Biographical Reflection of John the Baptist
Biographical Reflection of a Saint- John the Baptist Though such an accomplished man, not much is known of John the Baptist’s childhood. John, what a basic name right? Wrong, even the name of John was holy, for his name in Hebrew means, “Jehovah is gracious. ” But moving on to his adult life, he pursued the life of a priest without ever being officially recognized as such. The greatest thing that occurred in his adult life was the Baptism of Christ Jesus, our Lord. However, very few people know that Jesus and John were relatives, cousins in fact. John did not know that Christ was the Messiah until the miracle at the Jordan River.
When Jesus approached John and asked that he may be baptized in the way of the Lord, John said, “Should it not be you master, who cleanses me. ” And Jesus replied, “I am but a servant to you, not master. ” And with that, John agreed to baptize Christ, but as the water was poured out upon Christ’s head, the Holy Spirit was revealed. Known as the first disciple of the completed Christ, now unified with the Holy Spirit, John continued the mission of baptism. As for when he earned the nickname “Son of Thunder,” Christ gave the name to him, under rather adverse conditions.
They were traveling together through Judea, and Christ was under ridicule. John felt they were being so unjust, so far from the best humanity could be, he asked the lord to wipe them out. At this point Christ prayed that God would forgive them, while telling John, no matter how unjust the Judeans were the Lord will never take life for his name. He was in some senses so close to divinity others asked whether he was the Messiah, however, he always replied, “Ye yourselves bear me witness, that I said, I am not the Christ, but that I am sent before him.
He that hath the bride is the bridegroom: but the friends of the bridegroom, which stand and hear him, rejoice greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice: thus my joy therefore is fulfilled. He must increase, but I must decrease. ” This showed his humble appreciation of Christ, by saying he must be known less, and Christ more. However shortly after the Miracle at the Jordan, king Herod for the spreading of as he put it, “an unorthodox faith,” arrested John. He spent two years in prison until he was released because of the new, changing Roman Empire.
John eventually went back to baptizing at the Jordan. This career was once again short lived however, for Salome, child of Herodias, demanded his death. And thus his fate was set in stone; he was to be beheaded in A. D. 31. Once beheaded, his head was to be given to Salome on a silver platter, as a sign of disrespect. As for what I think, I feel the act of baptizing Jesus was the highest honor humanly possible. For this he was very lucky to be the one to perform so noble an act. As the first saint I had ever known, John had a substantial impact on my life.
As soon as I knew what Confirmation was, I knew I had to pick the first I had known, he with the greatest impact on me, John. I remember always feeling a sense of divinity whenever I saw an illustration of him baptizing Christ. As a child, I always wanted to obtain knowledge; because of this I became increasingly familiar with him, even at an early age. The thing I liked about him the most as a child was how I shared his name. And so, this biographical reflection begins and ends with a name, John.
