May 3 is the Feast of two apostles - St. Philip and St. James.From reading the Gospels, we could get the impression that Philip was an enthusiastic and friendly person. He was the one who brought his friend Nathanael to Jesus (Jn 1:43-50). It was also Philip who made arrangements with the help of Andrew, to have a group of Greek gentiles meet Jesus (Jn 12:20-23). Philip also had a practical mind. He was the apostle who commented that it would take a considerable amount of money to feed a crowd (Jn 6:1-15). It was Philip who asked to see the Father when Jesus spoke about Him at the Last Supper (Jn 14:1-11).
James, on the other hand, has to be distinguished from the other apostle James, brother of John, sons of Zebedee. James, the less, son of Alphaeus, was also called "the brother of the Lord" and was believed to be the writer of the Letter of James. Tradition has it that he became the first Bishop of Jerusalem and was martyred in that city at around year 62.
An interesting catechetical book makes this suggestion on how to imitate these saints in a school setting: “Have the students name persons for whom Philip or James could be patron saints. For example, St. James could be the patron saint of the person who toils quietly behind the scenes to make a project a success; St. Philip could be the patron saint of the friendly person who likes to share his or her friends with other people.”
