St. John the Baptist

Catholic feast day: June 24

St. John the Baptist is most known for being the principal figure in preparing the way for Christ before He began His public ministry. He was born to Saint Elizabeth, who was a kinswoman of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Luke 1:36), and the wife of Zechariah, a member of the priestly class, making Jesus and St. John related, as well. The most common term of relation suggested for the two is “cousin,” though the exact degree is unknown.

Elizabeth and her husband, St. Zechariah, were “barren” and “of advanced age” when she conceived St. John. She believed she would never have children when the Lord answered her prayers for a son. St. Zechariah was a descendant of Aaron and therefore a priest in the temple of Jerusalem. Once when he was serving in the temple, the angel Gabriel appeared to him and told him that his wife would bear a son and that he was to name him John. Because Zechariah doubted the words of the angel, he was made mute until the birth of John the Baptist. The full account of this encounter can be found in the Gospel of Luke 1:5-24.

Though the exact date of St. John the Baptist’s birth is not known, each year the Church honors his Nativity on June 24th. This is three months after the Annunciation, March 25th, since Elizabeth was already six months along when the angel appeared to Mary and Jesus was conceived (Luke 1:24-26).

Regarding John the Baptist baptizing Jesus the Catechism of the Catholic Church (paragraph 536) teaches:

The baptism of Jesus is on his part the acceptance and inauguration of his mission as God’s suffering Servant. He allows himself to be numbered among sinners; he is already “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.” Already he is anticipating the “baptism” of his bloody death. Already he is coming to “fulfill all righteousness,” that is, he is submitting himself entirely to his Father’s will: out of love he consents to this baptism of death for the remission of our sins. The Father’s voice responds to the Son’s acceptance, proclaiming his entire delight in his Son. The Spirit whom Jesus possessed in fullness from his conception comes to “rest on him.” Jesus will be the source of the Spirit for all mankind. At his baptism “the heavens were opened” – the heavens that Adam’s sin had closed – and the waters were sanctified by the descent of Jesus and the Spirit, a prelude to the new creation.

St. John the Baptist first appears in the Old Testament, when the prophets foretold of a voice that would prepare the way (Isaiah 40:1-11, Malachi 3:1-4). We mostly read about John the Baptist in the four Gospels. The following scripture passages give an account of St. John the Baptist’s proclamations and testimonies: Matthew 3:1-12, Mark 1:2-8, Luke 3:1-18, Luke 7:27, and John 1:19-34. We can also read of the Gospel writers writing about John the Baptist in Luke 1:80, Mark 1:6-8 and John 1:6-8.

One important lesson to take away from St. John the Baptist is to spend our entire lives pointing to Jesus. St. John the Baptist spent his entire life pointing to Christ. In speaking of our Lord, he said “He must increase, but I must decrease.” (John 3:30). From John the Baptist we can learn to humble ourselves just as he did and make sure that our lives, witnesses, our entire being, always points to Christ.

St. John the Baptist is the patron saint of baptism. He is one of the few saints who have two feast days. Each year the Church celebrates the Nativity of St. John the Baptist on June 24th as well as the date of his martyrdom which is on August 29th.

Read more and get the eBook on EWTN.

John the Baptist's patronage:

• Baptism
• Bird dealers
• Converts
• Epileptics
• Lambs
• Lovers
• The monastic life
• Motorways
• Printers
• Tailors
• Freemasons (please see the video by Fr. Alar of Divine Mercy below, at min. 34)

(The picture above: Mosaic of John the Baptist with the inscription Ό άγιος Ιω[άννης] ό Πρόδρομος (“Saint John the Forerunner”) in the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, 12th century.)