#St. John the Baptist

[thefugitivesaint]

Franz Von Stuck (1863-1928), ‘Salomé’, ''Meister der farbe'', #2, 1922 Source

[mote-historie]

Sandro Botticelli, Madonna and Child with St. John the Baptist, detail, c. 1470–1475.

Musée du Louvre, Paris, France. 

[beautiful-belgium]

Attributed to Jan van Eyck - Turin–Milan Hours (detail), c. 1420

John the Baptist page. Birth of the Baptist above; bas-de-page of the Baptism of Christ, Hand G, Turin. Milan Filio 93v, Inv 47

[i-love-this-art]

Mario Bacchelli / "Young St. John in the Desert" / ab. 1930 / Gallery of Modern Art, Pitti Palace

[northemoonduringthenight]

When the daughter of Herodias came in, she performed a dance that delighted Herod and his guests.

The king said to the girl, “Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it to you. The girl went out and said to her mother, “What shall I ask for?” She replied, “The head of John the Baptist.

Mk. 6:22,24

Artwork: Benozzo Gozzoli (Italian, c. 1421 – 1497) The Feast of Herod and the Beheading of Saint John the Baptist (1461-1462)

[scobbe]

Cool liturgical year observance: today (June 24) is the Nativity of St. John the Baptist, who “prepared the way” for the coming of Christ. In the Northern hemisphere, this always falls after the summer solstice when the days begin getting shorter — in the Gospel of St. John, John the Baptist says of Jesus, “He must increase, but I must decrease.” (John 3:30) and indeed, the days get shorter and shorter, less and less sunlight, UNTIL the winter solstice, after which we celebrate Christmas, the Nativity of Jesus, the Light of the World. Then the days begin getting longer, more and more sunlight. And the date of Easter is always set as the Sunday after the first full moon after March 21, which sounds complicated until you realize that sets it always after the vernal equinox. So we celebrate the resurrection of Christ when there is finally more daylight than darkness in the world, the light growing and growing through Eastertide and into Pentecost, celebrating the birth of the Church, and then the summer solstice rolls around again, and here comes St. John the Baptist again, preparing the way of the Lord, the days growing shorter until we’re into Advent again, awaiting the birth of Christ and the return of Light to the world.

I just think it’s neat.

[thepastisalreadywritten]

John the Baptist spent his adult life preparing the way for Jesus and proclaiming that “the Kingdom of Heaven is close at hand.”

He was born to Zachary and Elizabeth, an elderly married couple.

The Angel Gabriel had visited Zachary and told him that his wife would bear a child, even though she was already past the child-bearing age.

Elizabeth was Mary’s cousin and Zachary was a priest of the Temple in Jerusalem.

As a baby in the womb, John recognized Jesus’ presence in Mary’s womb when Mary visited Elizabeth soon after the Annunciation.

Both women were pregnant at the same time.

John was probably born at Ain-Karim, which is southwest of Jerusalem.

As a young adult, he lived as a hermit in the desert of Judea until about A.D. 27.

When he was 30, he began to preach on the banks of the Jordan, calling for repentance and baptizing people in the river waters.

When Jesus came to John to be baptized, John recognized Jesus as the Messiah and baptized Him, saying: “It is I who need baptism from you.”

John continued to preach after Jesus was baptized but was imprisoned not long after by Herod Antipas, after he denounced the king’s adulterous marriage with Herodias, wife of his half-brother Philip.

John was beheaded at the request of Salome, daughter of Herodias.

Many came to know Jesus through John, namely the Apostles Andrew and John.

[helloparkerrose]

[immanuelillustrative]

"...And you, my child (John the Baptist), will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him, to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the path of peace.” And the child grew and became strong in spirit ; and he lived in the wilderness until he appeared publicly to Israel. Benedictus (The Song of Zechariah), Luke 1:68–79. Studies of men, Jean-Hippolyte Flandrin, 1809-1864.

[beautiful-belgium]

Gaspar de Crayer - St. John the Baptist (c. 1655)

[spiritualdirections]

TIL from someone in the parish, that in the Philippines, the feast of the Nativity of Saint John, the Baptist is celebrated by everybody throwing water on each other, including strangers, because pouring water on people is what John the Baptist did. I was told that the smart thing to do on June 24th is always to carry a change of clothing in case the one you're wearing gets soaked.

[cvbarroso]

Hodie XXIX augustii... Decollatio sancti Joannis Baptistae, quem Herodes decollari praecepit.

#DegollamientoSanJuanBautista

[christusrex1]

On the Feast Day of the Beheading of St. John the Baptist

One of the first, of many, saints shunted aside by the Novus Ordo Church has been St. John the Baptist.  The lack of veneration and discussion of The Baptist is not surprising and has been done for a couple of reasons: First, besides being the precursor of Our Lord, St. John, as did his Divine Master, undauntedly pointed out the hypocrisy of much of the then Church’s hierarchy: And seeing, many…

[northemoonduringthenight]

Bartolomeo Schedoni, The Holy Family with Saint John the Baptist

[paulpingminho]

[sophergophergooseegg]

So you’re telling me a saint johnned this baptist