Sts. Philip and James

Their story

Philip and James were two of the twelve apostles. Their feasts are kept together because their relics were placed in the same church in Rome, the Basilica of the Twelve Holy Apostles. Philip came from Bethsaida, the same town as Peter and Andrew. Jesus found him and said simply, "Follow me," and Philip did. He immediately went to his friend Nathanael and told him they had found the one Moses and the prophets wrote about. When Nathanael doubted, Philip said, "Come and see." Philip appears several times in John's Gospel. Before the feeding of the five thousand, Jesus tested him by asking where they could buy bread. Later some Greeks came to Philip saying, "We would like to see Jesus." At the Last Supper Philip asked, "Master, show us the Father," and Jesus answered, "Whoever has seen me has seen the Father." Tradition says Philip preached in Asia Minor and died a martyr. James, the son of Alphaeus, is often called James the Less, perhaps because he was younger or shorter than the other apostle James. The Church has long identified him with James, a relative of Jesus who became the leader of the Church in Jerusalem, spoke at the Council of Jerusalem and is traditionally credited with the Letter of James, which teaches that faith without works is dead. According to ancient accounts, this James was martyred in Jerusalem around the year 62. Together these apostles remind us that following Jesus means seeking to see Him, bringing others to Him, and living our faith in action.