INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE FEAST OF ST. JOHN, THE APOSTLE
          by Leonard Goffine, 1871


 John, the son of Zebedee and of St. Salome, and brother of St. James, the greater, born about eight years later than Christ, was the youngest of the apostles, and before being called by Christ was a fisherman and disciple of St. John, the Baptist. When Jesus called him and his brother, they were mending their nets by the sea of Galilee. He obeyed the call and became our Lord's constant companion, and was with Peter and James His most intimate disciple. Our Lord loved him beyond all the others, especially on account of his great purity of heart, gave him the most tender proofs of His affection, so much so, that at the Last Supper St. John was permitted to lean upon the Saviour's breast; our Lord when dying, gave His beloved Mother Mary into his care, and she was taken home by St. John who never again left her. When the apostles dispersed to preach the gospel in different parts of the world, St. John went to Asia Minor, where he founded many congregations, and that he might be near them, he established his seat at Ephesus, from which city he watched over all the Churches of the country. He was taken to Rome in the year 95, during the reign of the cruel Emperor Domitian, and cast into a kettle of boiling oil, but by wonderful, divine assistance came out of it stronger than ever, and was then banished by the Emperor to the island of Patmos, now called Palmosa. Here he received those marvellous revelations, called the Apocalypse of St. John, which are included in the holy Scriptures and foretell the fate of the Church of God.

After the death of Domitian, St. John returned to Ephesus, where at the prayer of the faithful and to refute the heresy which denied the divinity of Christ, he wrote his gospel, in which he soars like an eagle to the subject of Christ's divinity, and proves it indisputably against the heresies of Ebion and Cerinthus. About the same time he also wrote his three epistles, wherein he especially urges to the love of God and one's neighbor. He constantly inculcated this love, especially in his old age, and when he could no longer, because of the weakness of age, deliver long sermons, he would always, when he appeared among the faithful, repeat these words: "My children, love one another," and when once asked: why he said always the same thing? he replied: "This is the commandment of God, and who observers this, does enough." For St. John believed he could not better repay the love which Christ had shown him, than by infusing into all hearts the holy love, which is the perfect bond and the mark of the true disciple of Jesus. St. John survived all the apostles; at last in the year 100 of our chronology, Christ called to Himself by a placid death, the man of nearly a hundred years, whom He loved so much. The sepulchre of the saint, which is on a hill outside the city of Ephesus, has been glorified by many miracles.

The Introit of the Mass reads: In the midst of the Church the Lord opened his mouth and filled him with the spirit of wisdom and understanding, and clothed him with a robe of glory. (Eccl. xv. 65.) It is good to give praise to the Lord, and to sing to thy name, O Most High. (Ps. xcv.) Glory be to the Father, &c.


PRAYER OF THE CHURCH

Mercifully, O Lord, enlighten Thy Church, that being taught by blessed John, Thy Apostle and Evangelist, she may come to Thy eternal rewards. Through.

LESSON. (Eccl. xv. 1 - 6.) He that feareth God, will do good: and he that possesseth justice, shall lay hold on her. And she will meet him as an honourable mother. With the bread of life and understanding, she shall feed him, and give him the water of wholesome wisdom to drink: and she shall be made strong in him, and he shall not be moved: and she shall hold him fast, and he shall not be confounded: and she shall exalt him among his neighbours, and in the midst of the Church she shall open his mouth, and shall fill him with the spirit of wisdom and understanding, and shall clothe him with the robe of glory. She shall heap upon him a treasure of joy and gladness, and our Lord God shall cause him to inherit an everlasting name.


ON PURITY

He that loveth wisdom, saith the Holy Ghost, will obtain it; for it will not enter into a malicious soul, nor dwell in a body, subject to sins. (Wis. i. 4.) From his childhood St. John was an angel of purity, and was on this account especially loved by Jesus, and gifted by the Holy Ghost with such wisdom and understanding, that, as observed by St. Augustine, "St. John commences his gospel in a grander and nobler strain than that used by the other three evangelists." For while they walk on earth with the God-Man, saying but little concerning His divinity, St. John, as if forgetting the world, soars like an eagle not only far above the earth, but above the wide blue skies, above even the whole angelic hosts, to Him by whom all things were made, saying: In the beginning was the word.

At the Last Supper he was permitted to lean upon our Lord's breast, and that which he silently imbibed in that union, he afterwards openly imparted. Strive, therefore, to maintain purity of heart, that thou mayst be, like St. John, a loved disciple of Christ, and be filled with heavenly wisdom.


GOSPEL. (John xxi. 19 - 24.) At That Time: Jesus said to Peter: follow me. Peter turning about, saw that disciple whom Jesus loved following, who also leaned on his breast at supper and said: Lord, who is he that shall betray thee? Him therefore when Peter had seen, he saith to Jesus: Lord and what shall this man do? Jesus saith to him: So I will have him to remain till I come, what is it to thee? follow thou me. This saying, therefore, went abroad among the brethren, that that disciple should not die. And Jesus did not say to him: He should not die; but, so I will have him to remain till I come, what is it to thee? This is that disciple who giveth testimony of these things, and hath written these things: and we know that his testimony is true.

What did Christ mean by the words: So I will have him to remain till I come. Follow thou me?

He meant to say, that St. John was not to die a violent, but a natural death, while Peter was to be crucified, as our Lord had foretold. (John xxi. 18.)

Why did our Lord not answer Peter's question?

He wished to rebuke his inquisitiveness and instruct Him, that we should not be curious about our neighbor's affairs. He who busies Himself over much in his neighbor's concerns, is apt to neglect his own, and cause himself much annoyance and inconvenience.

SUPPLICATION TO ST. JOHN

 St. John, Christ's beloved disciple, who leaned upon His breast at the Last Supper, to whom He from the cross entrusted His mother, I beseech thee by these great graces, to obtain for me and all men purity of heart, sincere devotion to the dying Saviour and His blessed Mother, an ardent love for God and our neighbor, and, finally, a happy death.

Why is wine blessed on this day and given to the faithful to drink?

That all who drink of this blessed wine, may be preserved from all diseases of body and soul, as God preserved St. John, who to confirm the truth of the Christian religion, drank of a rich, but poisoned wine, without being injured by it; and that we may by St. John's intercession be strengthened and confirmed in the faith and be rightly inflamed with the love of God and our neighbor, of which this wine is a figure, and with which St. John was overflowing. Consequently when presenting the wine, the priest says: Drink the love of St. John, in the name of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.






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St. John, Apostle and Evangelist
 by Father Francis Xavier Weninger, 1876


St. John, Apostle and Evangelist of Jesus Christ, a brother of St. James, and son of Zebedee and Salome, was born at Bethsaida, a town in Galilee. Christ, our Lord, called him and his brother James to follow Him, at the time when they were mending their nets in a boat on the shore of the Sea of Genesareth. John, without delay, left all he possessed, even his own father, and, with his brother, followed the Lord. Although the youngest of the Apostles, he was beloved by the Saviour above all the others; whence he is several times mentioned in the Gospel, as "the disciple whom Jesus loved." The cause of this special love of Jesus for him, was, according to the Holy Fathers, his virginal purity, which he kept undefiled, and the tender love he bore to the Lord. "He was more beloved than all the other Apostles," writes St. Thomas Aquinas, "on account of his purity." "For the same reason," says St. Anselm, "God revealed more mysteries to him than to the other Apostles. Justly," says he, "did Christ the Lord reveal the greatest mysteries to him, because he surpassed all in virginal purity."

It is evident from the Gospel that St. John was one of the most intimate of the friends of the Lord, and was, in consequence, sometimes admitted into Christ's presence, when, except Peter and James, no other Apostle was allowed to be near. Thus, he was with Christ when He healed the mother-in-law of Peter; when He raised the daughter of Jairus from the dead; and when He was transfigured on Mount Thabor. He also accompanied Christ when He suffered His agony in the Garden of Olives. The other two above-named Apostles shared these favors with John; but none was permitted to lean upon the Saviour's bosom, at the last supper, save John; none was recommended as son to the divine Mother, but John. Only he, of all the Apostles, followed Christ to Mount Calvary, and remained there with Him until His death. To recompense this love, Christ gave him to His Mother as her son, when He said: "Behold thy Mother!" Christ, who had lived in virginal chastity, would trust His Virgin Mother to no one else but John, who himself lived in virginal purity. As St. Jerome says: "Christ, a virgin, recommended Mary, a virgin, to John, a virgin." No greater grace could John have asked of Christ; no more evident proof could he have received of His love. The most precious thing which the Lord possessed on earth, His holy Mother, He commended to His beloved disciple. He took him as brother, by giving Him as son to His mother. Who cannot see from all this that Christ loved and honored St. John above all others?

How deeply this beloved disciple must have suffered by seeing his Saviour die so ignominious a death, is easily to be conceived; and St. Chrysostom hesitates not to call him, therefore, a manifold martyr. After Christ had died on the Cross, had been taken from it, and interred with all possible honors, St. John returned home with the divine Mother, who was now also his mother, and waited for the glorious resurrection of the Lord. When this had taken place, he participated in the many apparitions of the Lord, by which the disciples were comforted, and doubtless received again particular marks of love from the Saviour. He afterwards assisted, with the divine Mother and the Apostles, and other disciples of Christ, at the wonderful Ascension of the Lord. With these, also, he received, after a ten days' preparation, the Holy Ghost, on the great festival of Pentecost. Soon after this, he and Peter had, before all others, the grace to suffer for Christ's sake. For when these two Apostles had, in the name of Christ, miraculously healed a poor cripple who was lying at the door of the temple of Jerusalem, and improved this opportunity to show to the assembled people that Jesus of Nazareth was the true Messiah, they were seized, at the instigation of the chief priests, and were cast into prison. On the following day, the priests came together, and John and Peter were called before them, and asked in whose name, and by what power they had healed the cripple. Peter and John answered fearlessly, that it had been done in the name of Jesus Christ. The high priest dared not do anything further to them, but, setting them free, prohibited them from preaching, in future, the name of Christ. The two holy Apostles, however, nothing daunted, said: "If it be just in the sight of God to hear you rather than God, judge ye: for we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard."

St. John remained for some time in Jerusalem after this, and, with the other Apostles, was zealous in his endeavors to convert the Jєωs. When the Apostles separated, to preach the gospel over all the world, Asia Minor was assigned to St. John. Going thither, he began with great zeal his apostolic functions, and, by the gift of miracles, he converted many thousands to the faith of Christ. The many bishoprics which he instituted in the principal cities sufficiently prove this. In the course of time, he went also to other countries, preaching everywhere, with equal success, the word of Christ. The Emperor Domitian, who, after the death of the Emperor Nero, again began to persecute the Christians, ordered his officers to apprehend John, and bring him to Rome. Hardly had the holy Apostle arrived there, when he was commanded by the Emperor to sacrifice to the gods. As the Saint refused this, and fearlessly confessed Christ, the Emperor had him most cruelly scourged, and afterwards cast into a large caldron, filled with boiling oil. The Saint signed himself and the caldron with the holy cross, and remained unharmed when he was cast into it. This gave him an opportunity to announce, with great energy, to the assembled people, the gospel of Jesus Christ. The tyrant, who could not suffer this, had him taken out of the caldron, and sentenced him to banishment on the island of Patmos, to work in the mines, and perform other hard labor, in company with other Christians. St. John had, at that time, reached his ninetieth year, but was willing to undergo the unjust sentence.

After his arrival on the island, he had many and wonderful visions, which, by command of God, he put down in writing. The book which contains them is a part of Holy Writ, called the Apocalypse, or Revelation of St. John, a book which, according to St. Jerome, contains almost as many mysteries as words. After the death of Domitian, St. John was liberated, and returning to Ephesus, remained there until his death. He outlived all the other Apostles, as he reached the age of 100 years. His great labors, wearisome travels, and the many hardships he endured, at last enfeebled him to such an extent, that he could not go to the church without being carried. Frequently he repeated, in his exhortations, the words: "My little children, love one another." Some, annoyed at this, asked him why he so often repeated these words. He answered: "Because it is the commandment of the Lord; and if that is done, it suffices." By this he meant, that if we love each other rightly, we also love God; and when we love God and our neighbor, no more is needed to gain salvation; as love to God and to our neighbor contains the keeping of all other commandments.

The holy Apostle, who had suffered and labored so much for his beloved Master, was, at length, in the year 104, called by Him into heaven to receive his eternal reward. Besides the Apocalypse, to which we referred above, St. John also wrote three Epistles and his Gospel, on account of which he is called Evangelist. In his Gospel he gives many more facts than the other Evangelists, to prove the divinity of Jesus Christ; as, at that period, several heretics, as Cerinthus, Ebion, and the Nicolaites fought against this truth. In his Epistles, he exhorts particularly to love God and our neighbor, and to avoid heretics. In the first, among other things, he explains that love to God consists in keeping the commandments of God, which are not difficult to keep. "For this is the charity of God," writes he, "that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not heavy." Of the love of our neighbor he says, that it must manifest itself in works, that is, we must assist our brethren in their need, and, if necessary, give even our lives for them, after the example of Christ. The holy Apostle exemplified his words by his actions.

Several holyfathers relate the following of him. The Saint had given a youth in charge of a bishop, with the commendation to instruct him carefully in virtue and sacred sciences. After some years, when the Saint returned to this bishop, and asked for the young man, he heard with deep sorrow that he had secretly left, and had joined the highwaymen, and had even become their chief. The holy Apostle set out at once, and went, not without danger to his life, into the woods, where the unhappy young man was said, to be. Finding him, he spoke most kindly to him, and succeeded in bringing him back. It is touching to read how the holy, man promised to atone for the youth's sins, if he would repent, and lead a better life. The youth followed the Saint's admonition, and did penance with such fervor and zeal that the Saint hesitated not to give him charge of the church at Ephesus.



PRACTICAL CONSIDERATIONS.


I. Virginal chastity, which St. John preserved inviolate, was the principal reason why Christ the Lord loved him above all others, recommended him to His beloved mother, gave her to him as mother, and bestowed many other graces upon him. For nothing is more certain than what I have already more than once said to you; whoever preserves angelic purity, will have God as a friend and protector. But who will be the friend of him who is a slave to the vice of unchastity? Surely neither the Almighty, nor Angels, nor Saints; none but the unclean spirit; for he, as I told you only a few days ago, has the greatest pleasure in the vice of unchastity, which gains him more souls than all the other vices. Whose love and friendship do you seek? The love of Jesus Christ, or of the devil? Your lips tell me that you seek the friendship of the Lord, and not that of Satan. But your works--do they speak the same language? The boldness of your eyes, your tongue arid your manners, your frequent and frivolous associations with those of the other sex; and your equivocal or openly licentious speeches and songs, are surely no signs that you love chastity with your whole heart and endeavor to gain the love of Christ. Correct yourself in every point in which you need correction, or you can never expect to have Christ as your friend; neither can you hope to have the Mother of Jesus as your mother. She was given to the chaste John as a mother, and John, chaste and pure, was given to her as a son. If you would be a true child of Mary, if you wish Mary to be your mother, and to enjoy her motherly care and protection, as well during your life as in your dying hour, endeavor to live chaste according to your station, and avoid all that is against the purity required of you.

 II. "My dear children, love one another." This was the admonition that St. John gave to the Christians. In his Epistles, he also commends nothing more earnestly than this. He teaches, however, that we must not only love with the tongue and in words, but in deed and in truth. Love to God must manifest itself in keeping the commandments of God, as he teaches in the following words: "For this is the charity of God, that we keep his commandments." (I John, v.) Those Who do not endeavor to keep them, must not say that they truly love God. Love to our neighbor must be made manifest by observing the words of Christ: " All things, therefore, whatsoever you would that men should do to you, do you also to them." (Matthew, vii.) "This sentence," says St. Paulinus, "we should have constantly before our eyes, and daily examine ourselves, if and how we have obeyed God's command." And it is this which I counsel you today to observe. For, you ought to know, that it is necessary for salvation, to love God and our neighbor with our whole heart; God, by keeping His commandments; our neighbor, by doing to him as we would wish that he should do to us. "Let nobody imagine that he will gain salvation by fasting, praying and other good works, who does not truly love God and his neighbor." Thus speaks St. Cyril of Alexandria.





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Homily of St. Augustine
 from the Roman Breviary



"At that time: Jesus said to Peter Follow me. Turning round, Peter saw following them the disciple whom Jesus loved (John the Apostle)."--John 21, 19-24

 The Church recognizes two lives which Divinity himself has revealed and recommended. One is the life of faith, the other the life of vision; one the life of pilgrimage, the other life in the mansions of eternity; one the life of labor, the other the life of rest; one the life of the journey, the other the life of home; one the life of action, the other the life of contemplation. The one avoids evil and does good, the other knows no evil to avoid, but only a great good to enjoy. The one fights with the enemy, the other, having no enemy, reigns.

The one aids the needy, the other is where no needy are; the one forgives the trespasses of others that its own might be forgiven, the other has neither trespasses to forgive nor does anything which calls for forgiveness. The one is scourged with evils, lest it be made presumptuous by prosperity; the other possesses such a fullness of grace that it is without evil. Free from any temptation to pride, it adheres to the Supreme Good.

Wherefore one life is good, but as yet full of sorrows; the other is better, yea even blessed. The first is typified by the Apostle Peter, the other by John. The one life endures all labors up to the end of its alotted time, and there finds an end; the other, having fulfilled all things, stretches beyond the end of time, and in eternity finds no end. So, to Peter is said: "Follow me." Of the other, however; "If I wish him to remain until I come, what is that to thee? Follow thou me." What is the meaning of this? How much can I know of it? How much can I understand? What is it?--unless this: "You are to follow me, imitating me in suffering temporal evils. Let him remain until I come, bringing eternal rewards."











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