Sts. Philip and James - May 1st
Philip was one of Jesus’ first Apostles. Our Lord found him and said, “Follow me.” Philip was so happy to be with Jesus that he wanted to share his happiness with his friend, Nathaniel. “We have found Him of whom Moses and the prophets wrote. He is Jesus of Nazareth,” he told Nathaniel.
Nathaniel was not at all excited. Nazareth was just a little village, not a big city like Jerusalem. So Nathaniel said, “Can any good come out of Nazareth?” But Philip did not become angry at his friend’s answer. He just said, “Come and see.” Nathaniel went to see Jesus, and after he had spoken with Him, he, too, became a zealous follower of the Lord.
St. James was also one of the twelve apostles. He was a cousin of Our Lord. After Jesus ascended into Heaven, James became Bishop of Jerusalem and the people thought so much of him that they called him, “James the Just,” which means “James the Holy One.” In all his prayers, he kept begging God to forgive the people. Even when the enemies of Jesus were putting him to death for preaching about Our Lord, St. James asked God to pardon them.
It does no good to become angry if others make fun of us. We will win them little by little if we are patient and keep praying.
Today is also the Feast of St. Joseph, Patron of Workmen
To read the short story about St. Joseph, look for him on March 19, or click, or copy and paste the following link into your web browser:
