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John the Baptist

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For the hip-hop producer with the same name, see John the Baptist (producer).
St. John
The Baptism of Christ, by Piero della Francesca, 1449
Forerunner, Precursor, Baptist
Bornc. 6–2 BCE
Diedc. 30 CE
Venerated inRoman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Catholic Churches, Oriental Orthodox Churches, Anglicanism
FeastJune 24 (Nativity), August 29 (Beheading), January 7 (Synaxis, Eastern Orthodox), Thout 2 ( Planetarium's, Coptic Orthodox Church)
AttributesCross, lamb, his own head
Patronagepatron saint of French Canada, Puerto Rico, Knights Hospitaller of Jerusalem, Florence, Genoa, many other places
File:John Baptizes Jesus Mural.jpg
Icon depicting the Baptism of Jesus by the hand of John in the Jordan River.
The excavated remains of the baptism site in Bethany Beyond the Jordan, in modern-day Jordan.

Saint John the Baptist was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and ascetic regarded as a prophet by four religions: Christianity, Islam, Mandaeanism and the Bahá'í Faith. The title of prophet is asserted in the Synoptic Gospels, the Qur'an, the Bahá'í writings and the Book of Mormon. He is commonly referred to as John the Forerunner or Precursor by Christians who consider him the forerunner of Jesus Christ.[citation needed]

In the New Testament

Birth and infancy

Main article: Zechariah (priest)

The Gospel of Luke includes an account of John's infancy, introducing him as the son of St. Zachary/Zachariah and St. Elizabeth, who previously "had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both well advanced in years".[1] His birth, name, and office were foretold by the angel Gabriel to Zachariah, while Zachariah was performing his functions as a priest in the temple of Jerusalem. According to Luke, Zachariah was a priest of the course of Abijah, and his wife, Elizabeth, was of the daughters of Aaron[2]; consequently John automatically held the priesthood of Aaron.

Luke states that John was born about six months before Jesus. Zachariah had lost his speech at the behest and prophecy of the angel Gabriel,[3] and It was restored on the occasion of Zachariah naming John.[4] On the basis of Luke's account, the Catholic calendar placed the feast of John the Baptist on June 24, six months before Christmas.[citation needed] According to Luke, Jesus and John the Baptist were related, their mothers being cousins Luke 1:36; there is no mention of this in the other Gospels, and the scholar Raymond E. Brown has described the relationship as 'of dubious historicity'[5]; Geza Vermes has called it 'artificial and undoubtedly Luke's creation'[6].

Ministry

All four canonical gospels relate John's mistry, his preaching and baptism in the River Jordan.

Most notably, according to the Bible, he is the one who recognized Jesus as the Messiah, and on Jesus' request, baptised him. The baptism marked the beginning of Jesus' ministry.

The Gospels of Mark, Matthew and (less clearly) Luke relate that Jesus came from Galilee to John and was baptized by him, whereupon the Spirit descended upon him and a voice from Heaven told him he was God's Son. Their lives (e.g, births) are believed to have been similar, although in Christianity, John is thought of as last prophet and Jesus as the Messiah.

The problem that Jesus, considered by Christians to be without sin, received John's baptism, which was for the forgiveness of sins, is addressed in the Gospel of Matthew's account, which has John refusing to baptize Jesus, saying, "I need to be baptized by you," until Jesus convinces him to baptize him nonetheless (Matthew 3:13–15).

The Gospel of John does not describe John baptizing Jesus but has John introducing Jesus to his disciples as the "Lamb of God" (John 1:29–34).

The Gospel of John reports that Jesus' disciples were baptizing and that a debate broke out between some of the disciples of John and another Jew about purification with John explaining that Jesus "must become greater" while he, John, "must become less" (John 3:22–36). Gospel of John then points out that Jesus' disciples were baptizing more people than John (John 4:2).

Later, the Gospel relates Jesus regarding John as "a burning and shining lamp, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light". (John 5:35).

The book of Acts portrays the disciples of John as eventually merging into the followers of Jesus (Acts 18:24–19:6), a development not reported by the Gospels except for the early case of Andrew, Simon Peter's brother (John 1:35–42).

On various occasions the Gospels relate John denying any claim to be the Messiah and clearly acknowledging his inferiority to Jesus. However, scholars such as Harold W. Attridge contend that John's status as a "self-conscious and deliberate forerunner of Jesus" is likely to be an invention by early Christians, arguing that "for the early church it would have been something of an embarrassment to say that Jesus, who was in their minds superior to John the Baptist, had been baptized by him."[7]

Imprisonment and beheading

Main article: Beheading of John the Baptist
The Beheading of St John, 1608, Valletta Co-Cathedral, Malta

According to the canonical Gospels, John the Baptist's public ministry was brought to a close when he was imprisoned on orders of Herod Antipas, probably about seven months after he had baptized Jesus. [citation needed][citation needed] The synoptic Gospels state that Herod reacted to John's condemnation of Herod's marriage to Herodias, the wife of Herod's brother Philip (Luke 3:19; Matthew 14:3–5}. Josephus locates John's imprisonment in the fortress of Machaerus on the southern extremity of Peraea, nine miles (14 km) east of the Dead Sea (Josephus, Jewish Antiquities XVIII:5:1–2).

Matthew relates that the imprisoned John sent messengers to Jesus to ask him whether he was the Messiah. Jesus indirectly answered in the affirmative and described John in terms of a return of the prophet Elijah (Matthew 11:2–15).

Regarding John's death, Josephus states that Herod had John killed to preempt a possible uprising. Matthew links John's death as well with Herodias, as he related that her daughter Salome so much delighted Antipas with a dance that he vowed to grant her any wish to which, after being prompted by her mother (Herodias), she demanded the head of John the Baptist. (Matthew 14:6–8)

The Gospels date John's death before the third and last Passover of Jesus' ministry. Josephus places John's death no later than 36 CE. Some scholars[who?] believe that Herod Antipas did not marry his brother's wife until his brother Philip died in 34 CE, placing these events after the their date in the Gospel count.

Neither Josephus nor the Gospels state where John was buried, though the Gospels state that John's disciples took his body and placed it in a tomb and then told Jesus all that had occurred (Matthew 14:3–12).

In the time of Julian the Apostate, however, his tomb was shown at Samaria, where the inhabitants opened it and burned part of his bones. The rest of the alleged remains were saved by some Christians, who carried them to an abbot of Jerusalem named Philip.[8]

Prophecies

Some Christians believe that John the Baptist had a specific role ordained by God which was to be the forerunner or precursor to the Messiah, whom they believe to be Jesus. "to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the lord." Luke 1:17 and also Luke 1:76 "...thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways; 1:77 "To give knowledge of salvation unto his people by the remission of their sins."

There are several passages within the Old Testament which are generally interpreted by Christians as being prophetic of John the Baptist in this role. These include a passage in the Book of Malachi that refers to a prophet who would prepare the way of the Lord:

Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts. - Malachi 3:1

Though the interpretation of this passage as referring to a forerunner of the Messiah was uncommon amongst Jews prior to the 2nd century BC[citation needed], it became significantly more common under Hellenic, and later Christian, influences.

Christians interpreted Isaiah 40:3–5 as referring prophetically to John, based on John's own statement as written in John 1:22–23::He said, 'I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, "Make straight the way of the Lord" ', as the prophet Isaiah said.

Baha'is, while accepting this station of John the Baptist, believe that Isaiah 40:3-5 refers to the current Dispensation which began in 1844; this date marks the end of the Adamic cycle of prophecy, and the beginning of Baha'i cycle of fulfillment. Refer to Isaiah 40:4-5: "Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed...." In the ancient Aramaic language (Galilean Hebrew, which Jesus Christ spoke and which scribes used to record the Scriptures) "the glory of the Lord" reads "Baha'u'llah," Who is the Prophet-Founder of the Baha'i Faith. Baha'u'llah wrote in His book, Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, p. 131, "...the mountains have been scattered in dust; by Him the Lord of attributes!" Further, he refers to His Cause "...through which the mountain of knowledge was crushed, and men's feet have slipped." Baha'u'llah Himself was preceded by a Forerunner, whose title is the Bab, which means "the Gate."

Josephus

An account of John the Baptist is found in all extant manuscripts of Flavius Josephus' Jewish Antiquities book 18, chapter 5, paragraph 2:

Now some of the Jews thought that the destruction of Herod's army came from God, and that very justly, as a punishment of what he did against John, that was called the Baptist: for Herod slew him, who was a good man, and commanded the Jews to exercise virtue, both as to righteousness towards one another, and piety towards God, and so to come to baptism; for that the washing [with water] would be acceptable to him, if they made use of it, not in order to the putting away [or the remission] of some sins [only], but for the purification of the body; supposing still that the soul was thoroughly purified beforehand by righteousness. Now when [many] others came in crowds about him, for they were very greatly moved [or pleased] by hearing his words, Herod, who feared lest the great influence John had over the people might put it into his power and inclination to raise a rebellion, (for they seemed ready to do any thing he should advise,) thought it best, by putting him to death, to prevent any mischief he might cause, and not bring himself into difficulties, by sparing a man who might make him repent of it when it would be too late. Accordingly he was sent a prisoner, out of Herod's suspicious temper, to Macherus, the castle I before mentioned, and was there put to death. Now the Jews had an opinion that the destruction of this army was sent as a punishment upon Herod, and a mark of God's displeasure to him. (Whiston Translation) [1]

Jesus-mythicist Frank Zindler argues that the passage is an interpolation by a Sabian but his opinion is beyond the pale of mainstream scholarship. [9] The passage dates to at least the early third century as it is quoted by Origen in Contra Celsum. It was also quoted by Eusebius of Caesarea in the fourth century.

According to this passage, the execution of John was blamed for a defeat Herod suffered in around 36. Divergences between the passage's presentation and the Biblical accounts of John include the following:

  • Baptism for those whose souls have already been "purified beforehand by righteousness" is for purification of the body, not general repentance of sin (Mark 1:4).
  • John's imprisonment and subsequent execution is described as being to prevent "mischief", rather than owing to Herod's wife's daughter's terpsichorean persuasion of a reluctant Herod.

Biblical scholar John Dominic Crossan differentiates between Josephus' account of John and Jesus: "John had a monopoly, but Jesus had a franchise." To get baptized, Crossan writes[clarification needed], you went only to John. Stopping the movement meant only stopping John. His movement ended with his death. Jesus invited all to come and see how he and his companions had already accepted the Government of God, entered it and were living it. Such a communal praxis was not just for himself, but could survive without him, unlike John's movement.[10]

Eastern Orthodox Church

File:Chirin.jpg
Eastern Orthodox icon John the Baptist - the Angel of the Desert (Stroganov School, 1620s) Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow.
Icon depicting Elizabeth leaving the infant John in the desert (John the Baptist "in the Desert" Monastery near Jerusalem, Israel).

The Eastern Orthodox believe that John was the last of the Old Testament prophets, thus serving as a bridge between that period of revelation and the New Covenant. They also teach that, following his death, John descended into Hades and there once more preached that Jesus the Messiah was coming, so he was the Forerunner of Christ in death as he had been in life. According to Sacred Tradition, John the Baptist appears at the time of death to those who have not heard the Gospel of Christ, and preaches the Good News to them, that all may have the opportunity to be saved.

Orthodox churches will often have an icon of St. John the Baptist in a place of honor on the iconostasis, and he is frequently mentioned during the Divine Services. Every Tuesday throughout the year is dedicated to his memory.

The Eastern Orthodox Church remembers Saint John the Forerunner on six separate feast days, listed here in order in which they occur during the church year (which begins on September 1):

In addition to the above, September 5 is the commemoration of Zechariah and Elisabeth, St. John's parents.

The Russian Orthodox Church observes October 12 as the Transfer of the Right Hand of the Forerunner from Malta to Gatchina (1799).

Roman Catholic Church

The Roman Catholic Church commemorates St. John the Baptist on three separate feast days:

Wood Sculpture of John The Baptist’s Head by Master Santiago Martinez Delgado, permanent Collection at the Museo Nacional in Bogotá, Colombia.

As a patron saint

Saint John the Baptist is the patron saint of Puerto Rico, and its capital city San Juan bears his name. In 1521, the island was given its formal name "San Juan Bautista de Puerto Rico", following the usual custom of christening the town with both its formal name and the name which Christopher Columbus had originally given the island, honoring John the Baptist. The indistinct use of "San Juan Bautista" and "Puerto Rico" for calling both the city and the island led to a reversal in practical use by most inhabitants due largely to a map-making error. Therefore by 1746 the name for the city (Puerto Rico) had become that of the entire island, while the name for the island (San Juan Bautista) had become the name for the city. The official motto for the island of Puerto Rico also references the saint, Joannes Est Nomen Eius (translated, "John is his name").

He is also a patron saint of French Canada, and Newfoundland. The Canadian cities of St. John's, Newfoundland (1497) and Saint John, New Brunswick (1604) were both named in his honor. In the UK Saint John the Baptist is the patron saint of Penzance, Cornwall. His feast day is June 24, celebrated in Quebec as the Fête nationale du Québec (la Fête St-Jean-Baptiste).

Also on the night from 23rd to 24th June, Saint John is celebrated as the patron saint of Porto, the second largest city in Portugal. An article from June 2004 in The Guardian, remarked that "Porto's Festa de São João is one of Europe's liveliest street festivals, yet it is relatively unknown outside the country"[12].

He is also patron of the Knights Hospitaller of Jerusalem, Florence, and Genoa, Italy.

The Baptistines are the name given to a number of religious orders dedicated to the memory of John the Baptist.

Saint John is also the patron saint of Lian, Batangas, San Juan, Metro Manila (Philippines) and the entire state of South Carolina.

St. John the Baptist is (along with St. John the Evangelist) claimed as a Patron Saint by the fraternal society of Free and Accepted Masons (better known as the Freemasons).[13]

Relics

A head said to be John's, enshrined in Rome
St John's Shrine inside the Umayyad Mosque, Damascus

According to ancient tradition, the burial-place of John the Baptist was at Sebaste in Samaria, and mention is made of his relics being honored there around the middle of the fourth century. The historians Rufinus and Theodoretus record that the shrine was desecrated under Julian the Apostate around 362, the bones being partly burned. A portion of the rescued relics were carried to Jerusalem, then to Alexandria, where on 27 May, 395, they were laid in the basilica that was newly-dedicated to the Forerunner on the former site of the temple of Serapis. The tomb at Sebaste continued, nevertheless, to be visited by pious pilgrims, and St. Jerome bears witness to miracles being worked there.

What became of the head of John the Baptist is difficult to determine. Nicephorus[14] and Symeon Metaphrastes say that Herodias had it buried in the fortress of Machaerus (in accordance with Josephus). Other writers say that it was interred in Herod's palace at Jerusalem; there it was found during the reign of Constantine I, and thence secretly taken to Emesa, in Phoenicia, where it was concealed, the place remaining unknown for years, until it was manifested by revelation in 453.

The Coptic Christian Orthodox Church also claim to hold the relics of St. John the Baptist. These are to be found in a monastery in Lower Egypt between Cairo and Alexandria. It is possible, with permission from the monks, to see the original tomb where the remains were found.

Tomb of St. John the Baptist at a Coptic monastery in Lower Egypt. The bones of St. John the Baptist were said to have been found here.

‎

Over the centuries, there have been many discrepancies in the various legends and claimed relics throughout the Christian world. Several different locations claim to possess the severed head of John the Baptist. Among the various claimants are:[15]

Istanbul claims to possess the saint's arm and a piece of his skull in the Topkapi Palace, as does the Coptic Orthodox Monastery of Saint Macarius the Great in Scetes, Egypt,[17] while John's right hand, with which he baptised Jesus, is said to be in the possession of the Serbian Orthodox Cetinje monastery in Montenegro, and also at the Romanian skete of the Forerunner on Mount Athos.

Mandaean view

Mandaeans believe John the Baptist, called Yahya in the Sidra d-Yahia (Book of John), was the last and greatest of the prophets. While Mandaeans agree that he baptized Jesus (Yeshu), they reject the latter as either a saviour or prophet. They view John as the only true Messiah.

According to the text of the Ginza Rba, John died at the hand of an angel. The angel appeared as a three-year-old child, coming to John for baptism. John knew the angel for what it was, and that once he touched its hand, he would die immediately. John performed the baptism anyway, and died in the process. Afterward, the angel covered John's body with mud.

Islamic view

Main article: Yahya ibn Zakariyya

John the Baptist is known as Yahya in Arabic and in the Qur'an. The Qur'an, in the sura Maryam, identifies John is the son of Zachariah and maternal cousin of Jesus. It relates an account similar to that of the Gospel of Luke, including the barrenness of Zachariah's unnamed wife and his doubts, though Zachariah is not described as actually mute but only ordered not to speak for three nights. John, whose tidings are foretold by the angels, is exhorted to hold fast to the Scripture and was given wisdom by God while still child. (Surah 19:7-12). He is described as "pure", "devout", "dutiful towards his parents" and as "not arrogant or rebellious" (Surah 19:7-15) and is called "a Prophet of the Righteous" coming "to confirm a word from Allah". (Surah 3:39)

Bahá'í view

There are numerous quotations in the writings of Bahá'u'lláh, Founder of the Bahá'í Faith mentioning John the Baptist. He is regarded by Bahá'ís as a lesser Prophet. [18] Bahá'u'lláh claimed that His Forerunner, the Báb, was the spiritual return of John the Baptist. In His letter to Pope Pius IX, Bahá'u'lláh wrote:

"O followers of the Son! We have once again sent John unto you, and He, verily, hath cried out in the wilderness of the Bayán: O peoples of the world! Cleanse your eyes! The Day whereon ye can behold the Promised One and attain unto Him hath drawn nigh! O followers of the Gospel! Prepare the way! The Day of the advent of the Glorious Lord is at hand! Make ready to enter the Kingdom. Thus hath it been ordained by God, He Who causeth the dawn to break."[19]

However, Bahá'ís consider the Báb to be a greater Prophet (Manifestation of God) and thus possessed of a far greater station than John the Baptist.

Gnostic and anthroposophic views

In Gnosticism, John the Baptist was a "personification" of the Old Testament prophet Elijah. As an Old Testament prophet, Elijah did not know the True God (the God of the New Testament), and thus had to be reincarnated in Gnostic theology. As predicted by the Old Testament prophet Malachi, Elijah must "come first" to herald the coming of Jesus Christ.

Modern anthroposophy, initiated by Rudolf Steiner, concurs with the idea that the Baptist was a reincarnation of Elijah, in line with the Synoptic Gospels (e.g. Mark 9:11–13,Matthew 11:13–14,Luke 7:27), although the Gospel of John explicitly denies this (John 1:21). Furthermore, after his beheading at Machaerus his soul is said to have become the inspiring group genius of Christ's disciples. According to Steiner, the painter Raphael and the poet Novalis were more recent incarnations of John the Baptist.[20]

Unification church

The Unification Church teaches that God intended that John help Jesus during his public ministry in Israel. In particular, John should have done everything in his power to persuade the Jewish people that Jesus was the Messiah. He was to become Jesus' greatest disciple. John's failure to do so was the chief obstacle to the fulfillment of Jesus' mission.Divine Principle Chapter 4, Section 2

Latter Day Saint view

Latter Day Saints believe John appeared in Pennsylvania, as a resurrected being, to Joseph Smith, Jr. and Oliver Cowdery on 15 May 1829, and gave them the Aaronic Priesthood. They also believe John's ministry was foretold by two prophets in the Book of Mormon: Lehi[2] and his son, Nephi (1 Nephi 11:27; 2 Nephi 31:4-18).

Commemoration

Famous churches

The Catholic church in Ein Kerem on the site where John the Baptist is said to have been born.

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Luke 1:7
  2. ^ Luke 1:5
  3. ^ Luke 1:20"And, behold, thou shalt be dumb, and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall be performed, because thou believest not my words...."
  4. ^ Luke 1:64"And he asked for a writing table, and wrote, saying, His name is John. And they marvelled all. And his mouth was opened immediately, and his tongue loosed, and he spoke...."
  5. ^ Raymond Edward Brown, The Virginal Conception and Bodily Resurrection of Jesus, Paulist Press (1973), page 54
  6. ^ Geza Vermes, The Nativity, page 143.
  7. ^ Harold W. Attridge. "Historical problems with John the Baptist". From Jesus to Christ: A Portrait of Jesus' World. PBS. Retrieved 2007-10-31.
  8. ^ Eccl. lib. iii. cap. 3 Chronic. Alex, p.686)
  9. ^ Frank R. Zindler, The Jesus The Jews Never Knew, Sepher Toldoth Yeshu and the Quest of the historical Jesus in Jewish Sources (AAP), 2003
  10. ^ Crossan, John Dominic, God and Empire, HarperCollins, 2007, p.117ff
  11. ^ In late antiquity this feast in some churches marked the beginning of the Ecclesiastical Year; see Archbishop Peter (L'Huiller) of New York and New Jersey, "Liturgical Matters: "The Lukan Jump"", in: Newspaper of the Diocese of New York and New Jersey, Fall 1992.
  12. ^ The Guardian, June 12 2004, "There's only one São João"
  13. ^ Pietre-Stones Review of Freemasonry
  14. ^ Nicephorus, Ecclesiastical History I, ix. See Patrologia Graeca, cxlv.-cxlvii.
  15. ^ a b Lost Worlds: Knights Templar, July 10, 2006 video documentary on The History Channel, directed and written by Stuart Elliott
  16. ^ Sean Martin, The Knights Templar: The History & Myths of the Legendary Military Order, 2005. ISBN 1-56025-645-1
  17. ^ The Monastery of St. Macarius the Great
  18. ^ Compilations (1983). Hornby, Helen (Ed.) (ed.). Lights of Guidance: A Bahá'í Reference File. Bahá'í Publishing Trust, New Delhi, India. pp. p. 475. ISBN 8185091463. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  19. ^ Bahá'u'lláh (2002). The Summons of the Lord of Hosts. Haifa, Israel: Bahá'í World Centre. pp. p. 63. ISBN 0853989761. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  20. ^ Sergei Prokofieff, The Mystery of John the Baptist and John the Evangelist Turning Point of Time: An Esoteric Study, ISBN 1902636678

References

  • Catherine M. Murphy, John the Baptist: Prophet of Purity for a New Age. Collegeville: Liturgical Press, 2003. ISBN 0-8146-5933-0
Wikimedia Commons has media related to John the Baptist.

References to John (Yahya) in the Qur'an


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