Portal:Catholicism/Patron Archive/August 29 2007

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John the Baptist (also called the Baptizer) was a 1st century Jewish preacher and ascetic regarded as a prophet by four religions: Christianity, Islam, Mandaeanism, and the Bahá'í Faith. The title of prophet is asserted in the [[Synoptic

MarGospels]], the Qur'an, and the Bahá'í Writings.

According to Luke 1:36, he was a relative of Jesus, although Geza Vermes describes this claim as 'artificial and undoubtedly Luke's creation'. He is also commonly referred to as John the Forerunner or Precursor because Christians consider him as the forerunner of Christ.

John (in Hebrew: Yochanan), whose name means "Yahweh has shown favor," an indication of John's role in salvation history, is known as "the Baptist" from his practice of preaching and baptizing Jews in the River Jordan. Most notably he is the one who recognized Jesus as the Messiah, and, according to one version, on Jesus' request, baptised him. The baptism marked the beginning of Jesus' ministry.

According to the Canonical Gospels, John the Baptist's public ministry was suddenly brought to a close, probably about six months after he had baptized Jesus. Herod Antipas jailed him, punishing John for condemning Herod's marriage to Herodias, the former wife of Herod Philip I, Herod's own brother (Luke 3:19). Some academics have argued that John was imprisoned in the Machaerus fortress on the southern extremity of Peraea, nine miles east of the Dead Sea.

Josephus states that Herod deliberately killed John to quell a possible uprising in around 36. According to some, Herod Antipas did not marry his brother's wife until his brother Herod Philip I died in 34, so as to make Josephus' dating plausible for the biblical account of John's death. His disciples, after consigning his headless body to the grave, told Jesus all that had occurred (Matthew 14:3-12). But John's death came just before the third and last Passover of Jesus' ministry, placed no later than 33.^{[citation needed]}

Attributes: Cross, lamb, his own head
Patronage: patron saint of French Canada, Puerto Rico, Knights Hospitaller of Jerusalem, Florence, Genoa, many other places
Prayer: