The Christmas-Epiphany season in the Orthodox Church begins
with a forty-day fasting period which starts on the feast of “the holy and
all-praised apostle Philip” [celebrated on November 14]. For this reason
Christmas lent is sometimes called “the fast of Philip.” Although the
coincidence of the feast of the apostle Philip and the beginning of the Christmas
fast is accidental, humanly speaking, the eyes of faith may see in it a certain
providence of God.
According to St. John’s gospel, Philip is one of the first
of the apostles to be called by Jesus. On the day after the calling of Andrew
and another of St. John the Baptist’s disciples, who, since he is not named, is
probably the apostle John himself, Philip is called by the Lord. Like Andrew
who went and called his brother Simon Peter, Philip goes and calls his friend
Nathanael. The story is told in the gospel in this way:
The next day Jesus decided to go to
Galilee. And he found Philip and said to him, “Follow me.” Now Philip was from
Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter.
Philip found Nathanael, and said to him, “We have found Him of whom Moses in
the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”
Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to
him, “Come and see.” Jesus saw Nathanael coming to Him, and said of him,
“Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile!” Nathanael said to Him, “How
do You know me?” Jesus answered Him, “Before Philip called you, when you were
under the fig tree, I saw you.” Nathanael answered Him, “Rabbi, You are the Son
of God! You are the King of Israel!” Jesus answered him, “Because I said to
you, I saw you under the fig tree, do you believe? You shall see greater things
than these.” And He said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see
heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of
man.”
(Jn. 1:43-51)
The story is typical of St. John’s gospel. The people first
encounter the man “Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” They meet Him as a
man, the one “of whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote.” Then they
go further. What they come to see is that this man is not merely the promised
prophet and teacher; He is the Anointed, the Christ, the Messiah, the King of
Israel. He is the Son of God. Indeed, He is God Himself in human form.
The pattern in St. John’s gospel is always the same. We see
it in the narratives of the paralytic at the pool, the Samaritan woman at the
well, the boy born blind, the encounter of Martha and Mary with Jesus at the
tomb of Lazarus. The sequence of events is identical. It is a necessary sequence,
not only historically
, but spiritually
and mystically
.
We must first come to see Jesus the man. We must come to
know Him as a concrete human being, a Jew, a rabbi, a prophet. We must meet Him
as Mary’s child, the carpenter’s son, the Nazarene. Then, in this encounter,
when our eyes are open and our hearts are pure, we can come to see “greater
things.” We can come to know Him not simply as a teacher, but the Teacher; not
simply as a prophet, but the Prophet. We can come to know Him not merely as a
son of man, but as the Son of man foretold by the prophet Daniel (Dan.
7:13-14). We can come to see Him not simply as a son of God, but as the Son of
God, begotten of the Father before all ages (cf. Heb. 1; Jn. 1:17-18). We can
come to recognize Him as God’s Word in human flesh, as God’s Image in human
form (cf. Jn 1:1-18; Phil. 2:6-11; Col. 1:15-20; Heb. 1:1-3). And finally, we
can come to see Him as God Himself; not the Father but the Father’s Son, divine
with the Father’s own divinity, sent into the world for its salvation (cf. Jn
1:1, 20:18; Phil 2:6; Heb. 1:8).
The first step on the way of the Winter Pascha is the
encounter with the man Jesus. We are invited with Philip and the disciples, to
“come and see.” If we want to come and want to see, we will. Like the first
disciples, we will see “greater things” than we ever expected. We will see
“heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of
man.” We will see Jesus as our Master, and will cry to Him: “Rabbi, You are the
Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” And we will come to know Him for who
and what He really is. But first we must come. For if we do not come, we will
never see.
O God-seer Philip,
With divine inspiration and
instruction of the Holy Spirit
You sounded the Savior’s heavenly
gospel
And proclaimed it in the world with
a fiery tongue.
You burned all deceit to ashes like
dried grass,
And throughout the universe you
preached the gospel of the Lord Christ who is Master of all.
As Moses of old,
You were instructed by divine
ascent;
Desiring to see God spiritually
You saw His Image.
You received the Son as the
Knowledge and Witness of the Father,
For They are known as one Being,
The Unity honorably exalted by all:
One Kingdom, Power, Glory, and
Worship.
O new wonder,
Greater than all ancient wonders,
For who has ever known a mother without a husband
To have brought forth a Child
And carried in her arms the One who
holds all creation?
This Child is God’s good will!
Having carried Him in your arms as
an infant, O Pure One,
And having boldness as a mother
before Him,|
Intercede before Him always for
those who honor you,
That our souls may receive mercy
and be saved.
~Vespers of the Feast of the
Apostle Philip
