By Leon Bent –
St. John the Apostle, also called Saint John the Evangelist or Saint John the Divine, (flourished 1st century CE; Western feast day December 27; Eastern feast days May 8 and September 26), in Christian tradition, an apostle of Jesus and the author of three letters, the Fourth Gospel, and possibly the Revelation to John in the New Testament. He played a leading role in the early church at Jerusalem.
St. John the Apostle, the son of Zebedee and Salome, was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus. John was called to be an Apostle by our Lord in the first year of His public ministry. He is considered the same person as John the Evangelist, John of Patmos and the Beloved Disciple. John’s older brother was St. James the Great, another one of Jesus’ Twelve Apostles. Jesus referred to the brothers as “sons of thunder.” John is believed to be the longest living apostle and the only not to die a martyr’s death.
On one occasion, when a Samaritan village rejected Jesus, James and John asked if they should call down fire from heaven to destroy the place. That earned them the nickname Boanerges, or “sons of thunder.”
John was especially loyal to Jesus. He was the only one of the 12 apostles present at the cross. After Pentecost, John teamed up with Peter to fearlessly preach the gospel in Jerusalem and suffered beatings and imprisonment for it.
John underwent a remarkable transformation as a disciple, from the quick-tempered Son of Thunder to the compassionate apostle of love. Because John experienced the unconditional love of Jesus firsthand, he preached that love in his gospel and letters.
John was the only one of the Twelve Apostles who did not forsake the Savior in the hour of His Passion. He stood faithfully at the cross when the Savior made him the guardian of His Mother.
John is known as the author of the Gospel of John and four other books in the New Testament – the three Epistles of John and the Book of Revelation. The authorship of the Gospel is credited to the “disciple whom Jesus loved,” and John 21:24 claims the Gospel of John is based on the “Beloved Disciple’s” testimony. However, the true authorship has been debated on since 200. In his Eclesiastical History, Eusebius states the First Epistle of John and the Gospel of John are agreed upon AS John’s. Eusebius continues to state the second and third epistles of John are not John the Apostle’s.
The Gospel of John is powerfully symbolic and mystical. You need to get beyond those historical questions to appreciate the symbolism. John of Patmos (also called John the one who Revealed, John the Divine, John the Theologian, and possibly John the Apostle is the author named as John in the Book of Revelation, the apocalyptic text forming the final book of the New Testament. The text of Revelation states that John was on Patmos, a Greek island where, by most biblical historians, he is considered to be exiled as a result of anti-Christian persecution under the Roman emperor Domitian. John is considered to be exiled to Patmos, undergoing a time of persecution under the Roman rule of Domitian. Revelation 1:9 states: “I, John, both your brother and companion in tribulation…was on the island that is called Patmos for the Word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ.”
“Now there are also many other things that Jesus did. Was every one of them to be written, i suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.” John 21:25.
John was with Peter when the first great miracle after the Resurrection took place—the cure of the man crippled from birth—which led to their spending the night in jail together. The mysterious experience of the Resurrection is perhaps best contained in the words of Acts: “Observing the boldness of Peter and John and perceiving them to be uneducated, ordinary men, they [the questioners] were amazed, and they recognized them as the companions of Jesus” (Acts 4:13).
Today, John’s gospel is one of the best tools for evangelism that Christians have—if not the best. Passages from his writings have become our definition of God (1 John 4:8), and others have become so ubiquitous that even many non-Christians know them by heart.
Now, this gold nugget! The Apostle John is traditionally considered the author also of three New Testament letters and the Book of Revelation. His Gospel is a very personal account. He sees the glorious and divine Jesus already in the incidents of his mortal life. At the Last Supper, John’s Jesus speaks as if he were already in heaven. John’s is the Gospel of Jesus’ glory.
And, this final flourish! Jesus gave the exquisite honour of caring for his mother, as John stood beneath the cross. “Woman, behold your son…. Behold, your mother” (John 19:26b, 27b).
Leon Bent is an ex-Seminarian and studied the Liberal Arts and Humanities, and Philosophy, from St. Pius X College, Mumbai. He holds Masters Degree in English Literature and Aesthetics. He has published three Books and have 20 on the anvil. He has two extensively “Researched” Volumes to his name: Hail Full of Grace and Matrimony: The Thousand Faces of Love. He won The Examiner, Silver Pen Award, 2000 for writing on Social Issues, the clincher being a Researched Article on Gypsies in India, published in an issue of the (worldwide circulation) Vidyajyoti Journal of Theological Reflection, New Delhi. On April, 28, 2018, Leon received the Cardinal Ivan Dias Award for a research paper in Mariology.
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