Feast of
Saint James, apostle
(II
Corinthians 4:7-15; Matthew 20:20-28)
In the first three gospels James, the brother of John, is the first of the twelve apostles called
by Jesus. In the Acts of the Apostles he
is the first to give his life for him. In
today’s reading from Matthew James, together with his brother John, answers affirmatively
to Jesus’ query regarding their being able to drink from the same chalice as
he. Whether or not James realized at the
time that Jesus was referring to the shedding of his blood is beside the
point. In time he learned that just as
Jesus suffered death for his teachings, he and the other apostles would likely come
to the same end.
James had
to be a man of courage. Timid people
would have withdrawn from full discipleship at the sight of crucifixion. James went
ahead taking Jesus at his word that faithfulness to him would not end in death
but in eternal life. In a matter of a
few years after Jesus’ death James was put to the sword by Herod Agrippa’
henchmen. Perhaps because of his courage
he has been adopted by Spain, a nation proud of its warrior heritage, as its
patron.
Courage, a
gift of the Holy Spirit, enables us to overcome inner desires as well as
resistance from others. With courage we
can keep lust and greed at bay. It helps
us to remain on track to meet the Lord favorably at judgment.
