Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of the Evangelist and Apostle St. John. He was one of two sons of Zebedee. From the Gospels, we learn that he, his father, and his brother James were fishermen in Galilee. John, James, and Peter belonged to what some call “the inner circle of disciples” around Jesus. They appear with Jesus at all the critical moments during the public ministry of the Lord (for example, at His miracles, His Transfiguration, and in His Agony in the Garden).
The Gospel according to St. John clearly emphasizes the divine nature of Jesus, as both Light and Life and the Word of God incarnated into the human family. His Gospel also puts love (agape in Greek) as the vital bond between Father and Son, between Christ and His disciples, and between the disciples themselves. Traditionally, St. John wrote his Gospel toward the end of his life, at the end of the first century.
We are indeed indebted to St. John and the other writers of the New Testament. They have presented us with a wonderful vision of how life is to be lived, bringing joy and fulfilment. The Gospel of John, in particular, gives a supreme understanding of the meaning of Jesus’ life and death for us. A worthy prayer on His Feast is “that we might enter deeply into all the writings of the New Testament, especially the Gospels, making ourselves familiar with them and then incorporating their vision and their teaching into our lives.” Isn’t that a big part of what Christmas is all about?
Let us pray. “Lord, you are glorious and beyond our understanding. Your divine presence in this world is truly mysterious and awe-inspiring. We thank you for coming among us and we thank you for revealing yourself to us through the writings of St. John the Apostle. May we come to know you more deeply through all that St. John has written and may we always imitate his example of a beloved disciple. O Jesus, we trust in you!” St. John, pray for us.
