Posted on 12/27/2025 8:12:31 AM PST by fidelis
Feast of Saint John, Apostle and Evangelist
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. John 20:3–8
The “other disciple,” the one who “saw and believed,” was John the Apostle whom we honor today. In his Gospel, John often refers to himself as “the one whom Jesus loved.” This title indicates not that Jesus loved John more than the others but that John’s heart was perhaps the most open and receptive to Jesus’ love, allowing our Lord’s charity to fill him more completely.
Celebrating the Feast of Saint John within the octave of Jesus’ birth invites us to reflect not only on John but also on the deep and intimate love that he and Jesus shared—a love that serves as an icon of the love Jesus desires to bestow on each of us.
Today’s Gospel beautifully highlights three of John’s virtues. First, his all-consuming love for Jesus is evident in his immediate response to Mary Magdalene’s news of the empty tomb. John’s love compelled him to run to the tomb with Peter, showing how deeply he cherished his relationship with the Lord.
Second, John’s respectful nature is revealed when he arrives at the tomb first but waits for Peter, the elder and leader among the Apostles, to enter before him. This act of deference speaks volumes about John’s humility and respect for authority.
Finally, after entering the tomb, John “saw and believed.” This moment reflects the depth of his faith, a faith that did not require physical proof but was grounded in a profound trust in Jesus. John’s belief was a response to the infused gift of faith, a virtue that allowed him to recognize the truth of the Resurrection even before seeing the risen Lord.
John’s example challenges us to examine our own spiritual lives. Is our love for the Lord so strong that it draws us toward Him with the same urgency that led John to run to the tomb? Does our love for God translate into a genuine respect for others? Is our faith so deep that we trust in God’s promises without needing visible proof?
As we honor Saint John, reflect today on his identity as “the one whom Jesus loved.” His receptivity to Jesus’ love made him stand out as a model disciple. Seek to imitate John by expanding the capacity of your heart to receive more of God’s love, so that His presence within you becomes evident to others.
My loving Lord, Your Sacred Heart overflowed with love for all people. Saint John was especially receptive to that love, enabling him to love You all the more. Please give me a heart like Saint John’s so that I, too, may become Your beloved disciple. Saint John, pray for us. Jesus, I trust in You.
Dear FRiends,
We need your continuing support to keep FR funded. Your donations are our sole source of funding. No sugar daddies, no advertisers, no paid memberships, no commercial sales, no gimmicks, no tax subsidies. No spam, no pop-ups, no ad trackers.
If you enjoy using FR and agree it's a worthwhile endeavor, please consider making a contribution today:
Click here: to donate by Credit Card
Or here: to donate by PayPal
Or by mail to: Free Republic, LLC - PO Box 9771 - Fresno, CA 93794
Thank you very much and God bless you,
Jim
Please keep in mind that this is a Catholic Caucus/Devotional thread for the purpose of prayerful reflection on the Sacred Scriptures and is closed to debate of any kind. Per FR policy on Religion Caucus threads, off-topic, argumentative, and abusive comments are not allowed and will be submitted to the Mods for deletion. Thanks, and God bless you.
The Month of December is Dedicated to the Immaculate Conception
“ In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you!”” (Luke 1:26-28)
Pope Leo XIV’s prayer intentions for the month of December, 2025:
For Christians in areas of conflict
Let us pray that Christians living in areas of war or conflict, especially in the Middle East, might be seeds of peace, reconciliation, and hope.
Today’s First Reading
From: 1 John 1:1-4
Prologue
--------
[1] That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon and touched with our hands, concerning the word of life--[2] the life was made manifest, and we saw it, and testify to it, and proclaim to you the eternal life which was with the Father and was made manifest to us--[3] that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you may have fellowship with us; and our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. [4] And we are writing this that our joy may be complete.
***********************************************************************
Commentary:
1-4. Since the time of the Fathers, these verses have been described as the prologue", like the prologue of the Fourth Gospel (Jn 1:1-18). In fact, there are many similarities in doctrine, style and even language between the two.
Both passages sing the praises of the mystery of the Incarnation: the Word of God who existed from all eternity, "from the beginning", became man (has been seen, heard, looked upon and touched) so that men might partake of divine life--might have "fellowship", communion, with the Father and the Son. Like the Gospel prologue, this one is written in a rhythmical way--"That which was..., which we have heard..., which we have seen...". And many of the ideas are the same--for example, the reference to "the beginning" (cf. Jn 1:1); the term "the Word" to refer to the second Person of the Blessed Trinity; the reference to "life" (cf. Jn 1:4).
As St Bede points out, "from the very start of the epistle we are being taught the divinity and, at the same time, the humanity of our God and Lord Jesus Christ" ("In I Epist. S. Ioannis, ad loc.").
1. "That which was from the beginning": although the pronoun used is neuter--as if to indicate the ineffable character of the mystery of Christ--the whole phrase refers not to a thing or an abstract teaching, but to the divine Person of the Son, who in the fullness of time was made manifest (v. 2), assuming a human nature. In other words, St John, as in his Gospel, is teaching that Jesus, a historical person (the Apostles have lived with him, have seen him, have heard him speak) is the eternal Word of God (cf. Jn 1:1 and note).
"That which we have heard,...seen...": all those references to perception by the senses show the Apostle's desire to make it clear that God really did become man. This may be because certain heretics were denying the Incarnation, or it may simply be that he thought it necessary to spell out this fundamental truth of our faith. He did so in the Gospel (cf., e.g., Jn 20:30-31); and in this letter we frequently find phrases like "Jesus Christ has come in the flesh" (4:2); "Jesus is the Christ" (2:22; cf. 5:1); "Jesus is the Son of God" (4:15; cf.5:1, 12,20).
We have recently been reminded that "the Church reverently preserved the mystery of the Son of God, who was made man, and in the course of the ages and of the centuries has propounded it for belief in a more explicit way"; moreover, what the Church teaches "concerning the one and the same Christ the Son of God, begotten before the ages in his divine nature and in time in his human nature, and also concerning the eternal persons of the Most Holy Trinity, belongs to the immutable truth of the Catholic faith" (SCDF, "Mysterium Filii Dei", 2 and 6).
2. St John introduces this verse by way of parenthesis to explain what he means by "the word of life". In the Gospel he had written, "In him [the Word] was life" (Jn 1:4) and elsewhere he records Jesus' statement, "I am the bread of life" (Jn 6:35, 48). These expressions declare that the Son of God has life in all its fullness, that is, divine life, the source of all life, natural and supernatural. Jesus in fact identified himself with Life (cf. Jn 11:25; 14:6). By the Incarnation, the Word of God manifests true life and at the same time makes it possible for that life to be communicated to men--imperfectly, by means of grace, while they are in this world, and perfectly in heaven, by means of the beatific vision (cf. 1 Jn 5: 12).
"And we testify to it": the testimony of the Apostles is something unique in the history of the Church, because (unlike those who succeed them) they know our Lord personally, they have been "witnesses" of his life, death and resurrection (cf. Lk 24:48; Acts 1:8).
"With the Father": the Greek implies closeness, difference, and the mutual relationship between Father and Son, so providing a glimpse of the mystery of the Blessed Trinity (cf. note on Jn 1:1).
3-4. This testimony about Christ is designed to lead to fellowship and complete joy. Fellowship with the Apostles (the Greek word is "koinonia") means, firstly, having the same faith as those who lived with Jesus: "They saw our Lord in the body," St Augustine reminds us, "and they heard words from his lips and have proclaimed them to us; we also have heard them, but we have not seen him [...]. They saw him, we do not see him, and yet we have fellowship with them, because we have the same faith" ("In Epist. Ioann. ad Parthos", 1, 3).
To have fellowship with the Father and the Son we need to have the same faith as the Apostles: "St John openly teaches that those who desire to partake of union with God must first partake of union with the Church, learn the same faith and benefit from the same sacraments as the Apostles received from the fullness of Truth made flesh" (St Bede, "In I Epist. S. Ioannis, ad loc."). The Church, the Second Vatican Council teaches, is not simply a collection of people who think the same way; it is the people of God "whom Christ established as a communion of life, love and truth" ("Lumen Gentium", 9).
Fellowship, communion, with the Apostles, with the Church, has as its purpose to bring about union with God ("with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ"); this is a subject St John develops over the course of this letter, as he previously did in his Gospel (cf., e.g., Jn 17:20ff). Here he uses expressions such as "to have the Son", and, in respect of the Son, "to have the Father" (2:23; 5:11ff); "to be in God" (2:5; 5:20); "to abide in God" (2:6, 24; 3:24; 4:13, 15, 16). This deep, intimate communion means that, without losing his personality, man shares in a wonderful and real way in the life of God himself. If Sacred Scripture uses many different expressions in this connection, it is due to the fact that the human mind, because it is so limited, cannot fully grasp the marvelous truth of communion with God.
Complete joy is the outcome of this communion. Most manuscripts say "our joy"; others, including the Vulgate, say "your joy". The difference is not important, because "our" involves the Apostles and the faithful, particularly in view of the mutual fellowship previously mentioned (cf. Jn 15:11; 17:13). This joy, which will reach its fullness in the next life, is already in this life in some sense complete, insofar as knowledge of Jesus is the only thing that can satisfy man's aspirations.
1:5-2:29. This section describes what communion with God is, and the demands it makes on us. We can say there are two parts in the section: the first (1:5 - 2: 11) teaches that communion with God means walking in the light and, therefore, rejecting sin and keeping the commandments. The second (2:12-19) warns the readers to guard against worldly concupiscence and not trust false teachers.
St John is writing as a pastor of souls who has lived the life of the Lord and reflected deeply upon it. His teaching interweaves truths of faith with moral and ascetical demands because he wants Christians to live in a way consistent with their faith. Therefore, the text does not really divide into a doctrinal section and a moral section.
From: John 20:1a, 2-8
The Empty Tomb
--------------------
[1a] Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early. [2] So she ran, and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him." [3] Peter then came out with the other disciple, and they went toward the tomb. [4] They both ran, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first; [5] and stooping to look in, he saw the linen cloths lying there, but he did not go in. [6] Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb; he saw the linen cloths lying, [7] and the napkin, which had been on His head, not lying with the linen cloths but rolled up in a place by itself. [8] Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed.
***********************************************************************
Commentary:
1-2. All four Gospels report the first testimonies of the holy women and the disciples regarding Christ's glorious resurrection, beginning with the fact of the empty tomb (cf. Matthew 28:1-15; Mark 16:1ff; Luke 24:1-12) and then telling of the various appearances of the risen Jesus.
Mary Magdalene was one of the women who provided for our Lord during His journeys (Luke 8:1-3); along with the Virgin Mary she bravely stayed with Him right up to His final moments (John 19:25), and she saw where His body was laid (Luke 23:55). Now, after the obligatory Sabbath rest, she goes to visit the tomb. The Gospel points out that she went "early, when it was still dark": her love and veneration led her to go without delay, to be with our Lord's body.
4. The Fourth Gospel makes it clear that, although the women, and specifically Mary Magdalene, were the first to reach the tomb, the Apostles were the first to enter it and see the evidence that Christ had risen (the empty tomb, the linen clothes "lying" and the napkin in a place by itself). Bearing witness to this will be an essential factor in the mission which Christ will entrust to them: "You shall be My witnesses in Jerusalem...and to the end of the earth" (Acts 1:8; cf. Acts 2:32).
John, who reached the tomb first (perhaps because he was the younger), did not go in, out of deference to Peter. This is an indication that Peter was already regarded as leader of the Apostles.
5-7. The words the Evangelist uses to describe what Peter and he saw in the empty tomb convey with vivid realism the impression it made on them, etching on their memory details which at first sight seem irrelevant. The whole scene inside the tomb in some way caused them to intuit that the Lord had risen. Some of the words contained in the account need further explanation, so terse is the translation.
"The linen clothes lying there": the Greek participle translated as "lying there" seems to indicate that the clothes were flattened, deflated, as if they were emptied when the body of Jesus rose and disappeared--as if it had come out of the clothes and bandages without their being unrolled, passing right through them (just as later He entered the Cenacle when the doors were shut). This would explain the clothes being "fallen", "flat" "lying", which is how the Greek literally translates, after Jesus' body--which had filled them—left them. One can readily understand how this would amaze a witness, how unforgettable the scene would be.
"The napkin...rolled up in a place by itself": the first point to note is that the napkin, which had been wrapped round the head, was not on top of the clothes, but placed on one side. The second, even more surprising thing is that, like the clothes, it was still rolled up but, unlike the clothes, it still had a certain volume, like a container, possibly due to the stiffness given it by the ointments: this is what the Greek participle, here translated as "rolled", seems to indicate.
From these details concerning the empty tomb one deduces that Jesus' body must have risen in a heavenly manner, that is, in a way which transcended the laws of nature. It was not only a matter of the body being reanimated as happened, for example, in the case of Lazarus, who had to be unbound before he could walk (cf. John 11:44).
8-10. As Mary Magdalene had told them, the Lord was not in the tomb; but the two Apostles realized that there was no question of any robbery, which was what she thought had happened, because they saw the special way the clothes and napkin were; they know began to understand what the Master had so often told them about His death and resurrection (cf. Matthew 16:21; Mark 8:31; Luke 9:22; etc....)
The empty tomb and the other facts were perceptible to the senses; but the resurrection, even though it had effects that could be tested by experience, requires faith if it is to be accepted. Christ's resurrection is a real, historic fact: His body and soul were re-united. But since His was a glorious resurrection unlike Lazarus', far beyond our capacity in this life to understand what happened, and outside the scope of sense experience, a special gift of God is required--the gift of faith--to know and accept as a certainty this fact which, while it is historical, is also supernatural. Therefore, St. Thomas Aquinas can say that "the individual arguments taken alone are not sufficient proof of Christ's resurrection, but taken together, in a cumulative way, they manifest it perfectly. Particularly important in this regard are the spiritual proofs (cf. specially Luke 24:25-27), the angelic testimony (cf. Luke 24:4-7) and Christ's own post-resurrection word confirmed by miracles (cf. John 3:13; Matthew 16:21; 17:22; 20:18)" (St. Thomas Aquinas, "Summa Theologiae", III, q. 55, a. 6 ad 1).
In addition to Christ's predictions about His passion, death and resurrection (cf. John 2:19; Matthew 16:21; Mark 9:31; Luke 9:22), the Old Testament also foretells the glorious victory of the Messiah and, in some way, His resurrection (cf. Psalm 16:9; Isaiah 52:13; Hosea 6:2). The Apostles begin to grasp the true meaning of Sacred Scripture after the resurrection, particularly once they receive the Holy Spirit, who fully enlightens their minds to understand the content of the Word of God. It is easy to imagine the surprise and elation they all feel when Peter and John tell them what they have seen in the tomb.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
