Feast of St John Neumann, Bishop.
"Jesus decided to go to Galilee, and he found Philip. And Jesus said to him, “Follow me.”
"Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the town of Andrew and Peter. Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the one about whom Moses wrote in the law, and also the prophets, Jesus, son of Joseph, from Nazareth.”
"But Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come from Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.”
"Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him, “Here is a true child of Israel. There is no duplicity in him.” Nathanael said to him, “How do you know me?” Jesus answered and said to him, “Before Philip called you, I saw you under the fig tree.”
"Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel.” Jesus answered and said to him, “Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than this.”
"And he said to him, “Amen, amen, I say to you, you will see the sky opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.” (John 1: 43 - 54).
St John Neumann was born in Bohemia. He became a Redemptorist priest in the America. He became the Bishop of Philadelphia. Worn out by his labors, John died at the age of 49.
In our Gospel today, Bartholomew also known as Nathanael is one of the Twelve Apostles.
Here is the amazing faith of Philip in Jesus who had just launched His public ministry: “We have found the one about whom Moses wrote in the law, and also the prophets, Jesus son of Joseph, from Nazareth.” Philip confidently declared.
Philip believes that Jesus is the Messiah.
When Philip told his friend Nathaniel (Bartholomew) that they found Jesus, he said: “Can anything good come from Nazareth?”
But Philip, a great evangelist said to Bartholomew, “Come and see.” Both Philip and Bartholomew spent some friendly time with Jesus that afternoon and both became His disciples. The interaction with Jesus closed the sale. And Bartholomew declared: “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel.”
The lesson here is the miraculous effect of spending quality time before the Blessed Sacrament.
St John Neumann is not only a great catechist and educator but a great evangelist. He introduced the Forty Hours Devotion from Europe to America.
Who is Jesus planning to draw near Him through you? Evangelization could be likened to seeing a great deal or sales promotion in the supermarket or Amazon and sharing that information with a friend. You share with family and friends what you value highly.
Resolve to be a Philip. Introduce somebody to Jesus today. Share your faith.
“Faith in Jesus and in the power of His Holy Name is the greatest spiritual force in the world today.... " (Blessed Henry Suso - 1290 to 1365).
For the Litany of the Most Holy Name of Jesus and prayer intentions click the link below:
http://seekfirst.blogspot.com/2023/12/litany-of-most-holy-name-of-jesus.html?m=1
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