Saint John the Apostle and Evangelist

Saint John the Apostle, the "Beloved Disciple," was a Galilean fisherman and brother of Saint James the Greater. With Peter and James, John belonged to the inner circle of Christ's Apostles, witnessing the Transfiguration, the Agony in Gethsemane, and the Crucifixion. At the Last Supper, John leaned against the chest of Jesus, and at Calvary, he stood faithful at the foot of the Cross, receiving the Virgin Mary into his home as spiritual Mother. John authored the Fourth Gospel, three Epistles, and the Book of Revelation (Apocalypse). Living to an advanced age in Ephesus and exile on Patmos, John consistently preached Christ's supreme commandment: "Little children, love one another," entering eternal life around A.D. 100 as the only Apostle not to suffer violent martyrdom.