You should instead use the ResourceLocatorTool… search the forums for details and usage. It replaces the getResource method, and the best part is that it can locate resources inside JARs.
My files are in the standard filesystem (not JARed up anywhere), so the original JAVA .getResource() should have worked anyway! I really don't understand why it doesnt come up when I specify the relative path of the file!
The best part about ResourceLocatorTool is that it works for both jars and filesystem. So if you decide to move your files into jars, you will not have to change code, just replace the lookup directories.
The only difference when working with jars is you cannot specify a directory, you actually have to point to an existing file. So when specifying a base directory in SimpleResource locator, point to any file inside that directory.