true to the mystically attuned heart8

Our perception of God in the world around us is a gift of faith which expands through our relationship with Jesus.

References

1	(n.d.). 1 Corinthians, chapter 15. Retrieved May 3, 2019, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/1corinthians15:51
2	(n.d.). Psalms, chapter 19 - United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Retrieved May 3, 2019, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/psalms/19
3	(n.d.). John, chapter 14 - United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Retrieved May 3, 2019, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/john/14
4	(n.d.). Creighton U Daily Reflections - OnlineMinistries - Creighton University. Retrieved May 3, 2019, from http://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/daily.html
5	(n.d.). Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved May 3, 2019, from https://dailyscripture.servantsoftheword.org/
6	(n.d.). Saints Philip and James, Apostles (Feast) - Mass Readings and .... Retrieved May 3, 2019, from https://wau.org/meditations/2019/05/03/
7	(n.d.). Saints Philip and James - Franciscan Media. Retrieved May 3, 2019, from https://www.franciscanmedia.org/saints-philip-and-james/
8	(2019, May 3). The Mystical Body of Christ — Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved May 3, 2019, from https://cac.org/the-mystical-body-of-christ-2019-05-03/