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St. John (died about AD 101), in
the New Testament, one of the 12
apostles, son of Zebedee and younger
brother of St. James the Great. He is
also known as St. John the Divine. He
became a disciple first of John the
Baptist and then of Jesus, who made him
an apostle and called him and James
Boanerges (Greek, “sons of thunder”),
for their zeal (see Mark 3:17). John,
together with James and Peter, made up
the group of disciples who witnessed
Jesus' transfiguration and were present
during the agony in Gethsemane. Next to
Peter, John was the most active of the
apostles in organizing the Early Church
in Palestine and, later, throughout Asia
Minor.
According to tradition, during a
period of persecution of Christians by
the Romans, John was banished to Pátmos,
where he is believed to have written the
Apocalypse, or Book of Revelation. Later
he is believed to have gone to Ephesus,
where the same tradition relates that he
wrote three Epistles and the fourth
Gospel. He is venerated as the patron
saint of Asia Minor. In art he is
represented by several emblems, among
them an eagle, relating to his position
as evangelist, and a kettle, referring
to the tradition that he survived an
attempted execution by immersion in
burning oil. His feast day is December
27.
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