Nativity of St. John the Baptist
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| Nativity of St. John the Baptist | |
 Russian icon of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist |
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| Observed by | Eastern Orthodox Oriental Orthodox Roman Catholics Eastern Catholic Churches Lutherans Anglicans |
|---|---|
| Type | Christian |
| Significance | Celebrates the birth of John the Baptist, Jesus’ precursor and relative |
| Date | June 24 |
| Celebrations | Religious services |
| Related to | Christmas Epiphany the Visitation |
The Nativity of St. John the Baptist (or Birth of John the Baptist, or Nativity of the Forerunner) is a Christian feast day celebrating the birth of Jesus’ cousin, John the Baptist.
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[edit] Significance
Christians have long interpreted the life of John the Baptist as a preparation for the coming of Jesus Christ, and the circumstances of his birth, as recorded in the New Testament, are just as miraculous. The sole biblical account of birth of John the Baptist comes from the Gospel of Luke. John’s parents, Zechariah—a Jewish priest—and Elizabeth, were without children and both were beyond the age of child-bearing. During Zechariah's rotation to serve in the Temple in Jerusalem, he was chosen by lot to offer incense at the Golden Altar in the Holy Place. The angel Gabriel appeared to him and announced that he and his wife would give birth to a child, and that they should name John. However, because Zechariah did not believe the message of Gabriel, he was rendered speechless until the time of the child's birth; at that time, his relatives wanted to name the child after his father, and Zechariah wrote, "His name is John" and could speak (Luke 1:5-25; 1:57-66). Following Zechariah's obedience to the command of God, he was given the gift of prophecy, and foretold the future ministry of John (Luke 1:67-79).
At the Annunciation, when the Archangel Gabriel appeared to the Virgin Mary to inform her that she would conceive Jesus, he informed her that Elizabeth, her cousin, who was already six months pregnant (Luke 1:36). Mary then journeyed to visit Elizabeth. Luke’s Gospel recounts that the baby “leapt” in Elizabeth’s womb at the greeting of Mary (Luke 1:44). This is interpreted by Christians as John's first act of prophecy.
- For more details on this topic, see: John the Baptist in the New Testament
[edit] Liturgical Celebrations
The Nativity of John the Baptist is one of the oldest festivals of the Christian church, being listed by the Council of Agde in 506 as one of that region's principal festivals, where it was a day of rest and, like Christmas, was celebrated with three masses: a vigil, at dawn, and at midday.
The Nativity of John the Baptist on 24 June comes three months after the celebration on 25 March of the Annunciation, when Gabriel said John's mother Elizabeth was in her sixth month of pregnancy,[1] and six months before the Christmas celebration of the birth of Jesus. The purpose of these festivals is not to commemorate the exact dates of the events, but simply to commemorate them in an interlinking way.
[edit] In Western Christianity
The Nativity of John the Baptist, though not a widespread public holiday, is a high-ranking liturgical feast, kept in Anglican, Lutheran, and Roman Catholic churches. In the Roman Rite, when it falls on a Sunday, the Nativity of John is celebrated, not the Sunday. Reformed and free churches give it less prominence.
The feasts of saints are normally celebrated on the date of their deaths, their "births to heaven". The birth to this life is celebrated only in the case of Jesus, Mary, and John the Baptist. The death of each of these is celebrated also: on Good Friday, the Assumption of Mary (15 August) and the Beheading of St. John the Baptist (29 August).
Apart from the feasts of his birth and death, some Lutherans also commemorate John's parents Zechariah and Elizabeth on 5 September. His baptism of Jesus is celebrated in the Roman Catholic Church on the Sunday after 6 January,[2] a custom followed also by Lutherans and Anglicans.
[edit] In Eastern Christianity
In the Eastern Orthodox Church and other Eastern Christian Churches, John the Baptist is usually called John the Forerunner, a title used also in the West ("Πρόδρομος" in Greek, "Praecursor" in Latin). This title indicates that the purpose of his ministry was to prepare the way for the coming of Jesus Christ. In the East also, the Feast of his Nativity is celebrated on 24 June. It is a major feast day and is celebrated with an All-Night Vigil. It has an Afterfeast of one day. The feast always falls during the Apostles' Fast.
In addition to the birth of John the Baptist, the Orthodox Church also has the following commemorations of the life of John the Baptist:
- January 7 - The Synaxis of St. John the Forerunner (main feast day, immediately after Theophany (Epiphany) on January 6)
- February 24 - First and Second Finding of the Head of St. John the Forerunner
- May 25 - Third Finding of the Head of St. John the Forerunner
- August 29 - The Beheading of St. John the Forerunner
- September 23 Conception of St. John the Forerunner and the Commemoration of Sts. Zechariah and Elizabeth
The Armenian Apostolic Church commemorates the Birth of John the Forerunner on January 15, and June 7 is the Commemoration Day of St. John the Forerunner. August 30 is the Feast of Saints John the Forerunner and Job the Righteous.
[edit] Date
The question would naturally arise as to why the celebration falls on June 24 rather than June 25 if the date is to be precisely six months before Christmas. It has often been claimed that the Church authorities wanted to "Christianize" the pagan solstice celebrations and for this reason advanced Saint John's feast as a substitute for the former pagan festival. This explanation appears to be erroneous because in those centuries the solstice took place around the middle of June due to the inaccuracy of the Julian calendar. It was only in 1582, through the Gregorian calendar reform, that the solstice fell on June 23.
Therefore, a more likely reason why the festival falls on June 24 lies in the Roman way of counting, which proceeded backward from the Kalends (first day) of the succeeding month. Christmas was "the eighth day before the Kalends of January" (Octavo Kalendas Januarii). Consequently, Saint John's Nativity was put on the "eighth day before the Kalends of July." However, since June has only thirty days, in our present (Germanic) way of counting, the feast falls on June 24.
Nevertheless, the significance of the feast falling around the time of the solstice is considered by many to be significant, recalling the words of John the Baptist with regard to Jesus: "He must increase, but I must decrease" (John 3:30).
As mentioned above, the Armenian Apostolic Church celebrates the Birth of John the Baptist on January 15, where it is related to the Nativity and the Baptism of Christ.
[edit] Customs
Beyond the religious commemoration, many regional customs associated with the Nativity of John the Baptist are in fact more related to the concurrent celebration of midsummer which are themselves remnants of pre-Christian pagan midsummer festivals. In the 7th century, Saint Eligius warned against midsummer activities and encouraged new converts to avoid them in favor of the celebration of St. John the Baptist’s birth.
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