St Philip Neri was born in Florence, Italy in 1515. It amazes me to hear about the great saints who lived in this tumultuous era of the Protestant Reformation; his contemporaries included John of Avila, Frances de Sales, Ignatius of Loyola, Teresa of Avila, Frances Xavier, and John of the Cross. Over the years, I have had many youth at my parishes choose Philip Neri as their patron saint for the sacrament of confirmation, primarily because they saw him as a patron saint of joy. One priest described Philip Neri in this way: “Philip radiated joy. If we had encountered him on the street, we could see (him) coming a mile away. He had a ready laugh, a great sense of humor and profound holiness." Leaving Florence at 18 years old to go to Rome, on fire with the joy of the Gospel, he engaged people he met with the Word of God and the teachings of the Church. After founding a group of lay people who welcomed pilgrims to Rome, Philip became a priest himself and then founded an order of priests called the Congregation of the Oratory. He is sometimes referred to as the second Apostle of Rome after Saint Peter. His spiritual mission emphasized the development of personal holiness and direct service to others, particularly through the education of children and youth and care for the poor and sick.
We have been hearing about the development of the early Church in our readings from the Acts of the Apostles during the Easter season. We hear of the conversion of Lydia and her household in today’s reading, of how the Gospel witness and evangelization of Paul and his companions moved her heart to follow the way of Jesus.
We too are called to be evangelizers in the reality of our lives as modern disciples of Christ. St Philip Neri’s model of engaging people in the Gospel message is something we can use in our modern era in the new evangelization. Through the reality of our lives, through sharing our faith and witnessing to others, we are called to bring Gospel joy to others.
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