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Feast of St. John, Apostle and Evangelist

Readings of the Day
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As many scholars contend that John the
Apostle, John the gospel writer, and John the epistle writer were
three
different people, I am at liberty to opine on any one of the
three!  I choose John the Apostle.

John is listed among the Twelve in Matthew,
Mark, and Luke, but not in the Gospel of John. 
However, this gospel does refer to a "beloved disciple"
several times;
most believe that this unnamed disciple is John.

We gather from Scripture that John was in
Jesus' "inner circle," present at more key events
than most of the disciples
(the transfiguration, raising of the daughter of Jairus, the agony in
the
garden, and the empty tomb), and at Peter's side during the
early years of
witness bearing after the Ascension. 
According to tradition, John died of natural causes at a rather old
age.
Unlike many of the apostles, he was probably not martyred.

What is the significance of this apostle for
us today?  Like his cohorts, he answered
Jesus' call to follow him - he put aside family, career, and
other forms of
security to follow Jesus. In one of the most tender passages of the
gospels,
John 19: 26-27, Jesus joins his mother to the beloved disciple:
"...Woman,
behold your son....behold, your mother."  Would we not
want to be so honored by Jesus
to caretake his mother after Jesus died? 
John showed a degree of maturity in his discipleship, having evolved
from a follower who asked to be specially placed with Jesus in his
kingdom
(Mark 10: 35ff) to one who (John 20: 8b), "...saw and
believed," when he could
have been hiding following the trial and crucifixion of Jesus.

 

Steve Herro is Norbertine brother from
De Pere, Wisc. Formerly with Catholic Charities USA, he now serves as
an
archivist and executive assistant for two Green Bay area
organizations, facilitates
a Bible study group, volunteers in housing and horticulture programs
in his
community, is a spiritual director intern, and blogs at
stevenherro.wordpress.com.

 

 

 




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