The Evangelist of the Incarnation
Dec. 27: Feast of Saint John, Apostle and evangelist
According to Wikipedia, there is no “scholarly consensus” as to whether the Epistles of John were written by the same person who wrote the Gospel of John, nor whether either or both are the Apostle John.
According to the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, that’s dumb.1 No one challenged the authorship of any of these until, like, two hundred years ago. Which sounds like a long time, until you remember the glaringly obvious fact that they were written nearly 2,000 years ago.
No one in the early Church doubted they were all the same person.2 And they debated this sort of thing all the time! Remember, they’re the ones who decided which books and letters belonged in the Bible, and which didn’t.
You can read more on the Catholic Answers website, but to save you some time, I’ll summarize it: all of the arguments against St. John being the author are basically guesswork and conjecture centuries after the fact, by people dedicated to destabilizing the Church in any way they could think of.
Reading 1
1 Jn 1:1-4
Beloved: What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we looked upon and touched with our hands concerns the Word of life —for the life was made visible; we have seen it and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life that was with the Father and was made visible to us—what we have seen and heard we proclaim now to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; for our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. We are writing this so that our joy may be complete.
The First Letter of John is actually a bit of a misnomer. Not because John didn’t write it, but because it’s not really a letter. It’s not addressed to anyone, like most of the epistles in the New Testament, and there’s no salutation at the end.
It’s really more a religious tract, meant to clarify some of the theological questions raised in the Gospel of John. After all, the gospels are narratives, which can lead to some interpretational ambiguity. Most of 1 John is disputing heresy.
But you can see how he ties this letter to his gospel. The prologues3 sound very similar. In the gospel, he re-contextualizes the creation story in Genesis; here, John recontextualizes his own narration. Jesus wasn’t just “the word” in the beginning; Jesus was a person, a human who lived on Earth like you and me. But He’s also the source of eternal life, as God’s Word.
He’s both God and Man, in other words. It’s a tricky concept, which is why John felt the need to write it again, and why the Church includes both books in the Bible. It’s that important.
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 97:1-2, 5-6, 11-12
R. Rejoice in the Lord, you just!
The LORD is king; let the earth rejoice;
let the many isles be glad.
Clouds and darkness are around him,
justice and judgment are the foundation of his throne.
R. Rejoice in the Lord, you just!
The mountains melt like wax before the LORD,
before the LORD of all the earth.
The heavens proclaim his justice,
and all peoples see his glory.
R. Rejoice in the Lord, you just!
Light dawns for the just;
and gladness, for the upright of heart.
Be glad in the LORD, you just,
and give thanks to his holy name.
R. Rejoice in the Lord, you just!
Many Eastern pagans described their gods as coming in a storm. The Psalmist evokes that imagery as a just a starting point. Our God isn’t just a storm; He can level mountains and light up the sky.
But God isn’t just another word for nature. He’s a God of justice, which means he has a will and intellect, and is, in fact, a person. Ancient Hebrews only knew of the First Person of the Trinity, but their faith is the starting point on which we build ours.
Alleluia See
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
We praise you, O God,
we acclaim you as Lord;
the glorious company of Apostles praise you.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
It’s amazing to think that the Apostles started out as just fisherman and the like, and now we see them as glorious company. I’m sure they didn’t see themselves that way.
Gospel
Jn 20:1a and 2-8
On the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene ran and went to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them, "They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we do not know where they put him."
So Peter and the other disciple went out and came to the tomb. They both ran, but the other disciple ran faster than Peter and arrived at the tomb first; he bent down and saw the burial cloths there, but did not go in. When Simon Peter arrived after him, he went into the tomb and saw the burial cloths there, and the cloth that had covered his head, not with the burial cloths but rolled up in a separate place. Then the other disciple also went in, the one who had arrived at the tomb first, and he saw and believed.
We began today with the prologue to one of John’s epistles, and conclude with the climax of his gospel.
I always thought it was weird for John to refer to himself as the “disciple whom Jesus loved.” Seems a bit egotistical, right?
Until it was pointed out to me that John was treated himself as a kind of stand-in for the reader. Because, of course, Jesus loved all the apostles, all the disciples, all of his followers throughout the millennia, including you and me.
Sometimes, it can be easy to forget that Jesus wasn’t just a strong moral teacher, or a spiritual guide. He wasn’t a Holy Being, set apart from the rest of us. He was a person, with regular feelings, like affection and joy. He had apostles and disciples, sure, but He also had friends. He didn’t love them in some nebulous, other worldly way; He liked hanging out with them.
So, yes, John was the disciple he loved, but so are you. Remember that the next time you say your prayers: you’re not simply repeating memorized lines. You’re talking with a friend who loves you.
I’m summarizing.
It might not have been literally John himself writing, but a disciple of his, taking John’s transcription.