Feast of
Saint Bartholomew, apostle
(Revelation
21:9b-14; John 1:45-51)
In the
gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, Bartholomew is paired with Philip, the
apostle. Because Nathaniel has that
distinction in John’s gospel, he is considered the same as Bartholomew. In today’s passage from John, Bartholomew/Nathaniel
recognizes Jesus as Messiah.
His recognition
approximates what Simon calls Jesus in this Sunday’s gospel. In the famous passage from the Gospel of
Matthew, Simon says Jesus is “the Christ (i.e., Messiah), the Son of the living God.” Jesus in turns names Simon, “Peter,” which is
to say the rock, the foundation of his Church.
Jesus gives a descriptive title to Bartholomew/Nathaniel as well. He is a true Israelite without duplicity.
We should
strive to be likewise. We say that we
are Christians; that is, followers of Jesus.
We should always act like him. This
means praying to God constantly and serving others diligently. Doing so, we too will experience angels working
marvelous deeds.
