Sts. Philip and James
John 14: 6-14
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you know me, you will know my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.”Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.”Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and you still do not know me? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.
How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own; but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; but if you do not, then believe me because of the works themselves.
Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father. I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If in my name you ask me for anything, I will do it.
New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989, by the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. USCCB approved. http://www.usccb.org/bible/approved-translations
Jesus—My Way, Truth, and Life
Today’s feast of the apostles Philip and James shows me that—in my own time and place and manner—I am a herald and apostle of the gospel of Jesus. St. Paul reminds us of the personal challenge to hand on what we have received— the message and method of the Risen Lord. After all, it is Jesus who assures us that he is “the way and the truth and the life.”
As we continue to celebrate Easter, each of us receives the grace to figure out what shape that gospel witness will take…perhaps on the job with a co-worker, or at home with those I live. Maybe the spirit of Easter takes hold in my volunteer outreach to someone in need. For any of these good people, my service helps others find Jesus as their “way and truth and life.”
This first Saturday of May, as we honor Mary, the mother of Jesus, we ask her to strengthen our commitment to living the gospel. And we go forward in the spirit of the apostles Philip and James, and that of our newest saints—St. John XXIII and St. John Paul II.
—The Jesuit Prayer Team
Prayer
Jesus, risen and alive, stir in my own heart the spirit of all the ways you lived and taught. In my own time and manner, may I give even modest witness and service to those I meet today. Help me grow stronger in recognizing you as my way and truth and life. Amen!