During the Christmas Octave, the Church celebrates the Feast of St John. Fr Joe Balmer is the Parish Priest of the parish in Barrhead dedicated to the Beloved Disciple. Here, he reflects on his life and legacy.

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St John was a native of Bethsaida, a Galilean town on the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee. His parents were Zebedee and Salome; he and his brother James (the Greater) were disciples of Jesus, and John was present at the crucifixion. Prior to being called by Jesus, the fisherman was a disciple of St John the Baptist.

John was author of the Fourth Gospel, revealing himself in 19:35 and 21:24 as an eyewitness to the life and ministry of Jesus and identifying himself discreetly as the disciple whom Jesus loved (21:20). Traditionally the Book of the Apocalypse (Revelation) and three Epistles have also been attributed to St John.

One of the symbols associated with St John is the eagle. This symbol represents the height and majesty of his Gospel, soaring above earthly matters, with a far-sightedness and vision to explore the depths of spiritual truth. The Gospel of John is often regarded as a profound and contemplative account of Jesus' life, as the Word who became flesh and the God who dwells among us.

John tells us of the purpose of his Gospel at the end of it (20:30-31):

Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples which are not recorded in this book, but are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ the Son of God and that believing you may have life in his name.

These verses sum up the objective in writing his Gospel and explains his intentions to have us believe that Jesus was indeed the Messiah, the Anointed one, the Christ pronounced and promised by the prophets in the Old Testament, the Eternal Son of God the Father. By believing this truth, which is the sum of all Revelation, we may might already begin to partake of eternal life.

John writes his Gospel to inspire faith, so that we may seek to rest like him, on the bosom of the Lord, where we will come to know him intimately and personally, rather than to know of him or from afar. It is in the Prologue to St John’s Gospel, read at the Christmas Mass during the day, that St John instructs us on how the Eternal Word, Jesus, made this possible by becoming flesh and uniting with our material world to save us, repair, renew and elevate us to a new level of existence. His birth is like the new Genesis, a new beginning, a re-ordering and re-setting of humanity, which invites us to receive his grace and share his life and the power to become children of God (1:12). 

The Saint Andrew Daily Missal makes this point in its description of the feast of St John, Apostle and Evangelist:

It is God whom we adore at Bethlehem during Christmas time. Thus, it is natural that St. John, the Chief Evangelist of the Divinity of Christ, should be found beside the crib, to disclose the greatness of the Infant who reposes therein.