The Saint honored on the Church’s calendar today is St. Philip Neri, an engaging Italian priest known for his keen sense of humor and practical piety. He was a missionary and founder of the Congregation of the Oratory in Rome (still in existence today), who had a knack for helping people find (or rediscover) their faith in Jesus Christ.
St. Philip encouraged groups of people to gather for discussions, studies, prayers, and enjoyment of music. We assume that all of those things are features of a solid, faithful parish today, but St. Philip lived 500 years ago and his ideas were way ahead of his time.
St. Philip was, in a sense, “an apostle of joy” in that he encouraged a happy and cheerful discipleship among God’s people. His customary question was always, “Well, brothers and sisters, when shall we begin to do good?”
Let us pray. “O God, you continually raise up your faithful to the glory of holiness and joy. In your love, kindle in us the fire of the Holy Spirit who so filled the heart of St. Philip Neri. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.”
