Saturday, June 24, 2006
John The Baptist
He spoke the Truth - and they put him to death for it.
John The Baptist has no equal among men - Jesus The Christ Himself Said so, and there is no better reference than Him on that sort of subject (as on any other really - just saying He Knows saints! Most peeps today will misjudge the good and praise the bad instead! But that is another story - a very sad story...)
John the Baptizer is also called oftentimes John the Forerunner - for he indeed paved the way for The Christ to reveal Himself to the disbelieving rabble and other rabbis in Jerusalem... He was born on a June 24th, indeed, but few know that he is alleged to have died on August 29th - and the date of the gruesome and unjust beheading of this saint should be first and foremost on everyone's mind, I would think...
Other scholars and men of letters take to dub him, quite simply, "the Precursor of the Lord".
Me, I call him the greatest saint there is - one whose courage and self-denial knew no bounds and is truly an example for all of us 'cosmic nobodies who want to be somebodies in the finite, the temporal and the dust' - not quoting here, these are MY words and my take on it!
The Baptist began shouting in the desert, preaching on the banks of the Jordan river and baptizing at the ripe old age of 30 - in an earthly life that would be shortened and so very fleeting, he would make an undeniable impact not only by the example that he set, as we've assessed already, but also by the groundwork that he would accomplish in such a short span of time - preselecting, in effect, two cornerstones of the Christ's apostolate that would lead to another even more important one; the rock upon which Christ would build His Church.
He prepared the way for He Who Is The Way - and when he saw the end near, his words were not so much of resignation but of acceptance with pride and faith that GOD's PLAN had been set in motion perfectly.
And he said "His Time Has Come. Mine is at an end."
And he knew his reward was greater than great - unlike others who may have to wait before ascension, I have no doubt that there was no waiting time for the Baptist.
And now following is the installment of "Saints & Angels: TLB Prime Series" that focused on this unique saint and originally appeared on The Luminous Blog:
Today, according to the calendar up on my wall, is the day of the commemoration of the martyrdom of my favorite saint - Saint John The Baptist.
Though my plight is not technically "martyrdom" literally, I saw on this day quite a few parallels and quite a lot of synchronicity going on there...!
However, such is not the subject of this blog post nor of this recurring sub-series that is a cherished part of TLB Prime...
Hence, more about the saint instead...
He is also known as Joannes Baptista; John the Baptizer; John the Forerunner; Juan Bautista; João Batista, Jean le Baptiste
Memorial Dates are most well-known, the first mostly - June 24th (birth) and today, August 29th (death) (Yes - I had chosen to honor the latter date there!)
Profile ~
Cousin of Jesus Christ. Son of Zachary, a priest of the order of Abia whose job in the temple was to burn incense; and of Elizabeth, a descendent of Aaron. As Zachary was ministering in the Temple, an angel brought him news that Elizabeth would bear a child filled with the Holy Spirit from the moment of his birth. Zachary doubted and was struck dumb until John's birth.
Prophet. Began his ministry around age 27, wearing a leather belt and a tunic of camel hair, living off locusts and wild honey, and preaching a message of repentance to the people of Jerusalem. He converted many, and prepared the way for the coming of Jesus. Baptized Christ, after which he stepped away and told his disciples to follow Jesus.
Imprisoned by King Herod. He died a victim of the vengeance of a jealous woman; he was beheaded, and his head brought to her on a platter. Saint Jerome says Herodias kept the head for a long time after, occassionally stabbing the tongue with his dagger.
He died beheaded circa 30 A.D. at Machaerus; buried at Sebaste, Samaria; his relics are found in Saint Sylvester's church, Rome, Italy, and at Amiens, France - reputedly.
His name means "God is gracious" or "gift of God" (John)
I so do agree with that meaning - my saintly father's a namesake...
His Canonization is one of an elite few that was "Pre-Congregation" - of course.
His Patronage is vast and goes way beyond mere baptism to embrace a whole lot of diverse causes, places, professions and ways of life, such as: bird dealers; the diocese of Charleston, South Carolina; Colletorto, Italy; converts; convulsions; convulsive children; cutters; diocese of Dodge City, Kansas; epilepsy; epileptics; farriers; French Canadians; Fürstenberg, Germany; Genoa, Italy; hail; hailstorms; Jordan; Knights Hospitaller; Knights of Malta; lambs; Leioa, Spain; Macau, China; Maltese Knights; monastic life; Monte San Giovanni Campano, Italy; Monza, Italy; motorways; Palermo, Sicily; diocese of Paterson, New Jersey; Penzance, Cornwall, England; diocese of Portland, Maine; Pozzallo, Sicily; printers; Puerto Rico; Quebec; Ragusa, Sicily; Saint-Jean-le-Blanc, Loiret, France; San Juan Indian Pueblo; San Juan, Puerto Rico; Sassano, Italy; diocese of Savannah, Georgia; spasms; tailors; Teising, Germany; Torino, Italy; Umbria, Italy; Wenden, Germany; Wenings, Germany; Wroclaw, Poland.
Representation: cross in hand; lamb; severed head on a platter; skin of an animal; slender cross. (It is one of the things that I always loved about my faith - its rich and abundant symbolism! Imaginative and creative minds are greater than knowledgeable ones - Albert Einstein himself knew so much!)
St-John The Baptist is a wonderful example for us all, really.
He completely dedicated himself to his purpose - and forgot any wants in the process in a truly magnificent way.I have adopted this saint as MY token saint and personal patron saint of Truth Divulgence for that reason alone, almost!
I plan to live up to his example too - and fear not head-chopping reactions while carrying forward my crusade of championing the Truth!
John The Baptist has no equal among men - Jesus The Christ Himself Said so, and there is no better reference than Him on that sort of subject (as on any other really - just saying He Knows saints! Most peeps today will misjudge the good and praise the bad instead! But that is another story - a very sad story...)
John the Baptizer is also called oftentimes John the Forerunner - for he indeed paved the way for The Christ to reveal Himself to the disbelieving rabble and other rabbis in Jerusalem... He was born on a June 24th, indeed, but few know that he is alleged to have died on August 29th - and the date of the gruesome and unjust beheading of this saint should be first and foremost on everyone's mind, I would think...
Other scholars and men of letters take to dub him, quite simply, "the Precursor of the Lord".
Me, I call him the greatest saint there is - one whose courage and self-denial knew no bounds and is truly an example for all of us 'cosmic nobodies who want to be somebodies in the finite, the temporal and the dust' - not quoting here, these are MY words and my take on it!
The Baptist began shouting in the desert, preaching on the banks of the Jordan river and baptizing at the ripe old age of 30 - in an earthly life that would be shortened and so very fleeting, he would make an undeniable impact not only by the example that he set, as we've assessed already, but also by the groundwork that he would accomplish in such a short span of time - preselecting, in effect, two cornerstones of the Christ's apostolate that would lead to another even more important one; the rock upon which Christ would build His Church.
He prepared the way for He Who Is The Way - and when he saw the end near, his words were not so much of resignation but of acceptance with pride and faith that GOD's PLAN had been set in motion perfectly.
And he said "His Time Has Come. Mine is at an end."
And he knew his reward was greater than great - unlike others who may have to wait before ascension, I have no doubt that there was no waiting time for the Baptist.
And now following is the installment of "Saints & Angels: TLB Prime Series" that focused on this unique saint and originally appeared on The Luminous Blog:
Today, according to the calendar up on my wall, is the day of the commemoration of the martyrdom of my favorite saint - Saint John The Baptist.Though my plight is not technically "martyrdom" literally, I saw on this day quite a few parallels and quite a lot of synchronicity going on there...!
However, such is not the subject of this blog post nor of this recurring sub-series that is a cherished part of TLB Prime...
Hence, more about the saint instead...
He is also known as Joannes Baptista; John the Baptizer; John the Forerunner; Juan Bautista; João Batista, Jean le Baptiste
Memorial Dates are most well-known, the first mostly - June 24th (birth) and today, August 29th (death) (Yes - I had chosen to honor the latter date there!)
Profile ~
Cousin of Jesus Christ. Son of Zachary, a priest of the order of Abia whose job in the temple was to burn incense; and of Elizabeth, a descendent of Aaron. As Zachary was ministering in the Temple, an angel brought him news that Elizabeth would bear a child filled with the Holy Spirit from the moment of his birth. Zachary doubted and was struck dumb until John's birth.
Prophet. Began his ministry around age 27, wearing a leather belt and a tunic of camel hair, living off locusts and wild honey, and preaching a message of repentance to the people of Jerusalem. He converted many, and prepared the way for the coming of Jesus. Baptized Christ, after which he stepped away and told his disciples to follow Jesus.
Imprisoned by King Herod. He died a victim of the vengeance of a jealous woman; he was beheaded, and his head brought to her on a platter. Saint Jerome says Herodias kept the head for a long time after, occassionally stabbing the tongue with his dagger.
He died beheaded circa 30 A.D. at Machaerus; buried at Sebaste, Samaria; his relics are found in Saint Sylvester's church, Rome, Italy, and at Amiens, France - reputedly.
His name means "God is gracious" or "gift of God" (John)
I so do agree with that meaning - my saintly father's a namesake...
His Canonization is one of an elite few that was "Pre-Congregation" - of course.
His Patronage is vast and goes way beyond mere baptism to embrace a whole lot of diverse causes, places, professions and ways of life, such as: bird dealers; the diocese of Charleston, South Carolina; Colletorto, Italy; converts; convulsions; convulsive children; cutters; diocese of Dodge City, Kansas; epilepsy; epileptics; farriers; French Canadians; Fürstenberg, Germany; Genoa, Italy; hail; hailstorms; Jordan; Knights Hospitaller; Knights of Malta; lambs; Leioa, Spain; Macau, China; Maltese Knights; monastic life; Monte San Giovanni Campano, Italy; Monza, Italy; motorways; Palermo, Sicily; diocese of Paterson, New Jersey; Penzance, Cornwall, England; diocese of Portland, Maine; Pozzallo, Sicily; printers; Puerto Rico; Quebec; Ragusa, Sicily; Saint-Jean-le-Blanc, Loiret, France; San Juan Indian Pueblo; San Juan, Puerto Rico; Sassano, Italy; diocese of Savannah, Georgia; spasms; tailors; Teising, Germany; Torino, Italy; Umbria, Italy; Wenden, Germany; Wenings, Germany; Wroclaw, Poland.
Representation: cross in hand; lamb; severed head on a platter; skin of an animal; slender cross. (It is one of the things that I always loved about my faith - its rich and abundant symbolism! Imaginative and creative minds are greater than knowledgeable ones - Albert Einstein himself knew so much!)
St-John The Baptist is a wonderful example for us all, really.
He completely dedicated himself to his purpose - and forgot any wants in the process in a truly magnificent way.I have adopted this saint as MY token saint and personal patron saint of Truth Divulgence for that reason alone, almost!
I plan to live up to his example too - and fear not head-chopping reactions while carrying forward my crusade of championing the Truth!
Labels: commemorative, Luminous pundit moi, YouTube
