Feast of Saint John, Apostle and Evangelist

“St John the Evangelist”
by Alonso Cano, 1636

Biographical Information about St. John the Apostle[1]

Readings for the Feast of St. John the Apostle[2]

Readings from the Jerusalem Bible

Readings and Commentary:[3]

Reading 1: 1 John 1:1-4

Beloved:

What was from the beginning,

what we have heard,

what we have seen with our eyes,

what we looked upon

and touched with our hands

concerns the Word of life

for the life was made visible;

we have seen it and testify to it

and proclaim to you the eternal life

that was with the Father and was made visible to us

what we have seen and heard

we proclaim now to you,

so that you too may have fellowship with us;

for our fellowship is with the Father

and with his Son, Jesus Christ.

We are writing this so that our joy may be complete.

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Commentary on 1 Jn 1:1-4

The introduction of the First Letter of John describes the author as not only a believer in Jesus but also an eyewitness and contemporary of the Lord. He describes the unifying force of faith in the Father and his joy in passing on the great news of the Savior.

This testimony about Christ is designed to lead to fellowship and complete joy. Fellowship with the Apostles (the Greek word is "koinonia") means, firstly, having the same faith as those who lived with Jesus: "They saw our Lord in the body," St Augustine reminds us, "and they heard words from his lips and have proclaimed them to us; we also have heard them, but we have not seen him [...]. They saw him, we do not see him, and yet we have fellowship with them, because we have the same faith" ("In Epist. Ioann. ad Parthos", 1, 3).[4]

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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 97:1-2, 5-6, 11-12

R. (12) Rejoice in the Lord, you just!

The Lord is king; let the earth rejoice;

let the many isles be glad.

Clouds and darkness are around him,

justice and judgment are the foundation of his throne.

R. Rejoice in the Lord, you just!

The mountains melt like wax before the Lord,

before the Lord of all the earth.

The heavens proclaim his justice,

and all peoples see his glory.

R. Rejoice in the Lord, you just!

Light dawns for the just;

and gladness, for the upright of heart.

Be glad in the Lord, you just,

and give thanks to his holy name.

R. Rejoice in the Lord, you just!

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Commentary on Ps 97:1-2, 5-6, 11-12

This hymn rejoices in the supremacy of God the Father. The apocalyptic imagery demonstrates God’s authority over all his creation. Natural disasters of all sorts (earthquakes, storms, and even famines) were seen as punishments from God as were misfortunes of all sorts both collective and individual.

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Gospel: John 20:1a and 2-8

On the first day of the week,

Mary Magdalene ran and went to Simon Peter

and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them,

“They have taken the Lord from the tomb,

and we do not know where they put him.”

So Peter and the other disciple went out and came to the tomb.

They both ran, but the other disciple ran faster than Peter

and arrived at the tomb first;

he bent down and saw the burial cloths there, but did not go in.

When Simon Peter arrived after him,

he went into the tomb and saw the burial cloths there,

and the cloth that had covered his head,

not with the burial cloths but rolled up in a separate place.

Then the other disciple also went in,

the one who had arrived at the tomb first,

and he saw and believed.

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Commentary on Jn 20:1a and 2-8

The Gospel story of the discovery of the empty tomb describes St. John (the disciple whom Jesus loved). “From these details concerning the empty tomb one deduces that Jesus' body must have risen in a heavenly manner, that is, in a way which transcended the laws of nature. It was not only a matter of the body being reanimated as happened, for example, in the case of Lazarus, who had to be unbound before he could walk (cf. John 11:44)”[5]  It is interesting that St. John arrives first but recognizes St. Peter’s primacy, waiting for him to enter the tomb first. Note also that when St. John entered the tomb, he immediately understood what happened and “believed.”

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Homily:

“We are writing this so that our joy may be complete.”

It is appropriate that we as Church remember on this day St. John the Apostle. He was the youngest of the twelve. He was the author of not only the Gospel of Faith, but also two epistles and the book of Revelation. His faith community tackled the earliest and, in many ways, the hardest questions about the life and mission of Christ and set down what their faith revealed for our posterity.

What do we think was the “joy” of Saint John that is made complete in the writing of his experience and understanding of the Lord? In our Christmas season, we are still feeling the afterglow of the warmth and love we experience in the Lord’s Nativity. We understand anew the gift God has given us in his Son, and we rejoice in the life that flows from that gift.

We hear what John says, and suddenly it all makes sense. He was there. He was with the Lord as he walked and talked; as he preached and healed. He experienced the profound amazement of the man and God; the profound sadness of the Passion. He was there at the empty tomb where the source of his happiness had been laid. He saw and believed in that empty tomb and his joy soared.

What we receive from John in the short sentence above is like what we might feel when we get the very best news we can hope for; news that changes our lives – like the birth of our child, like the vows at a wedding or promotion at work. When we get the very best news, isn’t sharing it the first thing we want to do? Does not having others rejoice with us heighten our own joy? Does it not make our joy complete?

This is perhaps one of John’s most important contributions – his joy in the Savior. Let us share that joy, especially this Christmas season. The Savior has come!

Pax

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[1] The picture used today is “St John the Evangelist” by Alonso Cano, 1636

[2] ALTRE

[3] The readings are taken from the New American Bible with the exception of the Psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for English in Liturgy (ICEL).  This re-publication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.

[4] The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries, Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and by Scepter Publishers in the United States, © 2002 (1 John 1:3-4)

[5] Ibid (John 20:5-7)