This emblem is loaves of bread, refreshingly not a representation of death but of life. This is the story of the apostle Philip as told in the Gospel of John. Jesus chose Philip as a disciple with his distinctive imperative: “...Follow me” (1:43). Philip appears again at The Feeding of the Five Thousand, where Jesus sets him up for the miracle: “When [Jesus] looked up and saw a large crowd coming toward him, Jesus said to Philip, ‘Where are we to buy bread for these people to eat?’ ” (6:5). Philip doesn’t understand that Jesus is testing him and that a sign is about to occur. Again, Philip is used as a vehicle for John’s Christology:                                               

“Philip said to him, ‘Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and you still do not know me? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father’ ” (14:8-9).                                                       

As an apostle, Philip is said to have traveled to Greece, Syria, and Phrygia, present-day Turkey, where he met his martyrdom. He converted the wife of the proconsul of the city of Hierapolis. In a rage, the pagan potentate had him crucified upside down. Despite the torture, Philip continued to preach from the cross until death. His relics are said to lie in the Church of the Holy Apostles in Rome.                                                    

Dickerman Hollister, Jr., MD