Feast of Saints
Philip and James, Apostles
(I Corinthians 15:1-8; John 14:6-14)
The fact that little is known about most of the apostles hints
that they did not follow Jesus to become famous. The New Testament portrays Peter with depth and
refers to James and John in a number of situations. We also have a feeling for Thomas, but in a
negative way -- because of his protestations about belief in the resurrection. Of course, we associate Judas with the
foulest of characters that we have ever known or heard of. But it is hard to get a sense of what the
other apostles are like.
Saints Philip and James are not exceptions to this scarcity
of knowledge. Besides appearance on the
lists of apostles, Philip emerges at the beginning of John’s gospel and again toward
the end in the passage read in today’s mass.
In chapter one he seems to be on a noble search for the Messiah. But by chapter 14 he appears to have missed
the point of his quest by failing to recognize Jesus as the image of the
Father. In both cases he is given less description
than the deacon Philip in the Acts of the Apostles who boldly preaches the
gospel. It is unlikely that this James
is “the brother of the Lord” whom the Acts of the Apostles treats as co-leader
of the Jerusalem
community along with Peter. He is named
on New Testament lists as “son of Alphaeus,” but who is Alphaeus? A strand of tradition refers to him as “James
the Less” which at least removes any pretension from his identity.
The anonymity of the apostles is instructive for us. Like them we should not follow Jesus for
earthly glory. Rather we should let go
of our desire for notariety in order to serve God. By praising His name and caring for His
people we will receive a much more cherished reward than fame or fortune.
