St.
John the Evangelist (Apostle) is a disciple of Christ; he followed
Jesus after the miraculous draught of fishes on the Sea of Galilee and
was with him at the most important moments. At the foot of the Cross he
supported the failing Virgin. After the Apostles scattered, he traveled
to Asia and settled in Ephesus with the Virgin. There he was arrested and
thrown into burning oil, but was unhurt. Under Emperor Dominitian he was
exiled to island Patmos, where in the company of an eagle he wrote the
Revelations. After amnesty he returned to Ephesus, where he composed his
Gospel. There he survived an ordeal set by the high priest of Ephesus:
he was unaffected by a beverage concocted from snake’s venom, when offered
a chalice, St. John blessed it, and the venom in the form of a snake, was
miraculously drawn from the liquid. A legend also says that he was lifted
up in an Assumption by an angel. He is the patron saint of booksellers.
In fine arts he is often depicted with an Eagle, book (Gospel or Revelation),
snake or dragon emerging from a cup or chalice.
See: Jacopo Bellini. St.
John the Evangelist (left);
The
Apostle Peter (right).
Herri Met de Bles. St. John
on Patmos.
Hieronymus Bosch St. John the
Evangelist on Patmos.
Botticelli Virgin
and Child Enthroned between Saint John the Baptist and Saint John the Evangelist;Coronation
of the Virgin with the Saints John the Evangelist, Augustine, Jerome and
Eligius. (San Marco altarpiece).
Agnolo Bronzino. St.
John the Evangelist on Patmos.
Correggio Vision of
St. John Evangelist, John
the Evangelist.
Duccio di Buoninsegna. Maestà:
Parting
from St. John.
Anthony van Dyck Evangelist
John.
Giotto Madonna and
Child with St. Nicholas, St. John the Evangelist, St. Peter and St. Benedict.
Vision
of John the Evangelist on Patmos.
Benozzo Gozzoli. St.
John. The Four Evangelists.
El Greco St. John the Evangelist.
Alexander Ivanov Head of
John the Evangelist.
Jacob Jordaens. The Four
Evangelists.
Masolino St. John the
Evangelist and St. Martin of Tours.
Hans Memling Altar
of Saints John the Baptist and John the Evangelist, St.
John the Evangelist.
Piero della Francesca. St. John
the Evangelist.
Pontormo. St. John the
Evangelist and St. Michael the Archangel. St.
John the Evangelist.
Titian St. John the
Evangelist on Patmos.
Recommended reading:
The
Book of Saints: The Lives of the Saints According to the Liturgical Calendar
by George Angelini, Victor Hoagland (Editor). Regina Press, Malhame &
Company, 1986.
365
Saints: Your Daily Guide to the Wisdom and Wonder of Their Lives
by Woodeene Koenig-Brick (Author). Harper SanFrancisco, 1995.
Twelve
Who Followed Jesus by Landrum P. Leavell. Broadman Press, 1975.
The
Galilean Dialogues: On the Road With the Master and the Twelve
by Joe F. Tarpley. Vantage Press, 1994.
Prophets
& Apostles of the Last Dispensation by Lawrence R. Flake.
Deseret Books, 2001.
Voices
from Ancient Bethlehem: A Dialogue With Jesus and the Twelve Apostles
by Scribe. Jodere Group, 2003.
Twelve
Ordinary Men by John MacArthur (Author). W Publishing Group,
2002.
The
Twelve: The Lives of the Apostles After Calvary by Bernard
Ruffin. Our Sunday Visitor, 1998.