Third Day of Christmas: St. John the Apostle, Disciple and Friend of Jesus
The beloved disciple, the man who did not abandon Jesus during the crucifixion.
On December 27 we recognize the feast of St. John the Apostle, a disciple and close friend of Jesus.
Like St. Stephen, whose feast day is the day after Christ’s birthday, there is a legit reason for St. John’s feast day so close to the 25th.
St. John the Apostle is the “beloved” disciple. Jesus called for John and his brother James as they fished with their father Zebedee. They immediately left and followed Jesus without hesitation.
St. John was with Jesus “for the Transfiguration” and the Passion and Death. He stayed with Jesus throughout the crucifixion and comforted Mary, our Blessed Virgin Mother.
Jesus loved John so much He asked him to care for Mary: “Woman, here is your son” and “Here is your mother.”
Another reason St. John’s feast day is during the Christmas season? Because he had the traits all of us Christians should have:
John certainly had faith. He believed that Jesus was who He said he was: the Messiah. John gave up everything to be with Jesus, to learn from Him, to understand how God was creating a new covenant and that the whole world needed to hear this message. His faith was so unshakeable that he remained with Christ as He died; he refused to hide as the other Apostles did.
John was a man of hope. As he stood at the foot of the cross, comforting Mary, John had to recall all that Jesus had taught the Apostles. He had to have hope that the cross was not the end, no matter how terrible and ugly it was.
John loved. He loved Jesus. He loved Him as his Messiah, but also as his friend. John’s relationship with Jesus should be a model for all of us: we should call Jesus our “beloved” and pray that He does the same for us. John loved Mary, and took her into his home, caring for her as his own mother, modeling for us the relationship we should have with her.
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Comments
Mary thank you for these posts
You touch my heart with these posts. Though I am not primarily a Christian, I have dedicated my life to the love of God, and recognize that same thing in others.