John the Theologian, or John Zebedee, is one of the Twelve Apostles. In the Christian tradition, he is the author of his Gospel, the Book of Revelation and three messages that are included in the New Testament.

The Day of the Apostle John the Theologian is celebrated in Orthodox and Lutheran, as well as in some Protestant churches. The memory of the Apostle John in Orthodoxy according to the Julian calendar is May 8 (21), June 30 (the Council of the Twelve Apostles is celebrated), September 26 (repose). And in the Catholic Church and other churches in the West - December 27.

The Revelation of John the Theologian speaks of 4 animals that are at the throne of God in heaven and constantly praise the Lord. They look like a lion, a bull, an eagle, and the fourth has the face of a man. In this regard, each of the 4 authors of the Gospel received its own symbol in the Christian tradition, often depicted in paintings. The symbol of the Apostle John was the eagle.

In the New Testament

The holy apostle and creator of the Gospel John the Theologian was born into the family of Zebedee and Salome. According to legend, Zebedee is the daughter of the saint. She is mentioned among the wives who served the Lord with their property. The Apostle James is his elder brother. A simple fisherman became one of the disciples of Jesus Christ on Lake Gennesaret: on the lake both brothers left Zebedee, their father, in a boat and went after Christ (Matthew 4:21; Mark 1:19).

In the Gospels, the brothers James and John are called the sons of Zebedee, taking as a basis the name of their father; Evangelist Mark also confirmed this (Mark 3:17). Jesus called the brothers Boanerges (an Aramaic word that stands for "sons of thunder" in the New Testament) because of their impetuous nature, which was on full display when:

According to the Gospel narratives, John, together with his older brother James, had a close relationship with the Apostle Peter and, together with the Apostle Peter, were disciples who were brought close by the Lord. The three of them became eyewitnesses to the resurrection of Jairus’s daughter (Mark 5:37; Luke 8:51), and only they Jesus allowed to become witnesses of his Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1; Mark 9:2; Luke 9:28) and Gethsemane prayer (Mark 14:33).

On the Cross, Jesus asked John to take care of His Mother, the Virgin Mary.

John was mentioned in the lists of the apostles in the Gospel of Matthew (Matthew 10:2), Mark (Mark 3:17), Luke (Luke 6:14), as well as in the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 1:13 ).

Writings of an Apostle in the New Testament

According to tradition, the apostle is credited with creating 5 books of the New Testament:
1. Gospel of John
2. First Epistle of John
3. Second Epistle of John
4. Third Epistle of John
5. Revelation of John the Theologian (Apocalypse).

The apostle received the name John the Theologian because Jesus Christ in the Gospel of John was called the Word of God.

Future life

The subsequent life of the apostle can only be learned from church traditions.

Missionary path
The legend describes that after the Dormition of the Mother of God, the Apostle John was given a lot, and he went to Ephesus and other cities of Asia Minor to preach the Gospel. He was accompanied by his student Prokhor.

In Ephesus, the Apostle John did not stop preaching to the pagans about Christ. And his preaching was accompanied by numerous and great miracles, so the number of believers constantly increased.

When Emperor Nero began persecuting Christians, the Apostle John was taken in prison to trial in Rome and sentenced to death for preaching his ardent faith in Jesus Christ. However, having drained the cup of deadly poison offered to him, he did not die. And he emerged from the cauldron of boiling oil completely unharmed. After the failed execution, the apostle was exiled to prison on the island of Patmos, where he lived for many more years.

In reference to Fr. Patmos
The life says that when John appeared on the island of Patmos, his preaching and the miracles he performed attracted all the inhabitants of the island to him: he converted almost every one of them to Christianity, cast out demons from pagan temples and healed many sick people.

On the island of Patmos, the Apostle John, taking with him his disciple Prochorus, went to a deserted mountain and read prayer there for 3 days, and also kept a fast. After this, the cave in which they lived began to shake and thunder roared. In fear, Prokhor threw himself to the ground. The Apostle picked him up and told him to write down his next words: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God...”. Over the course of 2 days and 6 hours, Prokhor recorded the Gospel that was given to the apostle. After John and Prokhor came to the village, the Gospel was rewritten and distributed throughout the island. Some time later, John again withdrew into a cave, where he spent 10 days without food in prayer. When he was about to leave the cave, a voice said to him: “John, John!” The apostle responded to him: “What, Lord!” And it is said: “Create another ten days in the cave and many great secrets will be revealed to you in this place.” John obeyed and spent another ten days in the cave, praying and eating nothing. And then he saw great powers and an angel of God, who explained to him everything that he had seen and heard. After this, he called Prokhor and told him: “What you hear from my lips, write down on paper.”

Return
After a long exile on the island of Patmos, the Apostle John received freedom and returned to Ephesus. There he continued to teach Christians to guard against emerging heresies. When he was somewhere between 85 and 95 years old, the Apostle John in Ephesus decided to write down the Gospel. He commanded all Christians to love the Lord and each other. In this way they fulfilled the law of Jesus Christ. Saint John is the Apostle of love, as he taught that without love a person will not become closer to God and will not please Him. In 3 of his Epistles, the Apostle John preaches love for God and neighbors, himself being an example of love for those around him.

We can only say approximately about the years of life of the Apostle John. The Church says that he saw the crucifixion of Christ at the age of 16, and he passed away in the 100th year, being the only living apostle who saw Jesus Christ during His earthly life. That is, he lived somewhere from 17 to 100. AD

All the other apostles at this time had already suffered martyrdom. The entire Christian church greatly revered the Apostle John, since he was the seer of the destinies of God. On the icons, the Holy Apostle John is depicted with an eagle, which symbolizes the high soaring of his theological thought.

His disciple Ignatius the God-Bearer, who was the third Bishop of Antioch after the Apostle Peter and Evoda and was given to the lions on December 20, 107 in Rome, also wrote about the personality of John the Theologian.

It is believed that the last person who saw the living Christ was Ignatius the God-Bearer, who outlived John the Theologian by 7 years. According to legend, he received his nickname because Jesus took him in his arms as a child (Gospel of Matthew, 18:2-5).

Raising the Dead by the Apostle

According to the life of the apostle, the following cases of his resurrection from the dead took place:

Holidays dedicated to the memory of saints are important for believers, since faithful prayer on such a day can save the soul and help in many situations. That is why on October 9 it is important to remember the day of remembrance of John the Theologian.

John the Theologian- a saint who, according to church tradition, is considered one of the 12 apostles of Jesus Christ. Several holidays are dedicated to this saint - May 21, July 13 and October 9. The last date is the day of the repose of John the Theologian, when the apostle left the earthly vale.

Prayer to John the Theologian in Church Slavonic:

O great and all-praised apostle and evangelist John the Theologian, confidant of Christ, our warm intercessor and quick helper in sorrows! Pray to the Lord God to grant us forgiveness of all our sins, especially those we have sinned from our youth, throughout our entire life, in deed, word, thought and all our feelings. At the end of our souls, help us, sinners, to get rid of airy ordeals and eternal torment, and through your merciful intercession we glorify the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.

A few days after the day of the repose of John the Theologian, another important holiday is celebrated -. The cover symbolizes victory over evil and the power of the intercession of heaven, which protects righteous people from evil. We wish you peace in your soul, and if our publication was useful to you,don't forget to press the buttons and

08.10.2018 03:14

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Let us begin to love not in word or tongue, but in deed and truth.
(1 John 3:18)

There are people who, from birth, are gifted with a special mindset and soul. They are called differently: sublime natures, poets, dreamers, “not of this world” - the main thing does not change from this.

Like everyone else, they walk the earth, do everyday things, but at the same time their soul hovers somewhere far away, closer to heaven, and does not want to belong to the earthly. These people see unusual dreams more often than others, their inner life is filled with symbols and secret signs, they hear only a call known to them...

Such a person was the apostle and evangelist.

But so far in Jerusalem he was simply called John Zebedee, and no one was surprised that it was he who walked ahead of the unusual funeral procession with a white lily in his hand. The faces of the others were also not so much sad as joyful and bright, as if everyone had gathered for a holiday.

And the Jerusalem Christians knew why: on their last earthly journey, or rather to heaven, to eternal life, they saw off Mary, the Mother of Christ. And the lily in the hand of John Zebedee was not an ordinary flower, but a message from the Garden of Eden.

According to legend, the Mother of God was walking in the garden when Archangel Gabriel appeared to Her again and announced that the time had come to meet her Son. And to confirm that they were waiting for Her in the heavenly palaces, he gave her a lily from the Garden of Eden. And Mary ordered that on Her birthday, John Zebedee should carry this lily for heaven...

John was the youngest of Christ's disciples, younger than the other eleven apostles. An exalted, pure young man, the beloved disciple of Jesus.

In the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke we hardly hear the voice of young John. Other apostles asked questions, doubted something, committed rash actions and then tried to explain them. We will not hear a shocked sigh from the lips of John even on Mount Tabor, at the moment of the Transfiguration of Christ - Peter, as usual, will speak for everyone.

John Zebedee was mostly silent, listening to the Teacher with adoration, but at the same time he remembered everything, everything. And in his Gospel he told us such details that cannot be found in other testimonies about Christ.

Only occasionally did John enter into conversation - and then, mostly, together with his older brother Jacob.

There are different opinions about why Jesus gave the Zebedee brothers this nickname: sons of thunder(Mark 3:17). Undoubtedly, first of all, they were children of thunder in terms of spiritual strength. And along the way, the brothers talked a lot and loudly among themselves. Like all of Christ’s disciples, they were very different in character, and in age too.

The active, decisive Jacob Zebedee was the first of the twelve apostles to suffer martyrdom in Jerusalem. All listened to, contemplative John will give the world the Gospel and the great revelation from God - the Apocalypse. Evangelist Matthew told us such an interesting episode. One day, the mother of James and John, Salome, who was also walking with them, approached Jesus and, bowing, made a request that she could not even immediately explain. As the Gospel says about this, asking Him for something(Matthew 20:20).

- What do you want?(Matthew 20:21) - Christ asked the woman.

Then Salome pointed to her sons and asked that in the Kingdom of Heaven they sit closest to Jesus: one on His right hand, and the other on His left. The loving mother decided to take care in advance so that her sons would have a good time there too.

The Gospel of Mark describes this conversation somewhat differently. It is not Salome, but the brothers themselves who turn to Jesus, approaching from afar their, as they themselves understand, not quite an ordinary request:

- Teacher! We want You to do for us whatever we ask.(Mark 10:35), they say.

This is how children often turn to kind, loving parents, knowing that they will not be punished for this: they say, first promise what you will do, and then we will say...

- What do you want Me to do to you?(Mark 10:36) - Christ asked the “sons of thunder.”

- Grant us to sit at Your side, one at Your right hand and the other at Your left, in Your glory(Mark 10:37).

- Don't know what you're asking for... (Mark 10:38) - Jesus said and explained that the places in the Kingdom of Heaven do not depend on Him: everyone will sit there, as who is destined for(Mark 10:40).

Hearing about this request, the ten remaining disciples, as Evangelist Mark writes, began to grumble against the Zebedee brothers. It was then that the words of Jesus were heard that the one who wants to be in charge, let him become a servant of everyone, and the one who strives for primacy, let him be a slave to everyone.

What is striking in this scene is not only the warm, trusting relationship between Christ and his disciples, but also the fact that on the way to Jerusalem the Zebedee brothers were animatedly talking (and perhaps arguing among themselves if their mother intervened) not about something else, but about Kingdom of Heaven! For them, this is the same reality as for other travelers - a house at the end of the road, where food and lodging await them. This simple, undoubted faith was precisely what distinguished the disciples of Christ - be they a fisherman or a tax collector - from numerous skeptics and wise men.

Or maybe the brothers’ question was actually necessary for Christ to make the most important confession about His mission on earth:

- The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give His soul as a ransom for many.(Mark 10:45).

Another time, the Zebedee brothers were indignant that the inhabitants of some Samaritan village closed the gates when Christ wanted to stay with them for the night. This attitude towards the Teacher shocked John so much that he asked Jesus to allow him to bring down fire from heaven on the ungrateful Samaritans. Like the other eleven disciples, he also received the gift of miracles from Christ. But the Teacher forbade him to do this, saying: You don’t know what kind of spirit you are; for the Son of Man came not to destroy the souls of men, but to save. (Luke 9:55–56).

John's impulse coming from the heart shows his boundless love for Christ, as well as his youthful maximalism - suddenly somehow immediately betrays his age...

The Gospel of Luke describes another conversation between Jesus and John Zebedee. Once, on the way, the apostles met a stranger who was not walking with them, but on his own, but who also cast out demons in the name of Jesus. The apostles forbade him and moved on. But this meeting haunted the young, impressionable John, and on the way he asked Christ: did they do the right thing with that man? As it turned out, John had good reason to doubt.

Jesus said: do not prohibit, because whoever is not against you is for you(Luke 9:50).

Thus, all the apostles received another lesson, this time thanks to the sensitivity of John.

And this is how the very first meeting of Christ with John Zebedee took place.

Once, together with his fellow countryman and friend Andrei (apparently, a little older in age), John went to the Jordan River to see the prophet who had appeared from the desert, about whom everyone was talking.

John the Baptist called the people to repentance, baptized with water and spoke mysterious words: after him the One who will baptize with the Holy Spirit(Mark 1:8).

We do not know whether John was present at the time of Jesus' baptism, but he may have heard a lot about it from others. People who came to be baptized by John in the Jordan entered the river and stood chest-deep in the water for a long time, confessing their sins, after which they accepted a cleansing rite. Jesus, as the Gospel says, “immediately came out of the water” - He was completely clean from all sin! So the prophet John the Baptist, when Jesus passed by, pointed to Him and said the same thing: here is the Lamb of God(John 1:36) - that is, pure and sinless. Andrew and John, who were standing next to him at that moment, heard this and followed Jesus.

Probably, they themselves did not fully understand why and where they were going - this is how they move at night, from darkness to light, and this was a Light that not everyone, but only the pure in heart, could see. The young men silently followed Christ, not knowing how to turn to Him or call out to Him.

Then Christ Himself turned to them and asked:

- What do you need?

- Rabbi, where do you live?(John 1:38) - asked the less timid Andrei, who is now called the First-Called, since Jesus was the first to call him. And the very address “rabbi” (which means teacher) suggests that the young men have already chosen a mentor for themselves.

- Come and see(John 1:39), Jesus told them.

He brought Andrei and John into the house, where they talked for a long time: from noon until night.

It must have been an amazing conversation if Andrei immediately ran to his older brother, Simon, and announced: We have found the Messiah(John 1:41).

“They found the Messiah” means that they immediately and unconditionally recognized in Jesus that same King, the Liberator from slavery. And they were not at all embarrassed that the Messiah met them without a royal retinue, in simple clothes and brought him to an ordinary house on the banks of the Jordan... “We found” - means that John was of the same opinion.

According to legend, Jesus Christ was a relative of him on his mother’s side. It is believed that the mother of James and John, Salome, was the daughter of Joseph the Betrothed of Nazareth, who, having become a widower, took the Virgin Mary as his wife. It is about people like Andrew and John Zebedee that Jesus Christ will say in the Sermon on the Mount: Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God... (Matthew 5:8).

When the Prophet John the Baptist was arrested, his disciples and curious people were forced to go home. At this time, Jesus withdrew into the desert, where, through forty days of fasting and fighting temptations, he prepared to go out to preach.

One can imagine with what impatience John Zebedee awaited a new meeting with the Messiah. Born into a fisherman's family, he, as usual, helped his father Zebedee and his older brother fish in the Sea of ​​Galilee, while he himself waited and waited...

And one day Jesus Christ really appeared on the shore. Only now the “rabbi” was not walking alone, but surrounded by a large crowd of people - everyone was pushing, shouting, trying to touch at least the hem of His robe, asking Him to heal them, to perform a miracle.

Jesus noticed an empty boat on the shore belonging to Simon, Andrew's older brother, and entered it. The fishermen had just recently landed on the shore and were shaking out their empty nets. Christ asked Simon to help him row a little away from the shore - at least from a distance He could talk to the people. And the one who readily leaned on the oars, did not yet know to what distant distances he was going - it was none other than the Apostle Peter.

Among those who listened to Christ speaking from the boat were the fisherman Zebedee and his two sons, James and John, who were dismantling and repairing nets on the shore.

But then the people began to slowly disperse, and then Christ performed a purely “fishing” miracle for Simon. He showed where to cast the net to catch a lot of fish. And indeed, the catch turned out to be so large that the nets could not stand it. The astonished Simon called other fishermen for help, and Zebedee's boat was also filled to the brim with fish.

After this, Jesus called Simon and his brother Andrew to follow Him - and they became His first disciples.

Then Christ approached the boat, where John and his brother were mending their nets, and said mysterious words: I will make you fishers of men... (Matthew 4:19). And both Zebedee brothers, leaving their nets, their catch and their entire former life, also followed Jesus.

From this moment on, John Zebedeb will follow his beloved “rabbi” everywhere for three years. He, too, found himself among His chosen twelve disciples and forever chose a virgin way of life for himself. And perhaps for him, whose soul was little attached to the everyday, it was even easier for others to understand that Christ came in order to connect the earthly and the heavenly, to show people the way to the Kingdom of Heaven.

It is no coincidence that the symbolic image of the Evangelist John the Theologian became an eagle - a symbol of the high soaring of his feelings and thoughts.

A mysterious person appears frequently in the Gospel of John: one of the disciples... whom Jesus loved(John 13:23), and another disciple whom Jesus loved(John 20:2). There was a lot of discussion about this, but now almost no one doubts: the apostle and evangelist John wrote about himself this way out of modesty.

And it turns out that the one who wrote this(John 21:24) Gospel, was the only one who remained in the Garden of Gethsemane when Christ was taken into custody and all the other apostles fled in fear. The rooster did not crow three more times - the Apostle Peter renounced Christ, saying that he was not acquainted with Him, which he would repent of for the rest of his life. But in the courtyard of the high priest there was another silent disciple of His. Simon Peter and another disciple followed Jesus; This disciple was known to the high priest and entered with Jesus into the courtyard of the high priest. And Peter stood outside the doors. Then another disciple, who was known to the high priest, came out and spoke to the doorkeeper and brought Peter in. Then the servant servant said to Peter: “Are you not one of this Man’s disciples?” He said no(John 18:15–17).

Probably, John walked just as silently among those who accompanied Christ to the place of execution on Golgotha, watched how the Teacher was nailed to the cross and placed between two robbers, how the soldiers divided His clothes - he heard every heavy sigh of Christ - but even then no doubt about it.

And when Christ said, pointing with his eyes to the Mother of God, he probably spoke very quietly, because any word for the one nailed to the cross gave off terrible pain: Behold, your Mother(John 19:27) - of course, John immediately understood this command. Until the last day of the earthly life of the Most Holy Theotokos, he will take care of Her as his own son.

Later, when the Risen Christ appeared on the shore of the Sea of ​​Galilee, the disciple whom Jesus loved(John 21:7), he was the first to recognize his “rabbi” and said to Peter: it's the Lord(John 21:7). During that meal on the shore, when the Apostle Peter was forgiven and heard about his future, he asked Jesus: what awaits John?

If I want him to remain until I come, what is that to you?(John 21:22) - came in response.

These words were interpreted to mean that Christ granted John immortality, and His beloved disciple would never die. But John himself did not share this opinion, uploading his Gospel with these words:

And this word spread between the brothers that that disciple would not die. But Jesus did not tell him that he would not die, but: if I want him to remain until I come, what is that to you? This disciple testifies to this and wrote this; and we know that his testimony is true. Jesus did many other things; but if we were to write about it in detail, then I think the world itself would not be able to contain the books written(John 21:23–25).

After the descent of the Holy Spirit on the apostles, John, along with others, took an active part in the organization of the Jerusalem Church. At this time, he became the right hand of the active Apostle Peter, who often spoke before the people: together they went to the place of preaching, together they appeared in court, together they sat in prison. Together with Peter, they went to Samaria to lay hands on the converts. Jerusalem Christians will respectfully call John “the pillar of the Church.”

A few years after the Ascension of Christ, the Apostle Matthew wrote the first Gospel. This text will be rewritten and distributed by many, but the authorship of its first translation from Hebrew into Greek is also attributed to John Zebedee.

During these years, in Jerusalem, by order of King Herod Agrippa, his elder brother, the Apostle James, was executed after being denounced by a false witness.

According to legend, Jacob Zebedee calmly listened to the verdict and continued to testify about Christ. His courage so impressed the false witness that he already repented of his action at the trial, although this did not help the defendant. And when the apostle was led to execution, the accuser fell at his feet and began to beg to forgive him. Jacob embraced him and said, “Peace be with you, my son; peace and forgiveness to you."

The accuser announced that he also believed in Christ, and was executed along with the apostle. He did not even have time to accept the rite of baptism, but received “baptism in blood” - and there will be thousands of such Christians in the first centuries.

After the Dormition of the Mother of God, John Zebedee will leave Jerusalem forever.

When Christ's disciples were just preparing to go with missionary preaching to different parts of the world and were drawing lots, the Apostle John got Asia Minor. And now the time has come for him to fulfill his mission. Taking his disciple Prochorus with him, the Apostle John boarded a ship, and they set off for the shores of Asia Minor.

During the sea voyage, serious trials awaited them, which John, who had the gift of foresight, foresaw in advance. He immediately told Prokhor that misfortune awaited them at sea. And so it happened: not far from the southern coast of Asia Minor, the ship was caught in a storm and was broken. The passengers managed to escape on the ship's planks and reach the shore near Seleucia. And only one of them remained in the depths of the sea - it was John...

An interesting detail has been preserved in the Greek version of the life of the Apostle John. Having learned that Asia Minor was given to him by lot, John accepted the news with a heavy heart, as he experienced a strong fear of sea travel. Falling to his knees before the apostles, he confessed to them his cowardice. The apostles asked James, the first bishop of Jerusalem, to pray for John's forgiveness, after which everyone parted in peace. But then John did not have to leave Jerusalem, because he was entrusted with an equally important mission - caring for Mary, the Mother of Christ.

Prokhor shed many tears about the Apostle John who disappeared at sea. But he did not lose hope and continued to pray for his salvation. All this time, Prokhor did not leave the shore, slowly moving from Seleucia to the west and stopping for the night in coastal villages. And one morning a huge wave washed ashore an exhausted man on a board. It was John, who spent almost two weeks at sea, but by the will of God he remained alive.

Prokhor ran to the nearest village, brought bread and water, and when John gained some strength, they set off together and walked across all of Asia Minor on foot.

The Apostle John and Prokhor settled in the western port city of Ephesus, where the Apostle Paul had lived shortly before and, therefore, by that time there was a Christian community.

According to the life, in Ephesus, John and Prokhor were hired as workers by the owner of public baths named Romana. John had to heat the stove, and Prokhor had to carry water. In this house they had to endure a lot from Romana’s evil temper, but John, through prayer, performed the miracle of resurrecting from the dead the young man Domnus and his father Dioscorides, the city elder, who died of grief. After which both father and son, and Romana herself, believed in Christ and were baptized.

Another case is described, how on the feast of the goddess Diana (or Artemis of Ephesus), revered in Ephesus, the Apostle John admonished the pagans. When the people gathered in the temple, he stood near the statue of Artemis and began to talk about how people should not worship idols. The Ephesians became enraged and began throwing stones at John, but not a single one hit him - they all flew away from the statue and hit the throwers themselves. Then the Apostle John raised his hands to heaven and began to pray. And soon such unbearable heat set in that most of those who had gathered in the square in front of the temple hurried to go home.

Some researchers believe that the apostles quickly moved from Ephesus to Rome, from where, during the persecution of Nero, the Apostle John was exiled to the island of Patmos.

Others - and they are still the majority - adhere to the version that the Apostle John was sent into exile to Patmos much later, during the reign of the Roman Emperor Domitian, which means that before that he lived peacefully in Ephesus for almost thirty years.

The life of Christian communities in the first centuries was built according to its own rules, which in many ways differed from those of today.

If a person expressed a desire to become a Christian, he was introduced to a teacher (he could be either a priest or a layman), who talked with him in detail: asked about the person’s lifestyle, the reasons that prompted him to believe in Christ, etc. Those whom were recognized as worthy and were accepted into the catechumens, a special group of those preparing to be baptized and join the Church.

Catechumens were not allowed to participate in general worship and the Eucharist, since they had not yet been baptized. As a rule, the announcement period lasted two or three years, which allowed everyone to make a final and informed choice. Those worthy of baptism were called differently - chosen, or enlightened. For some time they held this title, and finally they were solemnly baptized on the night of Easter or on the night of Pentecost - usually on these two holidays. Baptism was also accompanied by anointing with special oil (chrism), which was consecrated on the throne.

During the first week, the new converts wore white robes and were treated as birthday boys by everyone in the community.

Every Sunday, Christians gathered together for worship - celebrating the day on which Jesus Christ was resurrected. During the liturgy, the Holy Scriptures were read and interpreted, then the believers prayed together and sang psalms. It happened that during a service someone began to prophesy or “speak in tongues,” and such events were given great importance - they were signs of the real presence of the Holy Spirit in the Church.

Finally, the believers received communion. The sacrament of the Body and Blood of Christ - the Eucharist - has always been and remains the main and most solemn moment of worship. In the first centuries, the Eucharist, or “breaking of bread,” was celebrated at a common table, as a remembrance of the Last Supper, during which Christ taught this sacrament to the disciples.

Since early Christian times, each local church had its own treasury for helping the poor, welcoming strangers, burying the homeless and other charitable purposes. During times of persecution, Christians sent donations to neighboring devastated churches or to brothers condemned to the mines or into exile. As a rule, at the end of each Sunday meeting a collection was made in favor of those in need - everyone gave as much as they could.

An important event in the life of the community was the meeting with apostles or brothers from other cities who brought messages from bishops or stories about martyrs who suffered for the faith. Christians gathered together to listen to them and pray together, to pass on testimonies about the venerated martyrs to other churches. In this way, the traditions and unity of the Church were maintained, no matter how far apart the communities were located.

The Apostle John lived in Ephesus in the circle of such events and everyday worries. As the closest disciple and witness of the earthly life of Christ, he enjoyed great respect and love not only among Ephesian Christians, but also took care of churches in other cities of Asia Minor - in Smyrna, Pergamum, Laodicea, Sardis, Thyatira, Philadelphia.

According to legend, during one of his travels he met the Apostle Philip, also a disciple of Christ from the age of twelve. This happened when the Apostle Philip went preaching through the cities of Asia Minor with his sister, the maiden Mariamne. You can imagine how much joy this unexpected meeting brought them!

In Ephesus, the Apostle John experienced an event that did not leave a single Jew indifferent, no matter what corner of the earth he was in: the uprising in Judea and the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple. Christ's prophecy came true: the Jewish shrine was destroyed by the Romans, leaving charred ruins on the site of the temple.

The Jerusalem Temple burned down on August 10, 70 - on the same day as several centuries ago when the first Jerusalem Temple, captured by Nebuchadnezzar, was destroyed. And this, too, contained the mysterious symbolism of numbers, which will be present so much in the “Apocalypse” of John the Theologian.

Ephesus was the main port city in western Asia Minor, the “gate” through which Roman legions crossed to the peninsula and returned. This means that the Ephesians also observed the sad ending of the Jewish War.

Titus, the son of Emperor Vespasian, who led the suppression of the Jewish uprising, removed from the Jerusalem Temple all the utensils left after the fire, and these were huge treasures, considering that the Jews, no matter where they lived, annually paid a universal tribute for the maintenance and decoration of the temple.

During the celebration of his triumph, Titus drove carts loaded with silver trumpets, golden seven-branched candlesticks and precious temple vessels through the streets of Rome. Almost all of this was later melted down and used to build the Colosseum, or, as it was then called, the Circus of Vespasian. Thirty thousand captive Jews, specially brought for this purpose from Palestine to Rome, were now working on the construction site, which had been started by Titus’s father. The famous Jewish writer Josephus, who described in detail the Jewish War and was very far from Christian views, wrote in his book: “All this happened to them because of the death of James the righteous, the brother of Jesus, who is called Christ. The Jews killed him, although he was a holy man. For this Caesar, who was popularly nicknamed “bald Nero,” neither his contemporaries nor historians said almost a kind word.

“After becoming emperor, Domitian at first liked to go into retirement to catch flies and pierce them with sticks,” Suetonius sarcastically reports (“The Life of the Twelve Caesars”).

Domitian's fear of dying at the hands of assassins reached the point that in his palace he ordered the walls of the portico, where the emperor usually walked, to be lined with a sparkling stone, like mica, so that he could always see if someone was hiding behind him.

One characteristic case is known from the time of his reign. One day Domitian invited the most influential people of Rome to his palace for a feast. The guests were led into a room decorated in black from floor to ceiling, and they were horrified to see that in front of each bed there was a tombstone and on each one his name was written. The guests took their places according to the inscriptions and waited only for the arrival of the executioner. But instead, several naked boys, painted black, entered the room and slowly performed a formal dance. Then they served a funeral cake and other dishes that are usually “offered” to the spirits of the dead. And all this time, the voice of Domitian, who was hiding behind the screen, told the guests terrible stories of murders and bloody crimes, to frighten them...

This palace “joke” gives an idea of ​​the atmosphere of manic suspicion in the empire during the reign of Domitian, who became the new enemy of Christians. Spies and informers were everywhere, prisons did not accommodate “suspicious individuals,” everyone was afraid of everyone and reported on everyone. Christians also began to be searched everywhere, captured and imprisoned.

The Apostle John was arrested and brought to Rome for trial, and during the trial he was beaten and tortured. According to legend, he was sentenced to death by poisoning, but drank the poison and remained unharmed. And everyone immediately remembered the legend of his immortality...

That is why he was sentenced to “eternal exile” on the remote desert island of Patmos.

By that time, all the other closest disciples of Christ had already completed their earthly journey. The apostles Peter and Paul were executed in Rome, Andrew suffered on the cross in the Greek city of Patras, Thomas in distant India. Only the Apostle John remained alive, and many thought that death would never truly touch him.

And although the Apostle John did not like sea travel, he again had to set sail on a ship - this time to the Greek island of Patmos, which at that time was a Roman colony.

The journey was again uneventful. The son of one of the rich passengers accidentally fell into the sea - and was rescued from the water through the prayers of the Apostle John. During the voyage, he even performed the miracle of turning salt water into fresh water when all supplies ran out.

How can we not remember that only the Gospel of John tells about the miracle in Cana of Galilee, when Christ Jesus turned water into wine at a wedding feast...

Everyone who sailed with the Apostle John on the ship loved him so much and believed in the holiness of the elder that they offered to land them and Prokhor in any place they wanted. But John ordered them to be taken to Patmos, sensing that something more than a simple exile awaited him.

At that time, the small rocky island of Patmos - the northernmost island of the Greek Dodecanese archipelago - was sparsely populated, much less enlightened: hardly anyone here had heard of Christianity before.

John was exiled to a large quarry, where he, along with the rest of the prisoners, cut stone. The apostle lived in an ordinary cave, slept on a stone floor - and at that time he was already a very old man!

The ruler of the island soon became aware of the unusual convict. The life tells how in the house of Myron, the ruler’s father-in-law, the apostle performed miracles of healing, as a result of which Myron, his wife, children, and then the ruler himself were baptized and converted to Christianity.

Since ancient times, the inhabitants of Patmos worshiped idols, especially Apollo was revered here. The Apostle John competed with a certain local sorcerer Kinops and won - probably not with him alone. It is known that by the end of his exile, most of the island's inhabitants already believed in Christ.

One day, when the Apostle John was in his cave, he heard a Voice addressed to him from heaven. The Apostle immediately recognized him and readily asked: “What, Lord?” John was ordered to spend ten more days in the cave, after which many secrets would be revealed to him. And on Sunday, the Apostle John heard a loud voice, like a trumpet, saying: I am Alpha and Omega, First and Last(Rev. 1:10). A great and formidable vision opened before him, and an Angel of God appeared, explaining everything that was shown. The apostle called the disciple to write down everything that he would dictate, and, according to legend, Prokhor took dictation for two days and another six hours. However, time has stopped...

This is how the Book of Revelation, or Apocalypse, of John the Theologian appeared, where for the first time the secrets of the future fate of the Church and the end of the world were revealed to humanity. The Apostle and Evangelist John the Theologian is also called the “Seer of Mysteries,” or “Seer of Mysteries.”

"Revelation" begins with John the Evangelist seeing open doors leading to heaven.

And immediately I was in spirit; and behold, a throne stood in heaven, and on the throne was He who sat(Rev. 4:2).

Apocalypse (Greek “revelation”) is a special, mystical book that cannot be retold. It is full of mysterious symbols and images - in this language the Lord spoke with the prophets and patriarchs in ancient times. These symbols can be interpreted in different ways, but each time only a small part of the great secret that God communicated to humanity through the Apocalypse will be revealed.

For example, the image of the harlot of Babylon sitting on a seven-headed serpent is read by many as Rome, located on seven hills. Or is it not just Rome anymore?

The Apostle John saw in the middle of the throne and around the throne were four living creatures, full of eyes in front and behind. And the first living creature was like a lion, and the second living creature was like a calf, and the third living creature had a face like a man, and the fourth living creature was like a flying eagle.(Rev. 4:6–7).

Subsequently, these images became symbols of the four evangelists: the lion - the symbol of Mark, the calf - Luke, the Angel - Matthew, and the eagle - John himself.

The image of the Church appears beautiful and majestic in the Revelation of John.

And a great sign appeared in Heaven: a woman clothed with the sun; under her feet is the moon, and on her head is a crown of twelve stars(Rev. 12:1). In the Apocalypse, Christ, through the Apostle John, also addresses seven specific churches in Asia (the Roman province in Asia Minor) - Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laocea. It is believed that these seven churches are the personification of the entire Universal Church at different stages of its development, right up to the present day.

“Seven is a symbol of the fullness of the world, and John the Theologian addresses the seven Churches, that is, the fullness of the entire Church,” priest Daniil Sysoev wrote in his “Interpretation of the Apocalypse.”

The last church is Laodicea, the only one about which nothing good has been said - this is the church of the times of the end of the world.

I know your affairs; you are neither cold nor hot; Oh, that you were cold or hot! But because you are warm, and neither hot nor cold, I will drive you out of My mouth. For you say: I am rich, I have become rich, and I have need of nothing; but you don’t know that you are unhappy, and pitiful, and poor, and blind, and naked(Rev. 3:15–17).

We are accustomed to perceive the Apocalypse as a terrible story about a great universal catastrophe before the end of the world, to talk about apocalyptic sentiments, meaning the darkest forebodings. This is Hollywood's favorite story about how our civilization will end. And the four horsemen of the Apocalypse (plague, war, famine and death) still rush over the earth - although in a different embodiment than that depicted by Durer, Böcklin, Viktor Vasnetsov and other artists.

Yes, all this is true, but Christians of the first centuries perceived the Apocalypse of John the Theologian also as a great revelation about the long-awaited victory of good over evil.

And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death; There will be no more crying, nor crying, nor pain, for the former things have passed away.(Rev. 21:4). This book announced to believers about the coming victory of Christianity, gave hope, and inspired martyrdom in the name of faith. And I heard as it were the voice of a great people, as the sound of many waters, as the voice of mighty thunder, saying: Hallelujah! For the Lord God Almighty reigns(Rev. 19:6). Here, for example, is a “short retelling” of the Apocalypse by the 2nd century apologist Melito, Bishop of Sardia:

“In the same way, in the last time there will be a flood of fire, and the earth and its mountains will be burned, people will be burned along with the idols they made and the statues they worshiped, and the sea and its islands will be burned up, but the righteous will be preserved from wrath, how the righteous were preserved in the ark from the waters of the flood.”

At the turn of the 2nd–3rd centuries, a list of books recognized by the Church as sacred (the so-called Muratori canon) was compiled, which included the Apocalypse of John the Theologian.

Numerous imitations began to appear, which we call apocrypha. For example, in the Apocalypse of Peter, sinners in hell are punished by Angels in dark clothes - according to the author, there is too much smoke and soot, and the angels can get dirty while working. But can you compare all these human inventions with the grandiose visions of the Apostle John?

In 96, Emperor Domitian was killed by conspirators in his bedroom. Neither halls of mirrors nor crowds of informants helped... Immediately after Domitian’s death, senators ordered the removal of his monuments in Rome and all inscriptions with his name knocked down from public buildings. Nerva ascended the throne, and prisoners under the previous ruler began to be returned from prison and exile.

The Apostle John and Prochorus also returned to Ephesus, where they were joyfully greeted by Christians. At this time, the bishop of the Ephesian Church was Timothy, the beloved disciple of Paul, who treated with great reverence that whom Jesus loved(John 13:23). In Ephesus, the Apostle John settled in the same house where he lived before his exile, and lived in it until his death. During this period he will write another greatest work - the Gospel of John.

The further the gospel events went into the past, the more speculation arose regarding the Personality of Jesus Christ. There will be a lot of all kinds of heresies, and the most persistent of them will subsequently become the subject of discussion at local and ecumenical councils.

The Ephesian Christians convinced the Apostle John to expound Christian teaching as he received it from the Teacher, and to tell the whole truth about Christ himself.

According to legend, John imposed a strict fast on everyone, and he and Prokhor went to the mountain. About the fourth day, strong thunder suddenly thundered, lightning flashed in the sky, and the Apostle John dictated the first lines to Prochorus:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. It was in the beginning with God. Everything came into being through Him, and without Him nothing came into being that came into being. In Him was life, and life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness does not embrace it... (John 1:1–5).

The Gospel of John is truly unique! On the one hand, it contains the deepest mysteries, over which great theological minds have been struggling for two millennia. The Word was God... On the other hand, the Gospel of John, larger than the other three - Matthew, Mark and Luke, can in some ways be compared with modern reporting. If you want to find out which of the disciples asked Christ this or that question or other details, then first of all you should turn to the Gospel of John - it was written by an undoubted eyewitness of the events.

Only from the Gospel of John, for example, can one learn that at the moment Jesus fed five thousand people with bread, it was the Apostle Philip who asked in confusion: where can we buy bread to feed so many people, and the Apostle Andrew remembered that one boy had five barley loaves and only two fish. After all, John was also there. The Gospel of John - and only in it - tells about the miracle of turning water into wine at a feast in Cana of Galilee, about the resurrection of Lazarus and his sisters - Martha and Mary, and a conversation between Jesus and the Pharisee Nicodemus, during which at least one other person was present attentive listener.

Truly, truly, I say to you, unless someone is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

Nicodemus said to Him: How can a man be born when he is old? Can he really enter his mother’s womb another time and be born?

Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.”

That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

Do not be surprised at what I said to you: you must be born again. The Spirit breathes where it wants, and you hear its voice, but you don’t know where it comes from or where it goes, this is what happens to everyone born of the Spirit.(John 3: 3–8), says Christ to Nicodemus.

Surprised Nicodemus asks: how can it be?(John 3:9).

If I told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?(John 3:12) - Jesus will ask him bitterly.

But these words apply least of all to John, who is close to the “heavenly”: he was given the ability to understand the language of heavenly revelations and contemplate spiritual visions.

Many researchers write that at the time of writing, the Apostle John was well aware of the other Gospels, and he consciously sought to fill in the missing details. And with every line of his gospel, the Apostle John proves that Christ is God and the Son of Man, that is, the God-man, and not just one of the prophets or great moral teachers.

Three conciliar letters of the Apostle John the Theologian have been preserved, and all of them are imbued with the truly unearthly love that Christ taught him.

...We have come to know love in the fact that He laid down His life for us: and we must lay down our lives for our brothers. And whoever has wealth in the world, but, seeing his brother in need, closes his heart from him - how does the love of God abide in him? My children! let us love not in word or tongue, but in deed and truth(1 John 3: 16–18), the Apostle John calls on Christians.

I have a lot to write to you, but I don’t want to write it on paper with ink, but I hope to come to you and speak mouth to mouth, so that your joy will be full"(2 John 1:12) - he will write to an unknown woman chosen lady and her children(2 John 1:1), and this is so characteristic of him: to rush to someone in order to bring complete and complete joy, forgetting about his own weakness and years.

Saint Clement of Alexandria, in his sermon “Which of the Rich Will Be Saved,” told a touching story about the Apostle John. Once the Apostle John met a handsome young man who had an inclination towards good deeds and the study of spiritual subjects. The Apostle left him in the care of the local bishop, so that he would accept him among the catechumens, and he himself went to the next city.

The bishop first took care of the young man, taught him, finally honored him with baptism, after which he ceased to take special care of him. The young man found himself in a society of vicious people and soon reached such a point that he became the leader of a gang of robbers and even surpassed others in cruelty.

After some time, the Apostle John happened to be in this city again, and he immediately asked the bishop about the young man. “The young man died,” he said, “he died for God and eternal life.” This news deeply upset John.

“Is this how you should have cared about the soul of your brother entrusted to you? - he told the bishop. “Give me a horse and a guide, I’ll go after him.” And indeed, the elder himself went to the mountains, having found out where the gang was rampant. The robbers grabbed him and brought him to their leader, which is what the Apostle John wanted. At the sight of the holy elder, the young man was so embarrassed that he jumped out of his seat and ran away. John ran after him, shouting loudly after him: “My son, why are you running from your father? Have pity on me, my child; Do not be afraid, there is still hope for life; I will be answerable to Christ for you; I'm ready to give my life for you. Stop and listen to me..."

Finally, the young man could not stand it, stopped, threw down his weapon and, with tears, threw himself at the feet of John. The Apostle took him to the city and only then let him go until the repentant was again accepted into the Christian community.

This story reflects the entire loving soul of the Apostle John. It was about such boundless healing love that he wrote in his First Conciliar Epistle:

There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear, because in fear there is torment. He who fears is imperfect in love. Let us love Him because He first loved us. He who says, “I love God,” but hates his brother, is a liar: for he who does not love his brother whom he sees, how can he love God whom he does not see? And we have this commandment from Him, that he who loves God should also love his brother(1 John 4:18–21). John the Theologian lived to a ripe old age. According to historians, the apostle ended his earthly days approximately 68 years after the Crucifixion of Christ, approximately in the year 100.

Eusebius, Bishop of Caesarea, in his “Ecclesiastical History” wrote about the Apostle John: “Upon returning from exile from the island after the death of Domitian, he took care of the local Churches. That he lived to this time is sufficiently attested by two most faithful witnesses, the leaders of church orthodoxy: Irenaeus and Clement of Alexandria. The first of them, in his 2nd book “Against Heresies,” narrates verbatim like this: “All the Asian elders who communicated with John, the disciple of the Lord, testify that he spoke about this; after all, he was with them until the time of Trajan.” In the 3rd book of that same work, he writes: “And the Church founded by Paul in Ephesus - John lived there until the time of Trajan - is a true witness to the apostolic story.” The reign of Emperor Trajan began in 98 and lasted nineteen years.

At the end of his life, John could no longer walk. The disciples carried him in their arms to the congregation, and the apostle kept repeating: “My children, love each other! (John 13:34)

Someone asked why he repeated the same thing, and the Apostle John said: “This is the commandment of the Lord, it contains all His teaching.”

Feeling the approach of death, the Apostle John, accompanied by seven disciples, went out of town and ordered to dig a cross-shaped grave according to his height, and he himself, moving aside, began to pray. When the grave was ready, he lay down in it as if in a bed, spread out his arms and ordered his disciples to cover him with earth.

The disciples first covered him with earth up to his knees, then up to his neck, and when they saw that the holy elder was no longer breathing, they covered his face with a handkerchief and, after kissing him, covered him all over with earth.

The Ephesian Christians, having learned about such an unusual burial of the Apostle John, came the next morning and dug up the grave. They must have wanted to bury him in a better, more honorable place. But the grave was empty!

According to legend, believers found only the sandals of the Apostle John at the burial site. And of course, we immediately remembered the words spoken by Jesus: If I want him to remain until I come, what is that to you?(John 21:23). So in the Apocalypse he wrote about himself: And he said to me: You must prophesy again about nations and nations and languages ​​and many kings.(Rev. 10:11).

One of the interpretations of this prophecy is this: the Lord in his body took him from this world, like the Old Testament Enoch and Elijah the prophet once, and at the right time he will return him to earth again.

Thus, John the Theologian left us another great secret - the mystery of his death.

For many centuries, memorial services have been held over the grave of the holy Apostle, and it was noticed that it was on May 8 that a clearly visible coating, something like fine dust, appeared on the ground. Believers began to collect it and receive healing from many diseases. In memory of this miracle, another day of remembrance of the holy apostle was established, along with September 26, the celebration of the repose of the apostle.

The cave on Patmos, where John the Theologian received the Revelation, has survived to this day: a monastery was founded next to it in honor of the apostle. The pilgrims are shown the crevice through which the sound came loud voice, like a trumpet(Rev. 1: 10), in front of the entrance to the cave the words are written: “This place, which makes an indelible impression, is the house of God and the gates of Heaven.”

Among the numerous icons of the Apostle John, there is one, ancient, called “John the Theologian in Silence.” On it, the apostle raised his finger to his lips and seemed to say: shh, hush... After all, the Angel who appeared in Revelation ordered him to be silent about the very last mysteries.

The Holy Apostle and Evangelist John the Theologian occupies a special place among the chosen disciples of Christ the Savior. Often in iconography, the Apostle John is depicted as a meek, majestic and spirit-bearing old man, with features of virginal tenderness, with the seal of complete calm on his forehead and the deep gaze of a contemplator of ineffable revelations

Another main feature of the spiritual appearance of the apostle is revealed through his teaching on love, for which he primarily received the title of Apostle of Love. Indeed, all his writings are permeated with love, the main idea of ​​which boils down to the concept that God in His being is Love (1 John 4:8). In them he dwells primarily on the manifestations of God’s inexpressible love for the world and man, on the love of his Divine Teacher. He constantly exhorts his disciples to love each other.

The service of Love is the entire life path of the Apostle John the Theologian.

He was characterized by calmness and depth of contemplation combined with ardent loyalty, tender and boundless love with ardor and even some harshness. From the brief instructions of the Evangelists it is clear that he had an extremely ardent nature, his heartfelt impulses sometimes reached such violent jealousy that Jesus Christ was forced to moderate them, as disagreeing with the spirit of the new teaching (Mark 9, 38 - 40; Luke. 9; 49 - 50: Luke 9, 54 - 56) and called the Apostle John and his brother James “sons of thunder” (Boanerges).

At the same time, he reveals a rare modesty and, despite his special position among the apostles as a disciple whom Jesus loved, he did not stand out from the number of other disciples of the Savior. The distinctive features of his character were observation and receptivity to events, imbued with a subtle sense of obedience to the will of God.
Impressions received from outside were rarely found in his word or action, but penetrated powerfully and deeply into the inner life of the holy Apostle. Always sensitive to others, his heart ached for those who were perishing. The Apostle John listened with reverent awe to the God-inspired teaching of his Teacher, filled with grace and truth, contemplating in pure and sublime love the Glory of the Son of God. Not a single feature from the earthly life of Christ the Savior escaped the penetrating gaze of the Apostle John, not a single event passed without leaving a deep trace in his memory, therefore the entire fullness and integrity of the human personality was concentrated in him.

The thoughts of the Apostle John the Theologian had the same integrity. For him there was no duality. According to him, where there is no complete devotion, there is nothing. Having chosen the path of serving Christ, he pursued it with completeness and undivided consistency until the end of his life. The Apostle John speaks of complete devotion to Christ, of the fullness of life in Him, therefore he views sin not as weakness and corruption of human nature, but as evil, as a negative principle, completely opposite to good (John 8:34; 1 John 3, 4; 1 John 3, 8 - 9). In his opinion, one can belong either to Christ or to the devil; there can be no middle, indefinite state (1 John 2:22; 1 John 14:3). Therefore, he served the Lord with undivided love and dedication, rejecting everything that belonged to the original enemy of man, the enemy of truth and the founder of lies (1 John 2:21 - 22). The more he loves Christ, the more he hates Antichrist; the more he loves the truth, the more he hates lies - light excludes darkness (John 8:12; John 12:35 - 36). With this manifestation of the inner fire of love, he testified with special strength of spirit about the Divinity of Jesus Christ (John 1:1-18; 1 John 5:1-12).

The Apostle John was destined to express the last word of Divine Revelation, introducing the innermost secrets of the inner Divine life, known only to the eternal Word of God, the Only Begotten Son.

The truth is reflected in his mind and word, because he feels and comprehends it with his heart. He contemplates the eternal Truth and, as he sees it, passes it on to his beloved children. The Apostle John simply affirms or denies and always speaks with absolute accuracy (1 John 1:1). He hears the voice of the Lord, revealing to him what He Himself hears from the Father.

The theology of the Apostle John destroys the boundary between the present and the future. Observing the present, the temporal, he does not dwell on it, but transfers his gaze to the eternal in the past and to the eternal in the future. And therefore, calling for holiness of life, he solemnly proclaims that “whoever is born of God will not sin” (1 John 5:18; 1 John 3:9). In communion with God, a true Christian participates in the Divine life, therefore the future of humanity is already taking place on earth. In presenting and revealing the doctrine of the Economy of Salvation, the Apostle John the Theologian moves into the realm of the eternally present, in which Heaven has descended to earth and the renewed earth is illuminated by the Light of Heavenly Glory.

On October 9, the Orthodox Church celebrates the day of remembrance of the Apostle John the Theologian, one of the closest disciples of Jesus Christ. John was also the author of the Christian holy books of the New Testament: the Gospel of John, the three epistles, and Revelation (Apocalypse).

He is often called the apostle of love: John spoke more than other evangelists about God’s love for people and that a person is saved, first of all, by love for God and neighbor.

The Gospel written by John differs in structure and content from the first three Gospels, called synoptic: in them the emphasis was placed on the most complete possible presentation of events from the earthly life of the Lord Jesus Christ and His moral teaching, and the Gospel of John was written later and narrated about what was not mentioned by the other evangelists. John, more deeply than the other apostles, comprehended and preserved the spiritual teaching of Christ - the teaching about His Divine nature. The Gospel of John sets forth the deepest truths of the faith, which later formed the basis of Christian dogma. For this John received the nickname of the Theologian. In his Gospel, John also spoke about himself, but out of modesty he called himself in the third person: “the disciple whom Jesus loved.”

The future apostle was born and raised in Galilee, in a village on the shores of the Sea of ​​Galilee. John's brother James, who in the Christian tradition is called by the name of his father, James Zebedee, was also an apostle. John and James were called at the very beginning of Christ's preaching - shortly after the first apostles Peter and Andrew.

John and James were impetuous and hot-tempered people. One day they asked Christ to incinerate with heavenly fire a village where they were not accepted. Christ was angry with them for this unreasonable request. And for their ardor he nicknamed both brothers the Sons of Thunder.

John witnessed many of Christ's miracles: the miracle of turning water into wine at a wedding in Cana of Galilee, the Transfiguration of the Lord on Mount Tabor. He was present when Christ was captured in the Garden of Gethsemane, and was one of the few disciples who followed Him to the end. Together with the Most Holy Theotokos, John stood at the Cross of the Savior. Before his death, Christ ordered him to take care of the Most Pure Virgin as his own mother, and She lived in his house until the end of Her earthly life.

Before going to preach in different countries, the apostles cast lots, and Asia Minor fell to John. He preached in the city of Ephesus. Under Emperor Domitian, who persecuted Christians, the apostle was exiled to the island of Patmos. There God gave him a revelation about the future destinies of the Church and the whole world. John recorded this revelation, and his book Apocalypse (Revelation) was also included in the canon of the New Testament. The book of the Apocalypse is written in complex, symbolic language that reflects spiritual reality, so it is mysterious and allows for many interpretations. These interpretations were created by early Christian theologians, the Holy Fathers, and even philosophers of the New Age.

On the island of Patmos a cave has been preserved to this day, in which, according to legend, the apostle lived at the time when he wrote his Apocalypse. Now there is a temple in it, and next to it is the Monastery of St. John the Theologian, which, together with the cave, is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

After the death of Emperor Domitian, John was allowed to return to Ephesus. There, at the end of his life, he wrote his Gospel, died and was buried. Under Emperor Constantine, who allowed Christianity to be freely practiced, a church was built at the burial site of the apostle. Every year a miracle took place in this church: pink dust appeared on the tomb, which was used to anoint the sick and they were healed. After the capture of Ephesus by the Turks in the 11th century, the church fell into disrepair; now its ruins are being explored by archaeologists.

The Church does not know about the existence of the relics of John the Theologian. There is a legend that he, like the Blessed Virgin Mary, was taken to heaven in the flesh after death: when, some time after the death of the apostle, his tomb was opened to venerate his holy relics, it was discovered that it was empty.

On the day of remembrance of the Apostle John, solemn services are held in churches. On the eve, an all-night vigil is served, which is supposed to be served only on a major holiday, and in the morning on the day of remembrance of the Apostle - the Divine Liturgy. At all these services, hymns are sung glorifying this great saint - the Theologian and Apostle of Love.