The Beloved Disciple!

Feast of St. John, Apostle and Evangelist

Friday, December 27, 2024

1 Jn 1:1-4; Jn 20:1, 2-8

St. John, the son of Zebedee and Salome, is considered the same person as John the Evangelist, John of Patmos, and the Beloved Disciple.

We have wonderful discipleship lessons from John’s life. 

1.John, the beloved disciple, was with the Lord in his important moments. 

• John, along with Peter and James, were the only witnesses to the raising of the Daughter of Jairus and the closest witnesses to the Agony in Gethsemane. 

• John was the one who reported to Jesus that they had ‘forbidden’ a non-disciple from casting out demons in Jesus’ name. This prompted Jesus to state, ‘He who is not against us is on our side.’

• John and Peter were the only two apostles sent by Jesus to make preparations for the final Passover meal, the Last Supper. 

• During the meal, Saint John sat next to Jesus, leaning on him rather than lying on the couches.

• John was the only one of the Twelve Apostles who did not forsake the Lord in the hour of His Passion. He stood faithfully at the cross when the Savior made him the guardian of His Mother.

• Today’s Gospel is an example of his love for Jesus.

2. Just as he believed, John showed Jesus as the ‘Source of Life’ in his Gospel.

• John is known as the author of the Gospel of John and four other books in the New Testament: the three Epistles of John and the Book of Revelation. 

• The authorship of the Gospel is credited to the ‘disciple whom Jesus loved,’ and John 21:24 claims the Gospel of John is based on the ‘Beloved Disciple’s’ testimony.

• John’s purpose was to prove that Jesus is the Son of God, the source of life for those who believe in him (Jn 20:31). 

• He is more interested in theological reflection than in mere narrative. For instance, he offers the beautiful Bread of Life discourse (Jn 6:35-58), but does not repeat the words of the institution of the Eucharist at the Last Supper. 

• He also quotes a lengthy address of Christ at the Last Supper about the meaning of his New Commandment of Love, illustrating its theme of service with his account of the washing of the disciples’ feet (Jn 13:1-17). 

• The theological height that he achieved in his Gospel is often symbolized by the Eagle. 

3. John presented Jesus, who surpasses any imagination. 

The beauty of John’s Gospel is about ‘what it does not say about Jesus,’ despite its rich theological content. Two verses are important in this regard.

• John 20:30: ‘Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of [his] disciples that are not written in this book.’ 

• Jn 21:25: ‘There are also many other things that Jesus did, but if these were to be described individually, I do not think the whole world would contain the books that would be written.’ 

• In my view, John wants us to be engaged in soul-searching. Just as he experienced Jesus as the source of life, John wants us to discover the uniqueness of Jesus in our lives. 

• Also, we can witness John’s humility in his declaration. Without claiming to have exhausted Jesus, he gives readers adequate scope for ‘Jesus Imagination.’

• John’s literary technique that prompts Jesus Imagination reminds me of the verses from John Keats’ Ode on a Grecian Urn: ‘Heard melodies are sweet, but those unheard are sweeter.’ 

John is believed to be the longest-living apostle and the only one not to die a martyr’s death. The ‘beloved disciple’ of Jesus died in Ephesus after AD 98.

How blessed is he to be known as the ‘Beloved Disciple’ of Jesus Himself!

Fr. Dhinakaran Savariyar