St. Bartholomew
One
Today is the Feast of the Apostle Nathaniel, also known as Bartholomew
John 1:45-51
Philip found Nathanael and said to him, ‘We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, the one about whom the prophets wrote: he is Jesus son of Joseph, from Nazareth.’ ‘From Nazareth?’ said Nathanael ‘Can anything good come from that place?’ ‘Come and see’ replied Philip. When Jesus saw Nathanael coming he said of him, ‘There is an Israelite who deserves the name, incapable of deceit.’ ‘How do you know me?’ said Nathanael. ‘Before Philip came to call you,’ said Jesus ‘I saw you under the fig tree.’ Nathanael answered, ‘Rabbi, you are the Son of God, you are the King of Israel.’ Jesus replied, ‘You believe that just because I said: I saw you under the fig tree. You will see greater things than that.’ And then he added ‘I tell you most solemnly, you will see heaven laid open and, above the Son of Man, the angels of God ascending and descending.’
Two
Pope Benedict XVI gives a very important principle: People come to God through other people. Philip knows Jesus and wants Bartholomew to know Jesus. Philip has the courage to invite Bartholomew to an encounter with Jesus. It is not the job of Philip to make Bartholomew believe, for he is free like every person and must make his own choice. Even though Bartholomew initially rejects Philip by saying “From Nazareth?...‘Can anything good come from that place?” Yet, Philip was not deterred and says to his friend “Come and see for yourself.”
Holy Spirit, is there some person close to us that we should invite to an encounter with you but we have not out of fear of some negative thing that might happen? Holy Spirit reveal to me this person and give me the grace, the inspiration and the opportunity to invite them.
Three
Pope Benedict XVI writes:
In our relationship with Jesus we must not be satisfied with words alone. In his answer, Philip offers Bartholomew a meaningful invitation: “Come and see!” Our knowledge of Jesus needs above all a first-hand experience: someone else’s testimony is of course important, for normally the whole of our Christian life begins with the proclamation handed down to us by one or more witnesses. However, we ourselves must then be personally involved in a close and deep relationship with Jesus; in a similar way, when the Samaritans had heard the testimony of the Samaritan Woman whom Jesus had met at Jacob’s well, they wanted to talk to Him directly, and after this conversation they told the woman: “It is no longer because of your words that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is indeed the Savior of the world.”
We want our family and friends to have the same joy we experience in a relationship with Jesus. We must take the initiative but we cannot convince them by our words, or arguments alone. They need to talk with Jesus directly. That is what prayer is. Our main goal is to facilitate an encounter with Jesus in prayer. There are many ways to do this. I will ask people: Is there anything I can keep in prayer for you? I pray for that intention for many days and then follow up to see what is happening with that concern at which time I ask them if they have been praying about it as well. Often people don’t pray. That is when we can encourage them by reminding them that their prayer is a good as ours, that God longs to speak to them directly. All they need to do is speak from the simplicity of their heart in their own words. This little nudge at times is all it takes.
Four
Still, the most effective means I’ve experienced is by inviting people to my home, giving them hospitality, being genuinely interested in their lives and then when the time is right, inviting them to join me in praying the Rosary. They don’t immediately transform, but who does…but it gives them a direct encounter with Jesus and Mary and it touches their heart and often leads them to reflect and begin to ask questions they never asked before.
Five
Christianity was first introduced to the area of Armenia by the Apostles Bartholomew and Jude in the 1st century AD, where Bartholomew was martyred by being skinned alive, as graphically depicted by Michael Angelo in the Sistine Chapel.
In 300 AD St. Gregory (called the Illuminator because he brought the light of Christ to the Armenians) converted the king of Armenia, and subsequently the entire nation to Christianity. This was the first nation as a whole to become Catholic.
In spite of being conquered by Islamic invaders in the 7th century and under the Iron Curtain of the Atheist Soviet Union from 1920 to 1990, the vast majority of Armenians (90-97%) are Christian, members of the Armenian Apostolic Church, which is one of the oldest Christian churches dating back, as we said to 300 AD.
The Armenians have withstood the most unimaginable attacks on their faith and retained it as a nation. Will we do the same? Will you do what it takes? Will you?
Last night a person who came to the Candlelight Rosary Procession who locked their keys in their car and had to call a family member to bring the extra set.
The family member was a fallen away Catholic.
When she arrived she saw
How normal it was
How much peace she experienced
She broke down in tears
She is watching right now – God and Our Lady love you very much – they have been waiting for you – I am praying for you…
Mary is the Queen of Peace – she brings people to Jesus Christ who is the Prince of Peace
Under the Mantle of Mary we are safe; with Jesus and Mary you are safe; you are safe…