Christ’s apostles and martyrs, both in the list of apostles, the Gospels, and Acts of the Apostles – St. Philip and James.
saint Philip, the apostle
At the beginning of the 1st. century, in Bethsaida on the Lake of Gennesaret… east of the Jordan, St. was born. Philip. From that same region, St. Andrew and St. Peter. As a timid, naive and above all practical man, St. Philip becomes a friend of the apostle and evangelist John.
© May he protect us and accompany us with his holy intercession of St. Philip, the apostle
With John the Evangelist, he belongs to the circle of disciples of John the Baptist. He is mentioned in five places in John’s Gospel, especially in the one where he asks Jesus to show them, the disciples, the Father.
According to a later tradition, he worked for a long time in Greece, Syria and Phrygia, and with the help of the cross he achieved numerous miraculous healings. Around the year 80. he is nailed to a cross by pagan priests in Hierapolis (today’s southwestern Turkey), and according to another legend, his head is cut off.
saint James the Younger, the apostle
The son of Alphajev and Maria Kleofina, he is the first bishop, according to tradition, in Jerusalem (from 42). We have one epistle preserved from him. That epistle is full of reprimands, warnings and, above all, threats.
© Oh, St. James the Younger, apostle, pray for us
In the Epistle to the Galatians, St. Paul mentions him as one of the most respected personalities of the early Church. In the Acts of the Apostles, he stands out as the bishop of Jerusalem.
A righteous man, a man of prayer, as well as a friend of the poor… he survived when he was thrown from the roof of the temple, but despite his survival, the crowd stoned him and beat him with clubs in 62 AD in Jerusalem.
PRAYER
God, you make us happy every year with the heavenly celebration of the holy apostles Philip and James. Through their prayers, give us a share in the mystery of the Passion and Resurrection of Your Only Begotten Son, so that we may look at You face to face forever. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with You in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, forever and ever. Amen.
Sources:
- http://zupajastrebarsko.hr/
- Holy Choir for Divine Worship (1997); Chronology of the Roman Rite, Kršćanska sadašnjost, Zagreb