Solemnity of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist - June 24, 2014 Christians have long interpreted the life of John the Baptist as a preparation for the coming of Jesus Christ, and the circumstances of his birth, as recorded in the New Testament, are miraculous. Johns pivotal place in the gospel is seen in the emphasis Luke gives to the announcement of his birth and the event itself—both made prominently parallel to the same occurrences in the life of Jesus. The sole biblical account of the birth of John the Baptist comes from the Gospel of Luke. John’s parents, Zechariah or Zachary — a Jewish priest — and Elizabeth, were without children and both were beyond the age of child-bearing. During Zechariahs rotation to serve in the Temple in Jerusalem, he was chosen by lot to offer incense at the Golden Altar in the Holy Place. The Archangel Gabriel appeared to him and announced that he and his wife would give birth to a child, and that they should name him John. However, because Zechariah did not believe the message of Gabriel, he was rendered speechless until the time of Johns birth. At that time, his relatives wanted to name the child after his father, and Zechariah wrote, His name is John, whereupon he recovered his ability to speak (Luke 1:5-25; 1:57-66). Following Zechariahs obedience to the command of God, he was given the gift of prophecy, and foretold the future ministry of John (Luke 1:67-79). At the Annunciation, when the Archangel Gabriel appeared to the Virgin Mary to inform her that she would conceive of the Holy Ghost Jesus. He also informed her that Elizabeth, her cousin, was already six months pregnant (Luke 1:36). Mary then journeyed to visit Elizabeth. Luke’s Gospel recounts that the baby “leapt” in Elizabeth’s womb at the greeting of Mary (Luke 1:44). The Nativity of St John the Baptist on June 24 comes three months after the celebration on March 25 of the Annunciation, when the Archangel Gabriel told Our Lady that her cousin Elizabeth was in her sixth month of pregnancy, and six months before the Christmas celebration of the birth of Jesus. The purpose of these festivals is not to celebrate the exact dates of these events, but simply to commemorate them in an interlinking way. The Nativity of St. John the Baptist anticipates the feast of Christmas. The Nativity of St John the Baptist is one of the oldest festivals of the Christian church, being listed by the Council of Agde in 506 as one of that regions principal festivals, where it was a day of rest and, like Christmas, was celebrated with three Masses: a vigil, at dawn, and at midday. Ordinarily the day of a saints death is usually celebrated as his or her feast day, because that day marks his entrance into heaven. To this rule there are two notable exceptions: the birthday of the Blessed Virgin Mary and that of St John the Baptist. Mary, already in the first moment of her existence, was free from original sin (her conception itself is commemorated by a separate feast), while John was cleansed of original sin in the womb of his mother.
Posted on: Tue, 24 Jun 2014 10:35:59 +0000
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